Im looking for stock steel shim head gaskets, wondering if anyone knows where i can find them? Also could substitute with any .020 or thinner aftermarket gasket just dont know where to find them.

 

O'Reillys, NAPA, Auto Zone, Car Quest. Any local parts store will carry OE head gaskets for your car.

 

I've found that they give you the fel pro replacement which is .043-.045. I did see that mj profromance offered a .011 head gasket, wondering if anyone knows if its still available?

 

if its not to late when the heads are surfaced take enough off to compensate for the newer style gaskets or at lest half. the newer style are non re torque

 

That's only part of it.
The pistons are normally .030 or so down in the hole in stock form. When you use a regular replacement gasket you now have .070+ squish, that's not optimum.
Using a steel shim gasket retains the compression and squish to the original specs.

Yes, Smitty at M&J still stocks the .011 shim gaskets.

 

Would surfacing the deck instead of the heads address the squish issue?

 

the .030 mentioned . sill have the gasket and combustion chamber of your head

 

Huh?

 

Sorry about that yes the squish area could be improved by decking the block. i jumped to the end combustion ratio forgetting that there is an actual squish area in a olds head.

 

I think Bucket is saying that by shaving the deck, the thicker head gaskets would provide the same squish, using the original heads.

Thinking more on this issue, I have to wonder how critical the issue is on an Olds.

The pistons are dished, with very little flat area on the top - just around the circumference. From what I understand of squish and quench (not very much, just internet reading), squish is basically the flat areas of the pistons coming closer to the flat area of the cylinder head, thereby pushing the gasses into the combustion volume of the head. With the piston design as I describe, I can't see very much happening in that regard.

Quench is from the (relatively) cool temperatures of the gasses left in the squish area.

Apparently, properly designed quench helps prevent detonation. Two engines with the same compression ratio, one with good quench and one without, will exhibit different detonation characteristics.

How is that small, flat ring-shaped area at the top of the piston accomplishing much of anything, either squish or quench?