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Metal Headgasket Seal

Marphie21
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Marphie21 Rookie

Marphie21

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Hi there! Is it some sort of special technique to use a gasket sealant like Hondabond on a metal head gasket? Got my engine back from a builder and he used Hondabond on my Tomei metal head gasket. He says hes been using this technique since 2017.

Never heard of anyone doing this before, and my first instinct was that this was totally wrong. I tried searching the web for several days and came across *some* high HP builders using a little hondabond on head gaskets as some sort of insurance.

 

Pictured below is my metal head gasket with the grey hondabond coming from the sides.

received_3234684090090706.jpeg

received_246653386690946.jpeg

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KiwiRS4T Grand Master

KiwiRS4T

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If your block is straight and your head is true there will be no blow outs. I reused a Tomei Head gasket (yes the same one)  three times when I was sorting out an issue with my RB30 and it never leaked and so far as I know is still fine years later.

KiwiRS4T Grand Master

KiwiRS4T

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55 minutes ago, Marphie21 said:

Yup he says it should be all good. He's been doing it on honda engines since 2017. But he's also become a little sketchy. 

That'll teach you for using a Honda engine!

Ben C34 Grand Master

Ben C34

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4 hours ago, Marphie21 said:

"To really make sure there are no blow outs"

According to the builder. 

A bit of sticky goo won't do a single thing about blow outs. That's retarded.

The best it will manage is sealing up some oil or coolant, not combustion pressure should the head gasket reach its limit

Marphie21 Rookie

Marphie21

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6 minutes ago, Ben C34 said:

A bit of sticky goo won't do a single thing about blow outs. That's retarded.

The best it will manage is sealing up some oil or coolant, not combustion pressure should the head gasket reach its limit

Any idea if itll do anything detrimental towards the headgasket's performance?

Ben C34 Grand Master

Ben C34

Posted
Posted
17 minutes ago, Marphie21 said:

Any idea if itll do anything detrimental towards the headgasket's performance?

If it is a sensibly thin even coat I would think it is OK. But it is another thing to go wrong, so I don't do it.

Marphie21 Rookie

Marphie21

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2 hours ago, Ben C34 said:

If it is a sensibly thin even coat I would think it is OK. But it is another thing to go wrong, so I don't do it.

If I had known he would do this i wouldve stopped him right away. Gah youre right its something thatll bug me until I actually run the engine. 

Its just that to undo what he did would require upening up the engine again, getting a new head gasket, and possibly taking the block/head to the machine shop again to get it properly smooth. This Hondabond seems to have a reputation of really not coming off easily. If we try to scrape the stuff off with our tools we might scratch the head and block surfaces.

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