Perimeter bolt or center bolt valve covers?

[Dutch Rutter]

Hello everyone.

Having some trouble getting my new cast aluminum valve covers to seal up. Mainly seeing a slight leak/seep in the rear, lower corners. Common from what I've found.

My heads can run either type. So I'm wondering if buying a set of center bolt covers and putting them in place of my current cast perimeter covers would solve this annoying issue. Or if I just need to live with it.

Btw: I'm using the good felpro rubber with steel centers gaskets, surfaces are flat and clean. Anything else I've missed?

 

[Frankenchevy]

Hello everyone.

Having some trouble getting my new cast aluminum valve covers to seal up. Mainly seeing a slight leak/seep in the rear, lower corners. Common from what I've found.

My heads can run either type. So I'm wondering if buying a set of center bolt covers and putting them in place of my current cast perimeter covers would solve this annoying issue. Or if I just need to live with it.

Btw: I'm using the good felpro rubber with steel centers gaskets, surfaces are flat and clean. Anything else I've missed?

If you’ve checked the valve covers and heads against a straight edge, I’d be at a loss as well.

 

[PrairieDrifter]

The cast covers are your best bet, I’ve got my perimeter bolt, cast covers sealed up good with no leaks. I used the fel-pro blue silicone gaskets for the oil pan and timing cover and they work great.

Some people are for it and some people are against it but I always use rtv on gasket surfaces like that.

 

[Rusty Nail]

Boy I tell ya what

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u know em Ol danged Ol Blue. Silicone. gaskets kick *ss for centerbolt covers.
You know what i'm sayin?
m Ol felpros
That's the way to go.

they last forever yo

 

[87_stepper]

I use Fel pro 1628 Amazon had the best pricing and free shipping for me nice and thick blue silicone with metal insert to hold the shape

 

[Arkansas_V8]

I use to have hit and miss leaks. I started using that tacky spray glue stuff to keep them right where they need to be. No more leaks since.

 

[Dutch Rutter]

Thanks everyone! you guys are on the ball with this. The ones I have now are the Felpro 1628s just looked up the order to verify. It is possible that when installing them the first time I over tightened them or that they were't exactly lined up with the cast gasket channel that is in the lower side of these covers. Last night I pulled up both covers, and re set them down hand tool tight and made sure they are in the channels. I'll see if that helps them seal better.

 

[Rusty Nail]

To clarify, I stray far away from those and feel metal center defeats the purpose...?

Look. I prove it.

This is the ones I run and this pair is prolly 20 years old or damned near it. I bought these to seal the 081 heads in my SS after highschool.
I've only got the one to show because the other one is in my Camaro right now.

AND I can save the readers some trouble and tell you all with certainty that this style is NOT available for permieter covers. That would be too easy.

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All i've ever put on a perimeter cover is cork. Is there a black rubber one? I maybe used that b4.

Hope this helps!

 

[Dutch Rutter]

To clarify, I stray far away from those and feel metal center defeats the purpose...?

Look. I prove it.

This is the ones I run and this pair is prolly 20 years old or damned near it. I bought these to seal the 416s in my SS after highschool.
I've only got the one to show because the other one is in my Camaro right now.

AND I can save the readers some trouble and tell you all with certainty that this model is NOT available for permieter covers. That would be too easy.

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Those are exactly what I was looking at if I were to go with a set of the center bolt covers. $160 for a set of those covers, $20 for the gaskets and whatever for the wire holders wouldnt be a terrible price of it solves the problem.

 

[Rusty Nail]

Dude wait up.

$180 sounds like a horrible, ****** , absolutely terrible price to fix a valve cover leak.
I was adding my experience about those gaskets specifically...that's way too much.
Oh gawsh lemme read back.
Hold on.

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Oh. Your heads run either and you have perimeters.

Ok. One time I had a customer with a similar trouble and I very early recall my boss at that time absolutely raving about the "double-thick" cork fel-pros - there IS such a thing listed..I also very clearly recall putting .my .foot. down. And demanding to brush them on both sides with PERMATEX GASKET SEALER.
(I really put that stuff on damned near everything.)

?

FIXED. didn't cost $180 either.

 

[82sbshortbed]

I have to agree with rusty on the cork gaskets for perimeter bolt ones. I used the cork ones for mine and no problem with it.

Maybe a dumb question but, do you have the red metal things I have on mine to spread the force along the valve covers base?

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This is the gasket I used

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