new vs old nissan headgasket

[racerx260]

I rebuilt the turbo engine in my 260 about 2 months agao and used a nissan gasket . it had peal off plastic and was tackey to the touch. I am now rebuilding the engine in a 83 turbo I bought and ordered a nissan gasket. This one is dry. The part no. on the old one ended on 910 and a newer sticker was put on the box that ended in 911. The new gasket ends in 911.Do I put this on dry like a felpro or do I need to spray it with copp er or something?

[z-ya]

I've never seen a Nissan OEM gasket that was sicky. All the ones I've used have been dry. Maybe you got one from a different batch made by a different OEM.

 

You can use the gasket dry, but if you have some copper spray handy, go ahead an put a couple coats on, it can't hurt.

[racerx260]

Thanks For The Imput. What Did You Use On Yours? I Read That The Coating Helps Prevent Leaks Because The Iron Block And The Aluminum Head Expand And Contract At Different Rates. And The Coating Alows Them To Move Independantly And Prevents Leaks Down The Road.

[Alex_V]

If you can get a long egnough straight edge and check the warpage on the block and head. go diaganally corner to corner and use a feeler gauge in the middle.

 

Im not sure of the spec but make sure it isnt too much or you'll need them decked.

 

~Alex

[racerx260]

Already Have The Head Milled And The Block Decked No Issue There.

[Alex_V]

sweet GL with the rebuild then. Dont drop a dowle into the front cover lol.

 

~Alex

[z-ya]

I use copper spray on new OEM head and exhaust gaskets. In fact, I have reused OEM exhaust gaskets by appying 3 coats of copper spray. On NISMO metal gaskets I only use copper spray on the second or third use (never tried to reuse one 4 times).

 

I use the Permatex copper spray:

 

http://www.permatex.com/products/automotive/automotive_gasketing/gasket_sealants/auto_Permatex_Copper_Spray-A-Gasket_Hi-Temp_Adhesive_Sealant.htm

 

You can get it at most auto parts stores.

[Zmanco]

What does the copper spray do? I mean, does it make it seal better, come off better, or something else?

[naviathan]

It helps a little with sealing, but the main reason is that it's tacky and will hold the gasket in place while putting the head on.

[z-ya]

It mainly improves the sealing capability. Yea, it is sticky, but that actually makes it harder to get the head on, and aligned.

[Zmanco]

It mainly improves the sealing capability. Yea, it is sticky, but that actually makes it harder to get the head on, and aligned.

I can see how this is important for a turbo motor running big boost. What about for a NA motor? I've not had any issues with sealing running the felpro gasket on a clean head and block, but maybe I was just lucky?

 

I hope I'm not sounding argumentative, I'm just curious about the benefits of copper spray. I've seen many people talk about it, but no one was ever able to really atriculate why they used it.