351 Cleveland Valve Cover Gasket

[Daniel Smith]

Hi Team

I have a 1972 Mach 1 Q Code 351 Cleveland.

It looks I need to replace my left hand side valve cover gasket as it has perished (possible over tightening) And is leaking oil onto the valve cover where the bolts are located.

I have the original Powered by Ford Valve Covers. (Steel I believe)

What are the best gaskets to use and do I need any RTV Sealant at all?

Thanks heaps in advance

Dan

 

[vintageman]

I used FelPro and no issues. I think I used RTV one the head side only and it has done a great job of holding up, I have removed my valve covers multiple times and no leaks.
Good luck

Tom

 

[MAD IRISHMAN]

On my race cars I had the valve covers off a lot to check valve lash. Found the best way was to glue the Fel-Pro gaskets to the valve cover with 3M Weather Strip Adhesive. AKA "gorilla snot". It would last a long while. Wouldn't be a bad idea to torque the bolts to be sure they are tight without crushing the gasket.
In a perfect world Moroso would make their Perm-Align gaskets for 351Cs. Used them on my 302 and they don't need to be glued.
Used the same pair for over 10 years. Still work like new.

 

[Daniel Smith]

On my race cars I had the valve covers off a lot to check valve lash. Found the best way was to glue the Fel-Pro gaskets to the valve cover with 3M Weather Strip Adhesive. AKA "gorilla snot". It would last a long while. Wouldn't be a bad idea to torque the bolts to be sure they are tight without crushing the gasket.
In a perfect world Moroso would make their Perm-Align gaskets for 351Cs. Used them on my 302 and they don't need to be glued.
Used the same pair for over 10 years. Still work like new.

Thanks for the response. Would Rubber or Cork Gaskets be better?

 

[351c1971]

I use a few 1/4-20 x 6” threaded rod from old trophies to guide the rubber Fel-Pro gaskets on my aluminum valve covers. They work great!

 

[Paul M]

Hi Team

I have a 1972 Mach 1 Q Code 351 Cleveland.

It looks I need to replace my left hand side valve cover gasket as it has perished (possible over tightening) And is leaking oil onto the valve cover where the bolts are located.

I have the original Powered by Ford Valve Covers. (Steel I believe)

What are the best gaskets to use and do I need any RTV Sealant at all?

Thanks heaps in advance

Dan

I've used both rubber and cork & have had no problems. Clean your surfaces well, torque evenly, move around mentally noting sticking " stubborn" bolts that throw off your torque. Remember to start from the middle outward. I think the torque is in inch lbs .. like only 4-5 ft/lbs. I don't use any goop on valve cover gaskets , it almost always leads to excess getting in your motor. I have however after cleaning, stuck one side to the cover on a race motor that I pull the covers off more often & that was probably aviation form a gasket, something that would stick it to the cover. There's also bolts in the back, of the Cleveland covers. If they are old brittle cork gaskets tightening them will only separate the cracks.

 

[Stanglover]

I use rubber and had no leaks whatsoever........... as long as the bolts are kept tight. Cover bolts do tend to slack off after a while.

 

[Hemikiller]

I prefer to use the cork valve cover gaskets, and glue them to the cover with gasket shellac (Permatex #2 or Indian Head). Felpro makes them in various thicknesses. If you don't have a good feel for the torque numbers, use a torque wrench to tighten them down. Be sure to flatten the flanges and check them with a straight edge. The 351C cover is fairly stout, I don't ever recall having an issue keeping them sealed.

 

[Sheriff41]

Either cork or rubber gaskets will work well, if correctly installed (see @Hemikiller instructions above). I prefer the rubber gaskets without any adhesives. I've been using the rubber gaskets on mine since the late 1970s and have not had any leaks.

Torque spec for the valve cover bolts is 6-8 ft-lb.

 

[basstrix]

Historically, and even presently, I've used the black rubber fel-pro gaskets with success. WIth the OEM steel covers, the key is to get them flat as possible and make sure they are not bulging at the bolt holes. I put them on w/o any sealant or glue and tighten them in a few steps to gradually reach torque spec.

It seems like the older ones were stiffer....I find the ones I'm working with now, need to be held in place with a few threaded studs.....recently, I bought a stud kit to replace all of the bolts.

On another note, the Fel Pro 1682 gaskets come highly recommended from the Cleveland group on facebook. They are very expensive!

 

[MAD IRISHMAN]

Thanks for the response. Would Rubber or Cork Gaskets be better?

In my experience the cork did better. I used to put a very light coat of white grease on the head side when I first installed the covers.

 

[MAD IRISHMAN]

Historically, and even presently, I've used the black rubber fel-pro gaskets with success. WIth the OEM steel covers, the key is to get them flat as possible and make sure they are not bulging at the bolt holes. I put them on w/o any sealant or glue and tighten them in a few steps to gradually reach torque spec.

It seems like the older ones were stiffer....I find the ones I'm working with now, need to be held in place with a few threaded studs.....recently, I bought a stud kit to replace all of the bolts.

On another note, the Fel Pro 1682 gaskets come highly recommended from the Cleveland group on facebook. They are very expensive! View attachment 78436

Well egg on my face! In my defense I was looking for these specifically for 351 Cleveland application. Ironically I ran a SVO 351 with Yates heads in Super Gas. It was quite a while ago to be sure. But the SVO Yates heads used the same gaskets as stock 351Cs.
They may appear to be expensive but actually IMHO they are worth every penny! They're going on the engine I'm building to swap out with the current power plant. Ordering them today!

 

[tony-muscle]

Interesting that this is coming up right now. I just bought the Felpro 1682 from Summit and the bolt pattern is of a Windsor and not as pictured on the web. I need to call them to discuss.

Please disregard my message. I think that the bottle of Scotch I received before the Summit package impaired my counting. I just double checked and it has 8 holes.

 

[MAD IRISHMAN]

Please disregard my message. I think that the bottle of Scotch I received before the Summit package impaired my counting. I just double checked and it has 8 holes.

Would you like some of my egg? LOL

 

[Ron Tanzi]

Has anybody out there used the Fel-Pro 1682 gaskets with steel valve covers? How did they work? I have a set of them in reserve but not installed them as of yet.

 

[MAD IRISHMAN]

Has anybody out there used the Fel-Pro 1682 gaskets with steel valve covers? How did they work? I have a set of them in reserve but not installed them as of yet.

It's not an exact comparison but I've used the same type of Fel-Pro gasket on my 302 steel oil pans in the past. They keep you from over-tightening the bolts and seal very well. Haven't been able to find this type of pan gasket for a 351C so far. Just ordered the 1682s a bit ago.

 

[Daniel Smith]

Historically, and even presently, I've used the black rubber fel-pro gaskets with success. WIth the OEM steel covers, the key is to get them flat as possible and make sure they are not bulging at the bolt holes. I put them on w/o any sealant or glue and tighten them in a few steps to gradually reach torque spec.

It seems like the older ones were stiffer....I find the ones I'm working with now, need to be held in place with a few threaded studs.....recently, I bought a stud kit to replace all of the bolts.

On another note, the Fel Pro 1682 gaskets come highly recommended from the Cleveland group on facebook. They are very expensive! View attachment 78436

Thanks heaps for the info!! I was looking at these and seemed like the way to go. Would they be the right thickness?? (I've seen all types of different thicknesses)

I live in Australia but am currently in Canada and will be in Vancouver tomorrow. Would NAPA sell this type of gasket do you think? (I'm thinking of buying here and taking home with me as it will be cheaper than trying to buy the in OZ)

Thanks Dan!

 

[Hemikiller]

Thanks heaps for the info!! I was looking at these and seemed like the way to go. Would they be the right thickness?? (I've seen all types of different thicknesses)

I live in Australia but am currently in Canada and will be in Vancouver tomorrow. Would NAPA sell this type of gasket do you think? (I'm thinking of buying here and taking home with me as it will be cheaper than trying to buy the in OZ)

Thanks Dan!

NAPA carries the FelPro gaskets, but they are crazy expensive and oodly unavailable on the Canadian site. They often have a 20% coupon going if you buy three items, got one in a text a couple days ago, but it expired yesterday.

https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/FPG1682?impressionRank=3

 

[basstrix]

Thanks heaps for the info!! I was looking at these and seemed like the way to go. Would they be the right thickness?? (I've seen all types of different thicknesses)

I live in Australia but am currently in Canada and will be in Vancouver tomorrow. Would NAPA sell this type of gasket do you think? (I'm thinking of buying here and taking home with me as it will be cheaper than trying to buy the in OZ)

Thanks Dan!

My search shows that Napa does carry it...I'm sure location varies. O'Reilly can have it for pick-up same day pick-up in my area. Amazon still looks to have a better price and can deliver by 7/3 in my area. I picked up my set back in February and haven't tried them yet.

As far as thickness goes, I just checked a stock length valve cover bolt against the gasket and looked to be ok.

 

[MAD IRISHMAN]

Just wanted show I put my money where my mouth is (except when my foot is in it). Got the Fel-Pro #1682 gaskets for Ford SVO Yates
heads today from Summit.
As you can see they fit the factory heads just fine. They will work nice with my Moroso steel valve covers as well!
Thanks for the heads up Hemi Killer.