Header Gasket?

[liljlandon]

For those of you who run a header(s),

How did you keep the bolts tight? I have put lock washers, red loctite, blue loctite, hightemp rtv, etc, and they continue to need tighted once every week or two.

Also, what gasket did you use?

Im not sure if its the constant loosening of the bolts or my inherent bad luck with exaust, but I cannot get a Toyota, felpro, or even hooker gasket to seal for an extended period of time. The head is flat and true as it can be and the header was checked after I welded it up and shaved a hair so it was true at one time...

input is appreciated!

 

[KLF]

OEM gasket. New studs & nuts installed when I put the header on. LC Engineering header. All of my exhaust studs are helicoiled.

Sounds to me like you've got too much weight hanging on the header, and as the engine wobbles back and forth the exhaust is flexing the header, loosening the nuts. Have you checked you engine mounts?

 

[liljlandon]

Hmm... The engine mounts are fine, but the tranny mount is marginal. I did the 'hold the brake and let the clutch out' trick and the engine barely torqued, however, my shifter seems to torque forward some... The exhuast shop tried to convince me to put some flexible exhuast tubing inbetween the header and tube since i see more frame flex than most. maybe i should have...

The whole engine has less than 15000 on it, only about 5000 with the header so i doubt its an issue of the threads themselves.

I will crawl under it and see if it torques that bad when i have some help i trust. It could just torque that bad when driving though...

 

[selk78]

if you need a new header gasket I would try doug thorley! i know its not the same as the small 4banger or the v6's , i had a doug thorley header and there gasket on my fj40 with the f motor, I never had one issue with it, even when i had to switch between my doug thorley and downey header and back for emissions (same gasket), doug thorley is the shiz.

 

[missouriman]

sounds like you need new exhaust nuts.
the nuts lock down on the stud.
if you look at new nuts they are only round on one side.
the outer side is oval.