Whats the deal with cork gaskets?

[AlaskanRider]

Why does nobody like cork gaskets on here?

Its kind of funny, because I worked on these ancient Caterpillar D8s this summer for a guy and he SWORE by cork, and would seek them out over rubber.

We just used that aviation gasket prep, and nothing ever leaked.

My el-cheapo ebay 4.0 headgasket set came with cork. Haven't started leaking yet, although I only have 500 miles on it. They didn't even fit right, I had to drill holes in them.

Anyone had any epic fail cork gaskets?

 

[adsm08]

Yes. Several. All valve cover gaskets on 2.9s.

 

[brinker88]

Same here on the 4.0L

 

[LearjetMinako]

Every cork gasket on any vehicle that I own leaks. Yes they do seal nicely, but don't last long enough. I prefer one that it is replaced once and never needs to be replaced until I have to go in for repairs.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

After having a 2.9 with VERY leaky cork gaskets, I put some Fel-Pro rubber ones on there and used some Indian Head Gasket Shellac. When I had to pull the valve covers to replace a cracked head later, I had to use a rubber mallet and hammer on the valve cover a bit to get it off, that stuff glued on there good and kept it sealed.

 

[88ranger89camaro]

i have never had good luck with cork gaskets lasting very long ..... i always get rubber now and never use gasket glue or permatex ...... plus you can reuse them if you are carefull removing them

 

[AlaskanRider]

good to know!

Will keep an eye on mine, and probably won't buy more, unless they are almost free.

 

[97RangerXLT]

yeah, what was said above. with the time and labor that it takes to access the gaskets, you only want to do it once if at all possible... so I will spend a little more on rubber gaskets so that I don't have to tear the entire upper engine apart again to do this job. For an idea of what it takes to do the valve cover gaskets on my 4.0 OHV engine, check out the walk through that I created :

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94437

with the older engines where you could remove the valve covers in five minutes and not have to take the engine apart to do so, I can see going with cork.

AJ

 

[racsan]

dont recall the brand, but back when i did the intake and valve cover gaskets on my 4.0 the valve cover gaskets were a rubber material and had metal rings where the bolts went thru, not as thick as the gasket. you could actually tourque the valve cover bolts and not ruin a gasket! best idea ive evr seen on a gasket.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

dont recall the brand, but back when i did the intake and valve cover gaskets on my 4.0 the valve cover gaskets were a rubber material and had metal rings where the bolts went thru, not as thick as the gasket. you could actually tourque the valve cover bolts and not ruin a gasket! best idea ive evr seen on a gasket.

That is what I put on my 302, both on the valve covers and oil of my 302. I like them so far.

 

[nb11]

I worked on small airplanes a little in highschool and we used cork gaskets for most stuff. But then again, those engines (especially continentals) leaked oil like a stuck pig unless they were brand new. And they have to be rebuilt so every so many hours anyway and thoroughly inspected once a year.

 

[rangerbum]

Cork is fine, but rubber is better. Its just like rubber body mounts vs poly body mounts. One is outdated, the other is a breakthrough.

Rubber gaskets don't cost too much more, and are more durable. Why by 3 cork gaskets in the time you buy one rubber?

Rubber protects better, lasts damn near forever, is not expensive by any means, and is one more thing to Brag about. I just replaced my valve cover gasket on my 2.3 with a rubber one. The blue rubber stands out and looks good. So, the rubber performs better, and its visibly noticeable that care has been taken.


With that said, there is nothing wrong with cork gaskets. They work fine. They have worked fine for years, but why not move with the times and tech for an additional 40 cents? it'll even save you the work in the future.

 

[BRUTUS_T_HOG]

well cork splits when you try to tighten the bolts tight enough that they won't back out.

and after a while the cork gaskets get hard, brittle, and crack.

with a good coating of silicone on each side and properly torqued they are "sufficient"...

 

[dangerranger83]

My engine had cork valve cover gaskets on it and they leaked bad. For a buck more and one day of waiting, I put the rubber ones on it have they have yet to leak on my 2.8 and Im not using ay sealer other then where the intake manifold and head mate together to make the valve cover surface (aluminum and iron).

So far they have 5000+ miles on them.

 

[LearjetMinako]

dont recall the brand, but back when i did the intake and valve cover gaskets on my 4.0 the valve cover gaskets were a rubber material and had metal rings where the bolts went thru, not as thick as the gasket. you could actually tourque the valve cover bolts and not ruin a gasket! best idea ive evr seen on a gasket.

The Fel-pro gasket is like that too on my 2.3L engine. I was worried about it at first, but after a few years, many thousand miles later, and a couple oil changes, it still doesn't leak. The only oil gasket I haven't replaced yet is the oil pan's. Done both crank seals, valve cover, and oil pump.