I've been known to trim the timing plate gasket flush with the block and make a new gasket in the shape of the front main cap. Seal the parting line with Permatex gel "gasket maker". It's an "anaerobic sealer" sort of like very thick LocTite that is applied with a putty knife and cures into a solid layer once the air is blocked by bolting the parts together.
Jerry

"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln
Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt!
There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway
Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!