Don Terrill’s Speed-Talk

I usually use a fel pro 1803 pan gasket but was thinking about the one piece gaskets. I need the thick front seal and I see Victor Reinz has one OS30568RLH and Fel Pro has one with left and right dip stick provision OS34510T. Any problems with either of those? I like the idea of a one piece reusable gasket.

You know, maybe it's just me, but we had more seeps and leaks with the one piece, retro gasket then with the old multi-piece gasket.. I have sealed them TIGHT with the old school gasket for years, had no problem over the long haul, even. I went back to the basic old-school gasket and have not looked back. I guess why mess with what works for ya.

I use the 1880 fel pro on the wet sump motors I build. Circle track IMCA type motors no problems.

My results are also better with the original, four piece set. I "think" in some cases, the one piece is too thick, too rigid. Where as the four piece is more forgiving, just enough flexibility to conform better.

We have had the best results with the Corteco gasket 16635 as it a softer gaskets and seals better then the Felpro from guys we have sold the corteco gaskets to.

For the four piece gaskets do you use a sealer on the rail gaskets, I hear both ways, put them on dry and then other say use Indian Head-Hi Tack, etc sealer on those. For the rubber half moon shape seals the black silicone RTV is best--right?

The one piece gasket leaks unless you silicone it, and once you've done that theres no point in wasting the time cleaning it to re-use it. The 4 piece gaskets don't leak if done right. I gaskacinch the cork down to the pan rails, then lightly silicone over the cap and timing cover, then put the rubbers in place, a dollop of silicone in all four corners where the rubber meets the cork and then a bead all the way around. Doesn't leak and doesn't move.

I had trouble with the fel-pro on my 496 BBC. The leak was right in line with the large counterweight on the crank. It poured out even at a idle. I tightened it at the track and it just got worse. It even had the sleeves to keep from overtightening it! I had a nice straight oil pan too. I ran one time run and the rest of the day was over, no racing after all that driving and money spent. To make matters worse they arent cheap eithier!! I had a Mr Gasket one piece on another engine and it worked great.

I find it interesting that everyone says these leak. Chevrolet hasn't used anything but one piece gaskets in 20 years. If you buy a 602 or 604 crate engine they have one piece pan gaskets.

robert1 wrote:I find it interesting that everyone says these leak. Chevrolet hasn't used anything but one piece gaskets in 20 years. If you buy a 602 or 604 crate engine they have one piece pan gaskets.

Your absolutely right, and applications that were designed with the one piece gasket from the beginning, I don't have any troubles with, it is specifically the "retro" gaskets that give me trouble, and I am no novice in sealing an engine up, I HATE even as much as a seep, where-as some builders accept some leakage.


As far as sealing up the basic 4 piece cork gasket, I glue the cork down w/ some weatherstrip, I put a little RTV under and on top of the end seals, and as of late, I have been "wiping" a small amount of silicon on top of the cork, but I do not tighten the pan down fully until the silicon cures, I pull it down about 50%. This method has been yielding me ZERO leaks!

What I have found to be an issue with the one piece gaskets is the pan design where the end seals meet the side rails. If you look at a stock steel pan or some of the aftermarket steel pans they have a nice 1/2 “ or 3/4” radius at that location. The fabbed pans AKA aluminum seam to all be an abrupt turn at that intersection, no radius to speak of.


Not to side track the thread but Saturday I opened a brand new (sealed) fel-pro 1886(late small block 1 piece pan gasket) box and inside it was a grey Big Block pan gasket. I would assume they are production line packed?? Wonder if anyone else found the same surprise in the last few weeks???

Keith

I have nothing but (what seems) bad luck with my one-piece. It may be excess blow-by, but I don't think I have THAT much. One thing is for sure, it's expensive and hasn't held any oil in, atleast for me. It gets REAL bad at the what looks like the rear main cap lip/gasket seal, and at the front where the gasket and the timing cover meet. I can't seem to stop the leak at all, with any amount of silicone.

Mind me asking what sealant you guys use? Permatex #2 isn't holding it up real well. Also, what's the best 4-piece setup? What kind of sealant do I need to use with that?

Hylomar...it's the deal that killed Elvis.

Contact Brian from Dakota parts wharehouse, he is a member here.



Keith

Count me as another "bad luck with 1 piece" crowd member. They are expensive and I've had problems getting them to seal.

Have had good luck with the cheapest 4 piece that I can find - lately has been Mr. Gasket brand, with light usage of RTV. It makes cleanup take a lot longer than a 1 piece, but it's easier to deal with an extra hour in cleaning instead of seeing oil drops all the time.

k-star wrote:Hylomar...it's the deal that killed Elvis.

Contact Brian from Dakota parts wharehouse, he is a member here.



Keith

Whoa. The more I use, the more HP I gain, right?

Can't find him in the memberlist. Can you help a brother out?