What’s your favorite intake manifold gaskets and how do you install them? With sealant or dry?

Aluminim or iron manifolds

 

My favorite is the Mr Gasket UltraSeal 3, but those have been discontinued for many years now. Glad I bought some extras way back when.

 

Mr Gasket 404 or the Edelbrock ones are good too.

 

I've used many different intake manifold gaskets. The easiest way for me to get the intake manifold to seal properly is to use the Fel Pro turkey tray gasket and cut the side rails off of the tray. I then ditch the rubber lifter valley seals and use Right Stuff gasket maker. The distributor should be removed so you can drop it squarely in place. I use plenty of blue RTV around both sides of the coolant ports and red RTV around both sides of the exhaust crossover port.

 

I just use the FelPro metal intake gaskets as-is. Never had a problem in 45 years with iron or aluminum. I do trash the rubber end seals and use Permatex Ultra instead. Obviously you must follow the instructions in the CSM as far as using a bead of RTV around the ports.

 

SCE gaskets, just the plain ones, spray contact cement (usually the copper stuff because that's what I have) around the intake ports, thin film of RTV around the water ports, bead of RTV on front and back rails.

 

Cometics with gasgasinch around the ports and RTV on the water ports and end rails. Nice thing about Cometics is you can get them in thinner sizes vs the Mr gasket and edelbrocks. I have had absolute horrible luck with MR gasket stuff.

 

I am with Joe. I use the Fel Pro "turkey pan" stock gaskets. I use Permatex Aviation Form a Gasket on them. Brush it on around all of the ports including water. I have only built a few Oldsmobiles but Chrysler uses the same deal and I have done a bunch of them with no problems.

 

I have had good luck with Mr. Gasket 404, I got some Fel-Pro gaskets that have an embossed head around the ports that look like they would seal well. Haven’t had a chance to try them yet. I like to keep a couple sets of special order parts around so i don’t have to wait on mail order.


I dont don’t use the rubber end rail seals, Right Stuff RTV in place of them, and around the coolant ports. A small blob where the head, intake, and block meet.

 

Explain if you would please as I've had 0 issues with Mr Gasket gaskets.

 

Mark they just haven't worked out. Last set wicked oil pretty bad to the point oil puddled up between the intake and heads and seeped into the runners .Just my experience. The Cometics worked great and prior the steel shims where tops for non ported set ups where port alignment was not of importance. Not to mention their head gaskets failed on me during storage.

 

Gotcha. But in that instance you may not have torqued the intake correctly for the gasket being used. It’s a different material. There’s no reason for one gasket to work and another not too unless there’s a discrepancy somewhere else.
I've installed probably 50 Mr gasket #404’s with 0 issues. Something got caddy wompass.
Just sayin.

 

Probably a surface issues I went with .030 Cometics . im gonna guess the intake was being pushed up with the .060 gaskets and creating uneven clamping on the surfaces. Atleast in the situation with the current engine.