Remember that from 6th grade science class??? The Xylem is good but the FLOM has a leaker... need some of those super whamadine header gaskets that some one referred to a while ago. Where they come from and who makes them?? Please refer to the Saturday thred on the bench for a better description.... Thanks, Bill in TR
Are you talking about remflex gaskets bill?? Edit: just went back and reread the Saturday thread and it appears that you were eluding to remflex gaskets. They do have a pretty good reputation and I just put them on my car, I can see how they would be more durable. Anyway, I got mine really reasonably priced on amazon (with free shipping!) but I'm sure ta/jegs/summit probably carry them.
Can you tell me more? Just sent TA a query so the market is still open. I am also considering 12 point bolts as the hex jobs and allen jobs really blow for access too. Please advise! ws
I'm no expert by any means, I just did a lot of reading up on this and other forums, and the vast majority had very favorable things to say about the remflex gaskets. I read a lot of "I had 3 different gaskets on there all leak until I put on the remflex and now no leaks" etc etc. There were a few that weren't as positive, but overall the vast majority were. Just an fyi, take it for what its worth, I used Grade 8 locking fasteners and the install wasn't god awful, but there were definitely a few bolts that were challenging to get in! Plus with the grade 8's you have to clock them correctly for the little locking flange, so that adds a pinch more difficulty to the fold, but not much. Now the caveat to all this is I have not fired the car since putting these gaskets on, so I cannot speak from personal experience to their effectiveness. But I tried my best to research and pass along what I found.
Well pal... we will just have to join this club together... I just ordered a set this morning (a little tricky as they need to come from THE distributor) for $40 with free shipping, and the bolts I got at Fastenal with a 3/8 12 point head. The crush on that gasket material is 20 ft.lbs so don't keep tightening or itll squeeze the material right out. That 20lbs figure will also give you a 50% compression rate. Itll be an interesting experiment to say the least! Bill in TR
Funny that you mentioned the 12 point bolts. I got a set in various lengths from fastenal as well (used to work there) because it was a giant pain to get a 1/2" wrench to a few bolts. I cut a cheap 3/8" wrench in half to get more turns in the tighter areas. And certain spots I bent the wrench in my vice to get the right angle. I like them, and was way easier to install... but experiences may differ! Best of luck!
Here is the bottom line IMHO with header gaskets and bolts. The gasket manufacturer doesn't matter at all. If your header flanges and head surface is straight, any gasket will seal. What I have found is that when you first install them, you need to check and tighten the bolts for several heat cycles. Keep snugging the bolts up. At some point, they will remain tight and there will be no problem with leaks. I check all the bolts once a month after that. If you fail to do this, any gasket will fail. Super Whammer Jammer header bolts will make it easier to get a wrench on them and tighten them, but they won't work any better if you don't check them as above.
Anyone give those Stage 8 locking bolts a try? they look like a nice product, but will agree 100% on what Larry stated above. Bruce
I have them Bruce. They are really nice and the concept is sound, but the proof will be in the pudding. Car want be out to play till spring so we shall see. They do look trick though!
The Remflex gaskets do two things that none of the other gaskets do: 1. They conform to the irregularities in the surfaces 2. They rebound against the two surfaces so you should NEVER have to tighten them again.... I will never use another header gasket.
You should start out with FLAT surfaces, as you do with eng blks & cyl head surfaces! I ground exh flange surface flat, no leaks with Mr Gasket brand.:TU: Re-tighten as Larry states.
I agree, but how many people are not willing to take the heads off and take them to be machined, and how many new headers are not perfectly flat...
Why go through all the cycles of initial tightening/re-tighteneing, checking once a month/etc. When ALL you have to do is install the RemFlex gaskets as per instructions & it is done forever. As we ALL know some header bolts are a bear to get at/tighten. Not to mention leaning over nice/newly painted components. There is ALWAYS the possibility of damage. The more leaning the more the possibilities become. Why chance it??? Once the RemFlex gaskets are initially torqued to 20ft. lbs. that's it, DONE!!!! At 20ft.lbs. the material is compressed about half way to allow for expansion & contraction. Anymore than 20 & your doing yourself a disfavor & not taking advantage to the design. Yes, more costly but how much is your time worth. Like many of us our time gets shorter the older we get. It's interesting that when we were younger we had hours to waste to do with what we wanted. As we get older we normally don't have seconds to waste, what with work, home, family, etc. Just my thoughts on the subject. Tom T.
WOW !!! A bunch of people actually paying attention to this one; INPUT too! Doctor Willy here will have to concur that effective gasketing depends on two points: A good clean surface and making sure the fasteners are doing their jobs. Practically speaking, I really doubt that any header manufacturer would build a product with any more than a rudimentary fixture for weldments. I think that is why theres always about .050" of tube proud of the flange. After its built the next step is for the after high school afternoon kid to take a grinder and "kinda" smooth off the butt ends around the welds. That's supposed to leave the butt end to do all the sealing on the gaskets. Buick as always having done things on a heavier duty basis always used a heavier than normal manifold, which when being flat would mate to the head and not leak "gasketless". That, and there was the noise issue as in old Caddy's having a lead line exhaust pipe as well... ultra quiet, but as for the header bolting, the siamesed center ports with the magic #7 bolt in the middle bottom doesn't seal as effectively as much as symmetrical bolting would do. That's why I think that gasket crush is essential to sealing the center part, hence the hand fitting of the tube ends on mine. I honestly also believe that being an NA (naturally aspirated) motor, the exhaust pressure probably isn't more than about 20 psi. Any guesses on that number guys? If it were blown or turboed with say 10+psi of INTAKE manifold pressure, a different gasketing arrangement would be necessary for constant duty street driving. Bent Wrenches??? Hell yeah!! Bend 'em and grind a notch to fit down into the dark hole of Calcutta? No problemo. As long as I can get a decent quality wrench down in there for that last good pull to tighten, Im OK with even chinaman stuff. Most of my knuckles are pretty well intact from 50 years of doing this stuff... I always watch where my hands are gonna fly if I slip. Lotsa good points on the gaskets from Remulac. I hope to report with good success in the spring. I really DO NOT want to do this job again! Is that header gasket material falling to earth after the BBB light off? ;<)) Bill in TR https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uELhEYbZIy8
One of the great flix of all time... funny AND stupid, yet not dumb. I still laugh when I see it! The first generation of SNL people were great... now that's lapsed into the past as well ;-(( Bill in TR
OOPS!!! One more question I forgot to ask... on the drivers side I am gonna be changing the Booster and MC for that header job as well. Should I pull the steering shaft and rag joint to gain some space Is it worth the space and whats involved in breaking the spine end? It couldalways use an inspection a clean and paint job! Bill in TR
Short and sweet... Pulled the rag joint apart and NO CLEARNCE to extend it and lift it past header, control arm, and power steering pump without lifting the motor, AGAIN. Aint gonna happen. So I pulled the header bolts, and had 1/2" to clean the faces with a file, AGAIN... Now Im tapped and came in for a boost... Hmmm... Bill in TR THANKS SANTA !!
