rear diff gasket

[Boggin]

am i the only one that would prefer a gasket over silicone?

every store i called around town said they would have to order it in because nobody buys them and they told me to just use silicone like everyone else

i know silicone would work, but i want a gasket just because

 

[LearjetMinako]

I used both a gasket and silicone. Advance Auto Parts had my 7.5" diff gasket in stock. Used the gasket for a good seal, and then applied silicone to both sides of the gasket for extra leak proctection.

 

[xkotyx]

I used both a gasket and silicone. Advance Auto Parts had my 7.5" diff gasket in stock. Used the gasket for a good seal, and then applied silicone to both sides of the gasket for extra leak proctection.

x2

 

[-Nathan-]

You mean like a paper gasket? I have some lying around I could send you. They don't seal that great, and silicone will change dimensions with the change in fluid temp. If you're serious about a gasket, get a lube locker gasket. They are the best, look in my old build thread to see what they are.

 

[Boggin]

You mean like a paper gasket? I have some lying around I could send you. They don't seal that great, and silicone will change dimensions with the change in fluid temp. If you're serious about a gasket, get a lube locker gasket. They are the best, look in my old build thread to see what they are.

lube locker gasket would be sweet, but just checked their site and they dont do 7.5 diffs. you got a 7.5 paper gasket or just 8.8?

 

[feellnfroggy]

Its just one more thing to fail when u push the envelope.

 

[disciplerocks]

I never thought the gasket would be as good as silicone.

 

[Surrey]

Ford doesn't even use them coming out of the factory...

Paper gaskets are kinda a joke anyways. Besides, its not like the diff gets super hot, with super high pressures or anything...

 

[RangerSVT]

Besides, its not like the diff gets super hot, with super high pressures or anything...

You mean like around 250* when you are towing a trailer?? Temps can get extreme in any diff, front or rear. The fluid in a diff has no radiator to flow through, no cooling lines or fins. It has to rely solely on the diff cover and the axle to absorb and disperse the heat, so yeah, temps can get high, especially at interstate speeds pulling a trailer or hauling a load in the bed. Pressures can get high in the diff as well, especially if you have a clogged vent tube. Clogged vents will cause a blown seal...
SVT

 

[Explorin94]

If you are using the flimsy tin cover a paper gasket won't do you a bit of good. Like Surrey said it comes from the factory with silicone and that works just fine. But if you really want a gasket and have to have it now....go get yourself a soda case like what Pepsi or Coke comes in. The real thin card board and make one. I make odd ball gaskets with them all the time.

 

[RangerSVT]

If you are using the flimsy tin cover a paper gasket won't do you a bit of good. Like Surrey said it comes from the factory with silicone and that works just fine. But if you really want a gasket and have to have it now....go get yourself a soda case like what Pepsi or Coke comes in. The real thin card board and make one. I make odd ball gaskets with them all the time.

Not bad, but a better choice is to get one that has no wax coating (for images) on either side, like the divider in a 24 pack of can drinks (Mountain Dew uses a 2-story case separated by a thin cardboard divider). The wax coating can cause a leak to form...
SVT

 

[Explorin94]

Not bad, but a better choice is to get one that has no wax coating (for images) on either side, like the divider in a 24 pack of can drinks (Mountain Dew uses a 2-story case separated by a thin cardboard divider). The wax coating can cause a leak to form...
SVT

I just reread my last post and I did forget to mention that after I cut out the card board I smear a real thin coat of RTV over both sides of the gasket and either let it skin up or cure before I put it on. Usually on rearend covers I will use the Red RTV. Black is for engine parts and I can't remember the last time I used the Blue for anything.

 

[RangerSVT]

Black can be used for the rear axle, red should be used for the engine as it is high temp. There are black RTV's that have high temp properties in them, but not all...
SVT

 

[4.0B2]

lubelocker ftw if possible... but of course, jeeps don't use a 7.5 like they do our 8.8 so.......there is not as much aftermarket for them.

with that said- i'll never use a paper style gasket on a diff.

last one i did was on a chevy z71 and i used the International Brand, Gray Ex-High Temp RTV.. bet he don't get that diff cover off easily. but that's what he brought me when i said i needed silicone to seal it with. last time i used that on a personal vehicle i had to torch it forever to get it to come lose. i don't think i even needed bolts in that part w/ that gray crap.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

I ended up in an argument with a guy just recently, he demanded that he needed a paper gasket because "that's how Ford made it." But of course, nobody local stocks a paper gasket locally, everyone has to order one in. The only other option is to make your own, but that was unacceptable to the guy too. He ranted and raved even though I explained to him that Ford used silicone from the factory. He insisted that it used a paper gasket because "they don't leak like that silicone crap."

I didn't even know there was gaskets for our axles until just recently, I always used Permatex Ultra Black for my diff gaskets. And I clean the mating surfaces with BrakeClean.

When I replaced my front diff on my F-150, someone at one time had used about two or three tubes of this red or grey (can't remember the color) stuff to seal it up (it leaked anyway), but the stuff was ridiculously hard to get apart. I had to use a couple pry bars to get the diff out and cleaning that crap off was crazy, a razor knife wanted to just run over the surface and not cut it. Spent a lot of time working in the freezing cold by worklight in the driveway with snow falling trying to clean that crap off.