Head gasket matching

[Tomcatt]

I bought a gasket for a 4.0 ohv engine. The one I took off has coolant passage holes on each cylinder shaped like the passages in block. The new gasket only has block shaped passages on one end of gasket only the other passages have little holes where there were triangle shaped passages on removed gasket. What's wrong here?

 

[SenorNoob]

Could it be for the wrong year? OHV vs SOHC? Just a bad manufacturer?

 

[Dirtman]

You sure the old gasket wasn't just corroded to death? It's normal for the coolant passages in the gasket to be smaller than the block, it's how coolant flow is regulated. However the gasket passages wear and rot over time so on a very old gasket the ports will be completely blown out.

 

[19Walt93]

Most head gaskets are marked "front" somewhere, look for that.