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On 27 Dec 97, Jake Kooser wrote:
> both valve
> covers seemed to fit tightly, and I replaced both gaskets with new cork
> ones. Has anyone ever seen this happen, and why (or how?)? The valve
> covers are the stock-style 'made in taiwan' chrome ones, and didn't leak
> a drop when I first got the car (although judging by the poorly adjusted
> valves and cute 'made in taiwan' stickers STILL on the inside of the
> valve cover, I don't think they had ever been removed since the engine
> was built).
I assume you took care of the valve adjustment right away ;-)
It IS a bit strange for this to leak after a "long" time, but Berg
mentions having trouble with the chrome covers being too "slippery"
so the gaskets tend to slide out of position easily. The recommended
solution is to roughen up the seating surface inside the cover, and
to glue the gasket to the covers. NEVER glue the gasket to the head!
I usually use a dab of gasket compound at each corner of the gasket
as well as another in the middle of each long side. Good gaskets
will completely fill the pocket in the cover (not the depth, just
side-to-side and up-and-down, and are made of black rubberized cork.)
There are a lot of VERY cheap gaskets out there.
Berg recommends having a spare set of covers and an old set of heads
so you can glue gaskets in place and let them set up the day before.
The OE covers and bails are the best, but it is possible for the
bails to get bent so they don't pull as tight as they should. They
can be bent back with great effort.
HINT: Any time you feel your bails are getting a bit hard to swivel
on the head, pull them off and put a dab of Moly loaded (black)
grease in both sockets where they nest. I have seen the ends of the
bails get so corroded in place that they broke off.
Jim
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Melissa Kepner Jim Adney
Laura Kepner-Adney
jadney@vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin
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