[Jim_66SS]

Just got my 350 76 block engine rebuilt, Dyno last week. Small leak between oil pan and timing cover at the Dyno.. how can I fix this? Not sure what builder used, thinking a fel-pro one piece oil pan seal with thick at timing cover. Don’t really want to take apart to find out.

is there some way I can just pull the balancer and clean real good and spray something in the area that takes? Don’t really want to remove water pump and timing cover. Thanks.

 

[Hotwire]

clean it off completely with red brakleen, if your paint isn't cured it may dissolve the paint and strip it off the engine, then use ultragrey formagasket. It's thick, sticks well, and sets up firm. Be sure to use force when smearing it on so that it fills in the cracks that the gasket may not be touching.

I've always had problems with telpro gaskets in that area. I worked on a lot of 4.3s in S10s and always had the gasket leaking at timing cover / rear main saddle area. I ended up putting a 1/16" bead on both mating surfaces in those areas to prevent leaks before installing. It's a pia to clean out but it beats leaking oil.

 

[jeff swisher]

last 2 350's I put together for myself I did not use a front pan seal.
I just used ultra Grey silicone.
It is a small crevice and that Grey is stiff and I did not get any leaking.

That seal was around in the 50's and the silicone gasket makers then were not nearly as good as what we have today.
Many factory pans do not have any gasket just grey silicone.
I HATE that front seal as much as I hate the rubber end seals on the intake manifold..i do not use either any more.

Now to fix your issue I would use what @Hotwire stated to clean the leaking area and before you dab the Grey silicone into the crevice then blow it out with air and hook a shop vac to the oil breather hole or PCV hole and plug the other valve cover.

The shop vac will pull only 3 Inches of vacuum Max and that little bit up pull will help suck that Ultra grey into the leaking area.

 

[BillK]

If you just dynoed it and it is still out of the car, I would put it on the engine stand, flip it over and pull the pan and re-seal it. It is almost certainly leaking right at the corners and no matter how hard you try I doubt you will ever get it to seal long term. To be honest with you if you paid somebody to build it, I would tell him to fix it ??

 

[427L88]

While the Jeff's have an ingenious solution, if I built it, I'd drain it, and flip it and reseal it right like Bill said.

Why? I aint ingenious is why. I know that straight , ultra clean surfaces properly prepped will seal indefinitely.

Take it back drained and ask them to reseal it.

 

[BillyGman]

....I've always had problems with telpro gaskets in that area. I worked on a lot of 4.3s in S10s and always had the gasket leaking at timing cover / rear main saddle area. I ended up putting a 1/16" bead on both mating surfaces in those areas to prevent leaks before installing.

last 2 350's I put together for myself I did not use a front pan seal.
I just used ultra Grey silicone.
I HATE that front seal as much as I hate the rubber end seals on the intake manifold..i do not use either any more.

So I take it that both of you are speaking of the four piece oil pan gaskets. Am I reading you right? Have you guys ever tried the one piece oil pan gaskets? I'm asking you this because I've only used the multi-piece oil pan gaskets myself, and in my experience, I've had an oil leak in the rear part. In fact, I have to pull my BBC engine out of the car soon due to an oil leak, and this time around, I'm thinking about using a one piece oil pan gasket, and I sure don't want to repeat this project in the future. So what do you guys think about one piece oil pan gaskets, and what about using "The Right Stuff" sealant on the gasket near all four corners?

 

[Jim_66SS]

Yes the builder used a 4 piece gasket. Not sure if he used Theee thin front seal or not, heel should hav used the thick one. Thanks a for all you comments.

I’am wondering if that can be replaced with out disturbing the side gaskets and the rear seal.

 

[jeff swisher]

Have you guys ever tried the one piece oil pan gaskets?

I used a 1 piece on my 350 chevy and it leaked at the front.
It was a felpro blue silicone one and the directions stated to put a dab of silicone in the corners.
I later changed cams and pulled the timing cover and ended up cutting the front section off the gasket and using ultra grey.
No more leaking.

 

[BillyGman]

I used a 1 piece on my 350 chevy and it leaked at the front.
It was a felpro blue silicone one and the directions stated to put a dab of silicone in the corners.
I later changed cams and pulled the timing cover and ended up cutting the front section off the gasket and using ultra grey.
No more leaking.

Thanks Jeff. The way you did it sounds like the best way to go. I think I'll do it the same way this time around, but I might use "The Right Stuff" instead. I hate oil leaks, and I was a little concerned anyway, because I just bought a Comp Cams 3 piece aluminum timing cover that I'll be using too. If this doesn't work this time around, I might as well just use gorilla tape to attach Tampons to the underside of the engine!!

 

[Jim_66SS]

Sounds like something to try rather then pulling engine. Not that difficult pulling the timing cover, taking out the front oil pan seal and forcing that ultra gar in there. Thinking I may pull the oil pan and using ultra gray and a new pan gasket.

 

[BillyGman]

Sounds like something to try rather then pulling engine. Not that difficult pulling the timing cover, taking out the front oil pan seal and forcing that ultra gar in there. Thinking I may pull the oil pan and using ultra gray and a new pan gasket.

Jim, I hope that I haven't derailed your thread in any way. I figured that the oil pan gasket question that I had asked would also be helpful to you when/if the other guys here replied with answers, just as their answers were of help to me. However, just to avoid any confusion here, (in case you don't already know) the oil leak that I have is on a BBC engine, and there's just no sensible way to change an oil pan gasket on a Chevy BB in a GM A-body car without removing the engine. I know that you have a SBC engine in your car, so that's a little different.

 

[Jim_66SS]

No problem, I am working on a SB now. But my BB has been leaking for years. I just clean it’s leaking area every month

 

[BillyGman]

No problem, I am working on a SB now. But my BB has been leaking for years. I just clean it’s leaking area every month

Hahaha....yep, that's what I'm trying to avoid with mine. I hope it works out. Time will tell.

 

[shovelrick]

Race engine shop used gray gasket maker on my timing cover, 1 pc oil pan gasket & intake and nothing leaks...cept the new trans seal that he had nothing to do with

 

[Jim_66SS]

Well I decided to pull the oil pan and replace the gasket. Being a novice I think I should go with the rubber one piece gasket and some extra black RTV in the corners; but should I run a little bead of RTV all along the rails? I want the gasket with the limiters. I won’t know if I have the thin or wide seal at the front, as all the sites I look at say that I should use the thick one. However the year it was cast was a change over year and it may have been one of the last block with that casting number, which says a thin gasket at the front. Waiting a couple of days for oil to drain down before pulling the pan. Is it the pan that determines if I go thick or thin? How do I tell?

 

[Hotwire]

So I take it that both of you are speaking of the four piece oil pan gaskets. Am I reading you right? Have you guys ever tried the one piece oil pan gaskets? I'm asking you this because I've only used the multi-piece oil pan gaskets myself, and in my experience, I've had an oil leak in the rear part. In fact, I have to pull my BBC engine out of the car soon due to an oil leak, and this time around, I'm thinking about using a one piece oil pan gasket, and I sure don't want to repeat this project in the future. So what do you guys think about one piece oil pan gaskets, and what about using "The Right Stuff" sealant on the gasket near all four corners?

Sorry for the late reply, no I'm speaking of felpro 1 piece seals. For some reason they never sealed in the loop down sections under the mains. Whenever I install a felpro oil pan gasket I clean everything surgically clean with red brakleen, put a dab of ultragrey on the 4 corners of the front/rear covers as everyone else does, then put a 1/16" bead along the bottom of timing cover/rear main and 1/16" bead along the same areas on the oil pain before installing gasket and securing to engine.

 

[BillyGman]

OK, I hope that Jim doesn't mind me butting in his thread again, but can anyone comment on whether or not the leaking oil pan and lower timing cover issues, as well as the advice given here to use the grey sealant in the front near the timing cover, and even to cut the front part of the one piece pan gasket completely off and replace it with grey sealant applies to BBC engines also? Or is this just a SBC engine issue? The funny thing is that I never had an oil pan leak with my SBC engine, but now I do with my BBC engine. So that's why I ask.

 

[427L88]

They pretty much go together the same way afaik.

 

[Aaron]

Seems to be that trying to work on that area with engine in car or on a stand is working against yourself. Put engine on stand and take back to builder as Bill said.