gasket sealing

[gatorwade]

What is the best way to seal a water pump gasket to prevent coolant leakage? How about sealing the governor gasket to prevent oil seepage?

 

[Bruce (VA)]

If you clean the water pump sealing surfaces squeaky clean, use the correct gasket and a good adhesive (Permatex Blue) it should not leak.

Different story w/ the governor though. The governor is aluminium & warps easily.

If the governor is leaking oil, the housing is probably warped from being over tightened. Pull the governor off and remove the small set screw that you?ll find on the face next to the gear. Grasp the gear and pull the guts out of the housing and set them aside. Lay a metal rule across the cover & see if it is warped. If it is, get a fresh sheet of 100 grit sandpaper, lay it on a flat, true piece of steel, and lap the face of the housing until it?s flat again. Do not get carried away w/ the sanding! You can take too much off. Reassemble and put her back on with one fresh gasket. Permatex Ultra Grey works well as does Copper Coat. Some folks have had good luck w/o any gasket; they use black RTV silicone glue. After both surfaces have been cleaned of oil and dirt put a good round bead of RTV all the way around the governor housing and then bolt it on. Allow about 24 hours to completely cure. And, do not forget to put the short bolt back on top. (tip # 1)
75 Tips

 

[HFJ]

[b:a9a2b11ad2]"Some folks have had good luck w/o any gasket; they use black RTV silicone glue."[/b:a9a2b11ad2]

as per a recommendation from here, that's what i did with mine. it still has a very slight leak at the bushing, but the major leak from the cover is gone.

 

[TomD]

I have had my governor off several times recently.. The gasket I used, from this site, is somewhat on the thick side, definitely not thin, and I used Permatex Grey Ultra Gasket Maker on both metal surfaces with the gasket in between. Just follow the directions on the tube, Works great with no leaks.. Just snug up both bolts and tighten little by little, top and bottom, Do not crank down real hard..
Will require a new gasket anytime you take it off..

 

[grayrider]

I'm not pulling your leg here, about 16 years ago my
3000 Ford water pump was leaking, I bought a new
water pump and the chief mechanic at the tractor
dealership told me to use only wheel bearing grease
on the pump gasket, I did and I ran the snot out of
that 3000 for 13 more years before selling it to a
hunting buddy who still has it and it's never leaked a
drop around the gasket , that's the truth

 

[Tim PloughNman Daley]

You can check for surface flatness too by setting the clean body part down on a solid flat steel plate or granite surface plate. Using two fingers the rocking method will tell you if it is warped and not flat. Light sanding may straighten it out but I'd avoid trying to mill it down any or sanding excessively on a disc sander or anything harsh or mechanical. They get warped because when they start to leak the first thing a lot of fellas do is crank/reef down on the mounting bolts tighter.

TPD

 

[Ultradog MN]

Am slowly putting an engine back together
here after an overhaul and converting it
from gas to diesel.
I use no goop, pucky, snot or sealer on an
engine. Except, yesterday I put the water
pump and pan on it and used a tiny dab of
silicone where the timing cover, block and
pan all join together. I had a tube of
white, GE brand silicone tub and tile
caulk and used that. The water pump went
on with just a dry, new gasket. I will
also use a very small dab of the same
silicone to install the block heater.
When I take a tractor apart and see a lot
of goop around the gaskets I always think
to myself that the last guy that was in
there must have been a complete novice or
idiot.

 

[showcrop]

I put almost all gaskets on with no sealer. The main exception is the water pump. The water will slowly eat away at a gasket, and when you remove a pump the gasket is usually very punky. I prefer to do like gray rider does, and put some grease on it. The grease gets absorbed in and reduces the amount of water infiltration. There can also be places on a tractor where it is difficult to get a seal to stand up to massive castings shifting slightly against each other. When I went to pick up an oil pan gasket at CNH they told me that it had been superseded something like twelve times. Obviously a problem there! I took the cheap original and applied Permatex to the pan surface. Just a thin smear. It has stood up to some serious abuse.

 

[L.Fure]

I know this will sound strange to some of you. When I assemble an engine I use 3M weather strip adhesive on some of the gaskets. One reason is it holds the gasket in place while you assemble the parts. It does help with preventing leaks around gaskets. The last reason I use it is that if/when you need to take something apart it makes removing the old gasket material much easier.

 

[Ken(Ark)]

When I take a tractor apart and see a lot
of goop around the gaskets I always think
to myself that the last guy that was in
there must have been a complete novice or
idiot.

That has always been one of my pet peeves . I have pulled many automotive intakes and seen an 1/8" or larger bead of silicon stuck inside the ports . Most of the motors I have torn down in the last 10 - 15 years were the first time disassembled , but back in the day when you only got 100K if you were lucky , every 3rd of 4th motor had a few chunks of dried silicon clogging the oil pick up tube screen .

Some things need RTV , but I like the copper spray because it makes a light uniform coat . Indian head shellac and 3M weather strip adhesive ( as mentioned ) are always popular around my shop .

 

[BushogPapa]

The "Bug Juice" is good for some things...but keep it away from gasoline or similar products..

 

[Royse]

"I had a tube of white, GE brand silicone tub and tile caulk"

This reminded me of an 8N I bought once.
The previous owner put the USED metal head gasket back
in it and sealed it with... you guessed it, white caulking.
It didn't even look to be silicone. It simply wiped off.

I'm not against good sealers, they have their places.
But when it tells you "a thin layer" that doesn't mean a bead
so large that it squeezes out both internally and externally.

I put a water pump on my 8N earlier this month.
Home made gasket. Dry. Hasn't leaked a drop yet.
It was a used, known good water pump so no new gasket on hand.
When I get the original rebuilt I'll use a new gasket and I
won't have to worry about cleaning any goop or glue off.

My best advice to getting gaskets to seal is to clean the surfaces
thoroughly, make sure the surface is flat, true, not scarred,
and then clean them some more.
Gasket surfaces can't be too clean unless you use some
kind of tool or chemical that will damage them.

 

[Dune Country]

when sanding on a "true" flat surface, use a old widow out of a door or such, glass is about as flat as your going to get.