Head gasket recommendation....

I am going to be using aluminum heads and was told I need to use a certain type of head gasket, is this true and if so what type/brand/part number? sorry never used aluminum heads before.

 

Use fel pro 9333pt-1 head gaskets, they have a stainless steel fire ring where most others are tin. They are also cheap $40 for a set, and most parts stores have them in stock. I'm using these with my trick flow heads without issue.

 

use the type the head manufacturer recommends...
that's what I did with my AFRs.

 

Frank, they are Edelbrock heads so of course they recommend their head gaskets, I just don't want to pay an inflated price for something I can get locally and will work just as well at a lower price.

 

The gaskets in the kit Trick Flow sells are Fel Pro, but I believe are slightly different than anything in the regular FP line... I have a kit I'll recheck to see if there is a number on them...

 

Here's something else to ponder before you make your final decision. MLS head gaskets are predominantly used by all the OEM's these days. There's a reason for that and prices have come way down while availability has improved as well.

Especially good for dissimilar material combo's(iron/AL) that move and cause scrub and well worth the extra cash. I won't use anything else on a performance setup and even opt for them on cheaper builds whenever possible.

Also. Try like hell to keep the gaskets bore size to the bare minimum required for the current overbore. That helps keeps compression up and reduces detonation potential with better squish characteristics. Some will say that it doesn't make any difference.. but they would be wrong and every little tiny bit helps in cumulative fashion.

 

I use Cometic MLS head gaskets on both my 306 Ford and my blown 509 marine BBC for all of the reasons cited by groberts. Extra expense, yes, but a lot of piece of mind. Remember when the OEMs began producing iron blocks with aluminum heads? Head gasket failure was a huge issue before they began using MLS gaskets.

 

I don't doubt the quality of those gaskets, but why does AFR recommend Felpro for their heads? I'm sure they've heard of all the other brands.

 

My aluminum head Trick Flow gasket set has Fel Pro 1011-2 in it...

 

I'm partial to Mr. Gasket UltraSeals, only .038" thick.

 

X

X 2 on this. I coat em with Copper cote as extra insurance. My 331's been together now for ten years with this gasket and Canfield heads

 

Just as suspected, Edelbrock Head Gaskets are made by FelPro.....

 

And they cost how much more than if you had just gone out and bought FelPro's?

 

They were $60.00 for the set and are Multi Layer.

 

Whats the number in the top left corner?