Alright I will admit it I am tired of blowing head gaskets. How many of you have experience with solid copper head gaskets. If you have used them what are the pros and cons. What I have determined from a not too extensive web search.

Pros:

• Used in extremely high compression engines (drag motors)
• Reusable
• Can get in varying thickness

Cons:

• Need to be retorqued (do not know if this is after every use or occasionally)
• Hard to make water tight (leaks in cold weather)

Thanks for your input

Bob

 

As far as i know (i work with all sorts of steels too) standard head gaskets have glue on them to prevent leakage of oils and water. If you used a copper head gasket, your head and block will need to be 100% flat because while copper can bend but not compress.

Pros:
- It can be reusable if it's not kinked
- withstand a lot of heat, more then an engine can take
- it will not blow (you'll probably warp something before it lets go)
- different thicknesses, so if you've resurfaced the head that many times, you can get a thicker gasket to compensate for the amount taken off.

Cons:
- if your head or block is o-ringed, it cannot be reused
- if kinked, can't be reused
- Surface needs to be 100% flat, It wont take up imperfections in the surface
- more prone to leakage (you'll probably need some sort of glue to help?)

 

http://www.headgasket.com/index.html

 

They work pretty well, but it's not a solution. The failure rate is about the same as a MLS gasket.

 

What have you been using to date? You're running Motec aren't you?

 

The last one was a widefire. The one before that was a standard. I was at a CR this weekend with a guy that swears by the copper head gaskets. I decided to get one made so I should have some feedback in a couple of months.

Yes I am running an old M4 and thinking of upgrading to an M84. Just not looking forward to the re-map.

 

I have used copper head gaskets on blown alcohol engines with succes. However, the only way I would use them is with an o-ring and receiver groove. You can get around some of the exterior sealing issues with a thin sealant like halomar sp)

The problems I can see with the open deck block is that the cylinders move around and what may happen is that the copper would just be serrated, similar to an MLS.

Hard to get around this problem IMO.

You may want to try having the head o-ringed and use another wide fire. It seems to be the easiest inexpensive solution for the short term. From what I can tell it lasts a little longer.

Eventually, I will have an o-ringed block with a receiver grooved head. But, not until I see no signs of cylinder movement first. Even my half filled block showed some small signs.

That is why I am now doing a closed deck block.

Just my .02

 

If only we had something to hold the cyliders together like the honda guys have

 

What do the Honda guys use? I thought MIDs were popular with some of them?

 

I have the Darton MIDs in my block. There isn't much room for movement. If it goes the way of the other gaskets then I will try the MLS again.

 

How will you do a closed deck? Will you make a deck plate?

 

I would be less concerned about finding a head gasket that will not blow out, than I would be about finding out why I've been blowing out head gaskets.

 

Extended periods under high boost.

 

What is the CR of your build? What boost level? What fuel?

Thanks,
Shawn

 

Honda guys are funny so to speak..

One of my mates use a "Dart" block which is a block machined from billet aircraft grade aluminium with iron selves.. that is boosted(not sure what boost yet as its still on run-in) that is a b18 He is either using oem gasket or MLS. My other mate (his younger brother) is using a k20 un opened boosted to 13-15psi running ~280 rwkw