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Wed Oct 28, 2015 10:56 pm

Ok, so I've noticed that there are a bunch of different kinds of exhaust gaskets. Some are all steel, others steel sandwiches, others are fibrous, others are copper. Now which are the best? Best as in terms of sealing, and best in terms of thermal management. Does the exhaust manifold get hotter and therefore copper would transfer more heat to the heads, whereas fibroids ones would keep the heads cooler? Or do the stock heat exchangers keep the exhaust manifolds cooler so fibrous gaskets would keep heat in the heads but copper gaskets keep the heads cooler?

Wed Oct 28, 2015 11:30 pm

I've been using the copper slip in gaskets for years with no problems and no apparent leaks. I have also just read the thread about other guys having great use with vanagon gaskets that have metal on one side. I think the difference in heat transfer of the two choices -fibrous, fibrametal and copper is marginal.

Thu Oct 29, 2015 7:18 am

The best exhaust gasket I found that work well are the graphite compression gaskets that CB Performance sells

http://www.cbperformance.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=2800
They come in three sizes. 1 3/8, 1 1/2, 1 5/8in

Thu Oct 29, 2015 7:21 am

jsturtlebuggy wrote: The best exhaust gasket I found that work well are the graphite compression gaskets that CB Performance sells

http://www.cbperformance.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=2800
They come in three sizes. 1 3/8, 1 1/2, 1 5/8in

I have been using these and they are nice

Thu Oct 29, 2015 8:40 am

I only use the copper gadgets. no leeks no replace.

Thu Oct 29, 2015 10:46 am

On performance engines I use copper they seal, come off clean, and are reusable, anneal with a torch and reinstall. On stock engines I use the stock gaskets that come in the seal kits.

Thu Oct 29, 2015 1:40 pm

I use copper gaskets with just a smear of copper hi temp silicone, when I reuse them I anneal them with a torch. I was lucky, when I was running the waterjet I made a bunch of them and 3/8" stainless flanges too.
Don't ask I do not have access to the water jet machine any more, sorry.

Casey

Thu Oct 29, 2015 1:45 pm

GEE thanks mr quake I need some stainless flanges.......

Thu Oct 29, 2015 2:03 pm

I run the CB performance once mentioned above. So far so good.

Thu Oct 29, 2015 2:19 pm

The CB Performance compression gaskets are supposed to be really nice and make up for imperfections on the flanges. I have used the copper ones with high temp exhaust RTV as well as Vanagon exhaust gaskets with good results.

Thu Oct 29, 2015 2:28 pm

the magic combo for me is high temp rtv and the copper gaskets. Its a bit of a poop show getting it all together with rtv on all the flanges and working quickly, but it works and doesn't leak

Thu Oct 29, 2015 9:33 pm

I also use copper gaskets and have reused them many many times, no issues. I would not hesitate to use then again or on another project.

The CB ones linked above look nice as well however I don't have any experience with them, may be the best option if you have a poor quality exhaust with thin flanges.

Thu Oct 29, 2015 9:58 pm

One thing to check with the graphite CB gaskets. They will squish inward a bit upon installation, reducing the size of the hole. If you're using heads with a large exhaust port, they may slightly overlap causing some turbulence or reducing the flow. I used the large gaskets in my street-strip Beetle, but ended up going back to the copper gaskets to keep the port hole fully open for exhaust flow.

Sat Oct 31, 2015 10:21 am

I found that the simple metal gaskets sold with stock exhausts do not work so well when the bore of the header flange is larger than the hole in the gasket, as the bulge in the gasket does not get compressed properly.

So I made some copper gaskets out of $10 worth of copper sheet off eBay. And anneal them when I reuse them.

Sun Nov 01, 2015 12:22 pm

I use the CB compression gaskets on my 2332 turbo. No leaks, no problems. happy happy :) .

Sun Nov 01, 2015 12:26 pm

I like the Berg composite gaskets.

Tue Jun 06, 2023 6:21 am

jsturtlebuggy wrote: The best exhaust gasket I found that work well are the graphite compression gaskets that CB Performance sells

http://www.cbperformance.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=2800
They come in three sizes. 1 3/8, 1 1/2, 1 5/8in

Can these be re-used or one time only?

Tue Jun 06, 2023 7:19 pm

First off, NO gasket will solve the problem of warped flanges. I know there was no mention of that, but I often times hear people looking for better gaskets because thier's kept "blowing out".

Assuming you have nice thick flanges (5/16" thick minimum) that are flat, I find the CB graphite compression gaskets to be the best.

Thu Jun 08, 2023 5:17 pm

Lo Cash John wrote: First off, NO gasket will solve the problem of warped flanges. I know there was no mention of that, but I often times hear people looking for better gaskets because thier's kept "blowing out".

Assuming you have nice thick flanges (5/16" thick minimum) that are flat, I find the CB graphite compression gaskets to be the best.

Bingo the stock gaskets pink material and metal on both sides work great. But I also bought a new Tri-Mill header and Torqued everything correctly plus my motor runs cool funny how everything works right when everything else was done right. :-k

Thu Jun 08, 2023 5:40 pm

Vanagon exhaust gaskets work really well.