Head gasket for 1925 Rover 16/50

[Guest]

I have a 1925 Rover 16/50 (5-seater phaeton). The head gasket has failed (no compression in cylinder 4, and light oil poured in the top emerges at the side of the block!). The original is copper-clad cork. Are there modern materials that would serve and be more reliable, and where could I get a gasket made? (I have an old one that could serve as a template).

[aqh]

Ken,<P>How about registering, it's easy. Try gasketcity.com or dial 1-888-335-4686.

[cmj]

Might also try Olson's Gaskets.<BR>web page is <A HREF="http://www.olsonsgaskets.com" TARGET=_blank>www.olsonsgaskets.com</A> <BR>Located in Washinton. PH 360-871-1207

[Guest]

aqh and cmj, Many thanks for your suggestions (and apologies if this reply turns up in dupicate; I am fighting the firewall!). The Durabla gaskets en route to me are in fact from Olson's Gaskets, but neither Olson nor another company I contacts responded to my explicit question whether they knew for a fact that Durabla could replace copper-clad cork in an engine of this vintage (1925).<P>Ken Gundry

[Guest De Soto Frank]

Ken,<P>I think any post-1920's gasket will be equal or superior to your cork-filled gasket.<P>Up until recently, the standard filler for "sandwich" gaskets was asbestos between two sheets of copper or steel.<BR>I'm sure the gasket makers have found a suitable "politically correct" substitute.<BR>If you get an old-stock gasket, then you'll probably get good old asbestos, which works just fine.<P>While you have the head off, it would be a good idea to have it checked for "trueness" at the gasket surface, and make sure the head hasn't warped.<BR>Your local machine shop can do this, and surface the head if required.

[Guest]

Frank,<P>Many thanks for your comments.<P>I really don't know what the "Durabla" that Olson Gaskets is supplying is. I was a little disconcerted looking at an illustration in the service manual to see that a gasket with round holes leaves significant areas unsupported in the water channels. The copper cladding would have provided support to the cork. I asked Olson about that but he never replied. I was not offered (by Olson or another company that quoted) a "sandwich" gasket.<P>Well, we shall see!<P>Ken