Ok, My last report was that I took care of my rear main seal and put on a new oil pan. It lasted a couple of weeks, then I noticed a very small drip onto the inspection plate. I snugged up the pan bolts just a bit, but that apparently was a mistake--the leak became bigger. My question: What is the consensus on pan gasket sealing, especially the rubber ends? I know you need some in the corners where the rubber meets the cork, but some folks install them dry all around. I think the ends are the critical part--do you use sealer on the rubber strips? Block side, pan side, both, or neither? I know the rebuilder put silicone all over everything. Thanks (144 6 cyl)
More oil (pan) woes
- Thread starter adamscm
- Start date
ledslinger29
Well-known member
I know that I would pay whatever they asked if someone were to make a rubber one piece gasket.
Make sure the pan is not tweaked'. I prefer an adhesive type sealer for the pan and gasket and just the necessary dab of RTV at the pan gasket/bearing seal joint. I apply "High-Tack" (the red balloon stuff) or "Copper Gasket Spray" let get tacky and place on pan. Tighten bolts only to seal gasket, I find a screwdriver type drive helps keep fastener torque in range.
I know the rebuilder put silicone all over everything
I never had any luck with a lot of silicone/RTV, it seems to make gaskets squish out rather than seal. My 61 's PO had blue RTV all over VC gasket and in the valvetrain, on the coolant hose ports and in the coolant and surprise: ... in the oil pickup screen when I removed the pan...
haev fun
I know the rebuilder put silicone all over everything
I never had any luck with a lot of silicone/RTV, it seems to make gaskets squish out rather than seal. My 61 's PO had blue RTV all over VC gasket and in the valvetrain, on the coolant hose ports and in the coolant and surprise: ... in the oil pickup screen when I removed the pan...
haev fun
when i use RTV, i use very very thin coats on both sides of the gaskets. so thin that paper seems a bit thick. on the rubber seals, i oly use RTV between the seal and the pan, i leave the area between the seal and the main cap dry. i will use extra RTV in the corners where the gaskets meet. and when i tighten the oil pan bolts, i just snug them up to the point where the gasket just starts to deform and stop there. any further almost guarantees leaks.
adamscm":kkztkhwt said:
wow that oil pan is just becoming lots of trouble! 
X 3 That's all good advise above! Clean up all the surfaces good and check that the oil pan rails are perfectly flat, carefully straighten them as nessisary including around the bolt holes if they are bent down. Glue down the cork oil pan gaskets to the engine blocks rails with some contact cement so they don't move. Then let it sit long enough to cure at least a few hours or overnight is good. On the rubber end gaskets I only put a small dab of silicone in each of the corners of the cork tabs before I install the rubber pan end seals i.e. It's just where they meet the cork pan gaskets. You can then use silicon sparingly or even the non Hardening Permatex on the cork pan rails, plus a small dab at where the rubber pan end seals meet the cork, and that's it nothing on the rubber end seals themselves. Then Install the four pan bolts in the corners first (the larger bolts) to hold the pan up and then install all the others. Start by snugging up those corner bolts and then the others working from the center out. Do not over tighten the pan bolts or it wil push the gaskets out and damage them. The recommended torque on these pan smaller bolts is only 4 to 6 ft. lbs the 4 larger corner bolts 8 to 10 ft. Lbs. but even that can sometimes be too much and cause damage the gaskets. As "rhobm" said above if you see the gasket just start to move out that's the time to stop. Good luck 
X2 on the Gray Sealer. I use a thin layer on all cork gaskets, thin like almost translucent. Also as mentioned above, make sure that the pan rails are as flat as you can make them. Pay special attention around the bolt holes. When tightening, you just want the bolts snug, not tight. If you get them too tight it will leak like sieve.
Thanks Guys for all the replies. I agree it would be nice to have a one piece gasket! Common sense would say the problem is with the pan, since it seemed to leak more when I re-tightened it, but it seems odd where I see oil--yes, directly below the rear pan seal, but also as high up as the horizontal bottom of the block. That's why I checked the rear seal. I desperately hope it's not something weird like the cam plug. It only seems to leak when driving (when oil sloshes back). I'll try the pan once more. I'm pretty conscientious, it's strange for it to still not be working. The front of the pan seals fine. If it doesn't work this time, I'll have a nice 62 Comet for sale--new motor, small leak!! --When it rain it pours--my '01 Dodge P/U is throwing a p0601 code that I can't get erased--worst case scenario, a new computer control unit....
OK---Today I re-did the oil pan--perfectly clean surfaces, perfectly placed gaskets, etc. Used thin film of Permatex tacky sealer to stick the cork to the block. Used a little to hold the rubber ends in the grooves, and put some blobs in the corners. Going to let it all dry tonight before filling tomorrow. Something unusual---I also re-checked the rear seal by taking the rear cap off, and found that the rear seal had spun, and the ends were now at the 12 and 6 positions. I ended up putting some of that tacky sealer in the groove in the bottom cap that hopefully will stop the spinning. I also oiled the inner lip on the crankshaft. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow!
that is a strange problem with the rear main seal moving, maybe the blocks seal grove was originally machined a little bit oversized. In any case you might be better off to go back to the stock rope type seal if it won't stop spinning. When you pulled to motor out for rebuilding was there any signs of oil inside the bell housing? Good luck
How is the rebuilt engine doing, did you get the oil leaking stopped?