Anerobic sealant

Hey all

I?m installing a B234f head

I know the Volvo pink sealer is likely the best choice but what about other brands?

I don?t want leaks or hassle

Are there any tricks to installing the stuff?

Thanks
Dave

I used some cheaper stuff from IPD one time, and got leaks. Same exact parts, same exact surface prep. Used the Volvo pink stuff before and after that one experiment, bone dry (and i had my 16V apart and back together maybe 5 or 6 times?). YMMV, that's just my single experience with the non_Volvo stuff, and 4 or 5 times using the Volvo stuff.

And just get the surfaces super duper clean. Rub the surfaces with your finger to find any little bits of stuff too small to see. And once they are spotlessly clean, make sure they are DRY of all oil. I used rubbing alcohol and multiple clean paper towels. That will remove the last vestiges of oil and make for a clean and dry surface.

Then I used small foam rollers to apply the sealer - sold for trim painting in home improvement stores. Maybe an inch wide? And put this on both surfaces. Not too much - even thought it's not supposed to harden in the oil passages and block them, no need to give it a chance to do so. Just a nice even thin coating on both sides. No need to hurry, but just move right along to slapping them together and snug them down with a fair number of nuts right away, across the whole thing. So you get a nice solid mating of the surfaces while the goop is still pretty fresh.

Then stick the cams in (some of the cam caps also help secure the top layer to the lower head) and snug up everything. I didn't bother using torque specs, but don't overdo it.


Then I'd usually wait at least a day or two before firing it up and running pressurized oil into that freshly gooped seam. Partially because I thin it needs to set up before oil pressure tries squeezing it out, partially just because there's a lot more work to get a 16V together from that point, esp with a turbo. Not sure how critical that wait time is.

Permatex makes one that works fine on whiteblocks. It is not as easy to apply as the Volvo stuff though. I would recommend the Volvo version for that reason.

Volvo sealant is the same as Loctite 510. You can run the engine as soon as you get it ready to go.

I've used Permatex RightStuff on many whiteblocks and many places with success. Though it's not the recommended type.

Remember if you put it on too thick and there's a long wait time from when you assemble the head to when the car is running, some of the anaerobic goo can harden in the oil galleries of the head.

If it's not the anaerobic type stuff (Volvo pink goop, Loctite 510) the risk is if you over-apply - it can squeeze into the oil passages, harden, and block flow to the lifters.

Lankku said:

Volvo sealant is the same as Loctite 510. You can run the engine as soon as you get it ready to go.

I've used Permatex RightStuff on many whiteblocks and many places with success. Though it's not the recommended type.

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I've used permatex 51813 anaerobic gasket maker on whiteblocks.