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Valley Pan End Seals |
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78FordLtd2 
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Joined: 19-April-2021 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 115 |
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 Topic: Valley Pan End SealsPosted: 21-June-2021 at 7:48PM |
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Finally got the chance to address my vacuum leak in my intake manifold. Picked up a new valley pan from Fel Pro and did the install. I'm having trouble with (surprise, surprise) the end seals. The front seal keeps squishing out. The rear seal stays in place nicely. This is a stock 2bbl manifold. As I thought there might be a problem with the kit, I purchased a second kit and again, the front seal squished out.
I'm at my wits end and I want to ditch the rubber end seals. Any suggestions with this style of valley pan? This is my problem...
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78FordLtd2
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Posted: 21-June-2021 at 7:51PM |
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This is the type of valley pan
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aquartlow
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Joined: 19-December-2011 Location: Summerfield, Fl Status: Offline Points: 2209 |
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Posted: 22-June-2021 at 12:39AM |
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I use a LPG valley pan on my 460 so I know what you're going through. I omitted the end seals and just apply a 1/4-3/8" bead of RTV sealant to the top of the "China" walls, seal problem solved and nary a leak. Hope this helps.
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Yeah, It's a Hybrid...It burns gas and tires. No matter how good she looks, somebody, somewhere, is tired of her sh*t. Beauty is skin deep, ugliness goes clear to the bone. |
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72FordGTS
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GTS.org Admin Joined: 06-September-2005 Location: Ontario, Canada Status: Offline Points: 5308 |
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Posted: 22-June-2021 at 2:03AM |
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I have always done the same method as Todd, just used RTV for the china walls. I used the same valley pan gasket on my engine with both the stock intake and an Edelbrock and had no issues sealing it with RTV. Where was your vacuum leak?
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Vince
1972 Ford GTS Sportsroof - Survivor, One Family car GTS.org Admin |
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mkshelton
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Joined: 14-March-2012 Location: Sierra Vista Status: Offline Points: 357 |
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Posted: 22-June-2021 at 3:16AM |
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I agree with the above. I believe the standard practice now is omit those seals and use good quality RTV ultra grey of a appropriate bead size in their place.
When used just along the top of the ridge, it is easy to remove later.
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"Sometimes I wonder if I'm actually UNinventing the wheel"
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78FordLtd2
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Posted: 22-June-2021 at 6:33AM |
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I think that's exactly what I'm going to do...use rtv in place of those seals. I was hesitant to do so because of the valley pan itself and how it lays on top of the seals.
Ford didn't have a problem, why should I? Lol! I had a small vacuum leak around the base of the carb and between the egr spacer to manifold. Further investigation revealed a much larger leak along the passenger side manifold ports as well. Have been wanting to upgrade to a 4bbl for a while but that will have to wait as I have some other projects planned around the house. Thanks for the tip!
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72 RS 351
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Posted: 22-June-2021 at 12:10PM |
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The cork end pieces are horrible because the high heat makes them fail(leak) early on. The rubber pieces are fine to use only if the gap is thicker than the rubber piece. If it might be thinner, don't use the rubber, just use RTV. So I use the rubber pieces only if I know they won't be crushed(and might squeeze out). Use a layer of Ultra Black on each surface unless the gasket is made to go on dry etc, some gaskets work fine that way. Try to find metal cored gaskets, those hold their shape much better and are less likely to be crushed to the point of breaking(which creates a leak). That's part of why intake bolts don't take much torque, you don't want them really tight(it hurts the gaskets).
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Don
73 Ranchero "Sport 72 front end", floor shift/console, planning EFI 7000+ rpm 351-4V &4R70W 73 Ranchero GT 351C-4V &4R70W for sale later. 92 Lincoln Mark VII SE GTC, OBDII 347/4R70W |
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78FordLtd2
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Posted: 22-June-2021 at 1:00PM |
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Thanks for your suggestions! Helped out tremendously. I went ahead and used rtv sealant for the end seals. I'm happy with it so far so we shall see once I get the rest of it all back together.
Thanks a bunch! It's time for a much needed Budweiser.
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