Before I replace the valve cover gaskets, I want to De-grease this 350-2BBL engine.

Would like to hear your suggestions on what cleaning product to use and if I should fire up the pressure washer. Also, should I keep the carb during cleaning or should remove it & block off the intake? Would like to hear any and all tips. Thanks

Also, what are some good valve cover gaskets (just edited to add gaskets) to use for this 350? This car does not get driven very much. Car runs and drives fine so not planning on doing any restoration. Thank you in advance.

 

I used Oil Eater. It did a great job and the oil and dirt did not stick to my driveway. It seems to make it almost disappear.

 

I used GUNK degreaser product which worked well

Are you wanting Chrome valve covers? Aluminium? NOS stock? Do you not like the factory gold ones on it now?

Eric

 

Sorry, I meant to say gaskets.

 

I still like the cork ones myself, but I have heard the rubber ones are very good.

Eric

 

I have come to love the thicker rubber gaskets. They are the first ones that never leaked on me, but that could also be because I used a torque wrench on the valve cover bolts for the first time ever when I installed them.

There are two versions of rubber gaskets, and I used the thicker ones:

VS13403R -- 3/32" thick rubber
VS50359R -- 11/64" thick rubber

 

I have found that when I use synthetic oil I get some seepage with cork gaskets. I have gone back to dino oil because of this and zinc content in the oil I use. No problems as of now....Tedd

 

Edelbrock valve cover gasket #7598 -- 1/4" thick

 

Take your degreaser and some plastic ( to cover your fenders, grill and cowl.) Go to the car wash. The motor will be warm. Spray on the foam cleaner and let sit some. Spray off or add soap then spray off cleaner being careful not to let overspray get on paint. Add a few more quarters and rinse it well then pull off plastic and wash car with hood closed to be sure.

 

I have used Gunk for years and always have good results. The procedure outlined by Gary above should work very well. I found some valve cover gaskets for my 54 what were rubber with a steel insert in the middle and they are reusable. I think I found them on ebay. They were not brand I recognized like Felpro. I am very satisfied with them. Try looking on ebay or maybe Rockauto.

 

It depends on where you live but in NYC, car washes will NOT allow you cleaning your engine and city laws will NOT allow you to wash your engine on your property because of the oil going down the sewer. The cleaner has to be environment safe to go down the sewer.

 

Another vote for GUNK - the strong stuff with the kerosene in it.

And another vote for the thick rubber gaskets.

I would avoid using a pressure washer on any mechanical device, as the pressure will drive grit into any bearings or other moving parts that have any sort of an opening.

- Eric

 

Thanks for that info, I will add it to my parts list. Those 1/4" thick gaskets would be good to use with roller tip rockers that sometimes need a bit more clearance for the poly locks.

 

You can also use oven cleaner instead of Gunk or automotive cleaner. This might save you a buck or two and I suppose it is more environmentally friendly than industrial cleaners.

 

I got Fel-Pro rubber valve cover gaskets from O'Reilly's. No leaks, durable.
I do not use high pressure on any engine, asking for trouble. I vote lots of Gunk and lots of time on your part. Then low pressure water with plastic bags over distributor or just avoid it.

 

I did cork Fel Pros on my old man's Chevy 350 in his Corvette two years ago. No leaks, and the Chevies only have 4 bolts and the little spreader things, not tons of bolts like an Olds. It was such an original car that I putty-knifed the old adhesive off, and Ivory-soap and toothbrushed the grime off, then put it back on. Be sure to set the covers on something flat, weighted, to set the glue on the gaskets to the covers.

 

Make sure you flatten out the valve cover lips on a straight anvil or something. They get distorted from over tightening and will always leak if not corrected.

 

For those of you with an aluminum intake manifold (or other aluminum parts), make sure the cleaner you use is compatible with aluminum. Oven cleaner often is not.

 

Oven cleaner is mostly Lye (sodium hydroxide). I'm not sure how environmentally friendly that is and as mentioned above eats aluminum at a alarming rate and not so good on paint if left long enough... Tedd

 

Ali, this is what I use. It was 1st sold by Castrol then changed hands and
may be called Purple Power now. Wally World may carry it, but I know Orileys
does too. I use a spray bottle and a brush and have never had a problem
power washing an engine. Just cover the carb and try not to spray the dist.

 

I did not know oven cleaner would react with aluminum. Luckily I've never used it to clean the engine in my 71 98. I did use it to clean the engine before I took it to the machine shop though (at the time it didn't have the Edelbrock intake).

I just A$$umed oven cleaner was environmentally friendly. After all, it's made to clean an oven in which food is cooked.

 

Munches it right iup. If you spray it on aluminum foil, the foil will just disappear.


It is. Lye may dissolve aluminum, your skin, and pretty much any other organic matter, but that's just at high concentrations. It's also present in low concentrations in many common medicines, and in the natural environment. Once it's diluted, it's harmless, unlike the phosphates that used to be used in laundry detergents, which caused biological imbalances in water bodies, or DDT, which caused defects in the shells of birds' eggs.

- Eric

 

 

When you are using a lye product, and your fingers feel slippery, that's your skin dissolving.

You can get rid of the feeling by rinsing with a lot of water, for a few minutes, or immediately, but rinsing with vinegar to stop the reaction.

- Eric

 

Sodium hydroxide is the main ingredient in bluing salts (for bluing guns) and one doesn't drop a gun in the salts that contains any aluminum at all or it won't be there when you pull the gun out .

I still use simple green with a brush when detailing a engine followed by the careful use of a pressure washer....Tedd

 

I've used Simple Green many times to detail my engine. It's much safer than flesh eating chemicals!

 

The best VC gaskets were the hard plastic framed versions with the rubber o-ring around the perimeter, made by Fel Pro. They never leak, and are re-usable. I have not found any equal replacements.

 

You can start with something like Simple Green, but any All Purpose Cleaner (APC) should work. For the stubborn stuff, like the stuff that seemed 2-3 feet thick on my 77 350 with 148K, I had good luck with Gunk. It worked much faster in the end.


I would not recommend using high pressure water at all. You will force water where you do not want it. Trust me. Use the regular hose.