What is the best exhuast gasket?

[miller]

Hello,

I am going to replace the exhaust gaskets on the Charger in hopes to stop the ticking. My question for you is, what is the best exhaust gasket, and what brand of silicon would you recommend for optimal sealing capabilities? The engine is a 440, car is a 1969 Charger, Headers are Headman.

Thank you,
Adam Miller

[terrible one]

Percy's Seal4Good all the way

[elacruze]

I used REMFLEX at the head and collector both, on my 40 year old Hooker Super Comps which always leaked some in the center due to warpage. We did 4000 miles with no trace of a leak, and no retightening needed. Best gaskets I've ever seen.

http://catalog.remflex.com/

[Stretch]

Yep! Percy's all the way!

[HeavyFuel]

Are gaskets between the manifold and the head necessary when using stock exhaust manifolds?  The service manual says no gasket, which does seem odd.

[Nacho-RT74]

I never have used gasket, just RTV

[FLG]

Are gaskets between the manifold and the head necessary when using stock exhaust manifolds?  The service manual says no gasket, which does seem odd.

No gaskets on stock manifolds, different story for headers.

[HeavyFuel]

Hmmmm.....wonder why that is?

Does iron provide a tighter fit, and produce less "flex" than the materials headers are made of?  Or does it have to do with machining, or maybe the amount of torque you can put down on the bolts with iron?

[tufamc]

Just a FYI....

Do not use Remflex gaskets with headman headers, the port opening on the gaskest is much bigger than the opening on the headman's, by at least 1/8" to maybe 3/16", although the Remflex gaskets "squish" they'll still leak on you. Maybe the one's I got were just cut wrong. I've been fighting a tick, tick tick, in my exhaust, and always thought, "no way those nice remflex gaskets could be leaking". Exhausted all other things, changed the gaskets to good ol' paper......no more leaks, of any kind....I have Headman "elite" headers....Going Percey's after these paper's blow out....


Just my 

[Charger-Bodie]

FHO says no gasket on my hemi with tti headers. I did it that way and no leaks so far.

[FLG]

FHO says no gasket on my hemi with tti headers. I did it that way and no leaks so far.

guess it depends on header manufacturer? i know tti make top dollar pieces so i can see why...but with cheap headman/hookers i think a gasket would be required?

interesting.

[RallyeMike]

I used REMFLEX at the head and collector both, on my 40 year old Hooker Super Comps which always leaked some in the center due to warpage. We did 4000 miles with no trace of a leak, and no retightening needed. Best gaskets I've ever seen.

Just a FYI....

Do not use Remflex gaskets with headman headers, the port opening on the gaskest is much bigger than the opening on the headman's, by at least 1/8" to maybe 3/16", although the Remflex gaskets "squish" they'll still leak on you. Maybe the one's I got were just cut wrong. I've been fighting a tick, tick tick, in my exhaust, and always thought, "no way those nice remflex gaskets could be leaking". Exhausted all other things, changed the gaskets to good ol' paper......no more leaks, of any kind....I have Headman "elite" headers....Going Percey's after these paper's blow out....

Agree on the port size matching. I am also using these on Hooker Super Comps on the road race car and I like them a lot other than there is no chance for re-use. They get destroyed if you have to take things apart.

[Charger-Bodie]

FHO says no gasket on my hemi with tti headers. I did it that way and no leaks so far.

guess it depends on header manufacturer? i know tti make top dollar pieces so i can see why...but with cheap headman/hookers i think a gasket would be required?

interesting.

The hemi also has a better bolt pattern for holding the header tight around all the ports. On anything else I would reccomend the Percys. I have used them on quite a few builds and they work real nice.

[miller]

should silicon be used with the gaskets, or will Percy's gaskets alone be enough?

Also, how do you clean the head and header to ensure a tight fit? Do you just use a wire wheel with socks shoved into the exhaust ports?

Lastly, is there any special trick to getting the headers off the studs other than loosening up the exhaust system and wiggling it around until it comes off (The header seems very close to the torsion bars)?

Thanks,
Miller

[A383Wing]

factory did not use gaskets....

from what I have heard, if you use gaskets on stock manifolds, they will run a bit hotter because they are not being cooled by the direct head contact


if that makes sense

Remflex is a good gasket for headers, not stock manifolds

[RallyeMike]

Exhaust gaskets should be set dry - no silicone.

There are many ways to clean surfaces. I use razor and then a small steel brush.

Headers can be a pain depending on brand and engine. You may have to loosen the header at the collector or otherwise loosen the exhaust to swing the header out far enough to clear for gasket replacement. You may even have to go as far and loosening motor mounts and jacking the engine around. If you are comfortable with pulling the T-bars, that works well in some cases too.

Good luck.