A Tale of Three

Before I replaced the intake manifold gaskets recently, I looked around for a good replacement gasket set. As mentioned in the previous post I went with a Mr. Gasket 5831 ultimately, but I also looked at the Edelbrock 7220 and the Fel-Pro 1250-S3 (shown in that order at left).

For my Edelbrock RPM aluminum heads and RPM Air Gap manifold, I like the Mr. Gasket 5831 best. The water passage does not have the L-shaped protrusion like on the Edelbrock 7220, which is required for other heads/applications. (Edelbrock recommends cutting it off; some recommend leaving it.) The Fel-Pro isn't really the right application for these heads/intake since the water passages in the gaskets are too large. The Mr. Gasket lets less of the gasket hang down at the bottom in the lifter valley too. All three have a Perma-Seal ring around the ports.

The Mr. Gasket is a bit tall, but fits the heads well, and I even ported the RPM Air Gap manifold a bit with my Dremel to make the fit even better.

Here's a close-up of the water passages.

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Shades of Grey

I replaced the intake gaskets recently, due to an external coolant leak in the back of the engine. I looked at a number of different replacement gaskets before deciding on the Mr. Gasket 5831 (more on that later).

I was surprised though when the gaskets were delivered and the pair had two different color gaskets. So I ordered another pair, and they were the same color as each other, but different than the first two. What?!

I called Mr. Gasket to figure it out, and they said they get the gasket material in sheets from different international suppliers. When the gaskets are cut they almost always end up in packages with similar color gaskets, but not this time.

So I matched up two grey ones and sent the others back.

Here they are installed. Notice the coolant passages without that L-shaped protrusion on some other gaskets. Also the bottom of the 5831 does not hang down into the lifter valley where it gets soaked in oil.

 Due to minor corrosion on the aluminum heads around the coolant passages I used a very thin bit of water pump RTV and some Gasgacinch around the intake ports—on the head side of the gasket only. The orange Perma-Seal should seal the manifold side of the gasket... I used the Right Stuff on the ends, rather than Ultra Black.


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The Timing is Right

I've been disassembling the engine on the '66 in my spare time the past few weeks, identifying some various fluid leaks. One area that I hadn't heard about examining is the timing cover, particularly the coolant passages. This makes sense since the water pump is attached to the timing cover, and then the cover is attached to the engine block. The cover holds back coolant under pressure, and oil too.

Covers shown L to R: Stock cover (with corroded coolant passages); California Pony Cars cover with cast pointer;  Edelbrock cover with bolt-on pointer.

It took awhile to figure out the best timing cover for my application.

Here are the backs of the same covers in the above order. I've bought some Edelbrock components previously and have been happy. This time however, the #4250 cover seemed unfinished, like someone gave up grinding down the cast lines when they were half done.

Here's the stock style timing cover I bought from Virginia Classic Mustangs. It's a California Pony Car cover, made in the USA, and the quality seems fantastic. This one has the bolt-on timing pointer (not the cast pointer seen in the image at top from '65-'66 Mustangs.) I went with this style since the engine is a '68 302, and will have a 302 balancer on it, not the smaller '66 balancer that was on there.

I actually spent a couple hours with some extra fine steel wool, buffing the aluminum—hopefully that finish lasts a bit!

Catching Up: Sold the 2006 GT...

I sold the 2006 Mustang GT a few weeks ago, using Craigslist. I didn't drive it much—usually driving the 2001 Bullitt when I needed a ride somewhere. Because I've been working from home the past five years, I don't commute daily so that reduces the need for a car (let alone three!)

Goodbye, friend.

 The good news is that the new owners seemed very excited and appreciative and will take great care of the car from here.

Carolina Classics at the Capital 2010

I attended the "Carolina Classics at the Capital" car show in downtown Raleigh on August 22.

It was difficult to get pix because it was so crowded with people, but I got a few. There were some nice cars there, but only a couple Mustangs.

>> Check out my photo album (66 pix!)