Denny, I'll try to improve my reading skills. They aren;t the best in the world. LOL
The old Indian Head shellac was/is pretty good. I have also had good results with Permatex Aviation sealant. I use it on the air cooled engines for VW's and it seems to hold pretty well.
If the rope seal is leaking, some machine shops no machine the seal area so that a one piece rubber seal can be used.
I would like to see these old engines get the gasket technology the newer engines have. Like you said, they seldom have any oil leaks even after 100,000 miles.
