The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop Valve cover gaskets

I've got a SBC in my '40, and it leaks oil on the drivers side, towar the outside rear corner. I replaced the valve cover gaskets, but it still leaked so I replaced the valve covers, thinking maybe it was warped or something. But it still leaks in the same spot. So two sets of gaskets and a new set of covers and the leak persists. It's not too bad, but it leaks right on the the exhaust manifold so it smokes like crazy burning the oil off. It's strange, because I've never actually seen the leak, I just see the oil burning of the exhaust manifold and sometimes there is oil up on top of the lip of the valve cover, by the bolt.

So I guess I can rule out the valve cover and the gasket, so is it possible the head is warped or damaged in that spot? I didn't notice anything unusual when I had the cover off.

Is there maybe a "heavy duty" type gasket I can use? I think I just used the cork Fel Pro type. Is there a special type sealant I should try with the gasket?

Just looking for ideas. Thanks!

yes, some folks glue the gasket to the cover before installing, but it could be other things - oil pressure sender fitting? pcv plugged causing some internal pressure? you over tightened the cover with those stock tabs under the bolt? might try the aftermarket wide bars hot rodders use

Bill

On my SBC I had oil dripping out of the oil breather/filler fixture,which ran down to the rear of the valve cover,[yup you guessed it dripped on the exhaust pipe]

Another thing to check is the bolts on the instake manifold. I had oil seeping out around a couple of the bolt heads. Needed to reset with a bit of silicone.

Don't know the condition of your engine, but there is a drain hole in the rear of the head on the lower side that sometimes gets clogged up with sludge. Then the oil pools at the back of the head and does just what you described. Easy fix, take a piece of wire (old coat hanger) and run it down the hole to clean it out. Does the engine smoke a little when you first start up?

I never heard of this. Can you post a pic of the hole so I know exactly where to look? Thanks!

when you take the valve cover off, does a lot of oil come out at the outside rear corner? If so that hole is plugged up. it's been a few years since I played with the sbc, but the hole is all the way in the rear of the head by the bolt.If the head has a lot of sludge it may be hard to find , but it's back there.

The SBC in my '56 leaked pretty bad at first. Come to find out the Weiand intake manifold was keeping my valve covers from setting flush. Some creative carving of the valve covers fixed the problem.
Ed

I have a Weiand intake also and I had the same problem. I had to grind off part of the lip on my valve covers. I don't think that's the problem though, because it's leaked this way with two different sets of valve covers.

I can't for the life of me see the leak! I checked with a flashlight from the top and from the bottom, every angle I can get at. I know there is a leak though because every time I start it up the drivers side manifold smokes like crazy for about 10 minutes and there is oil on the top of the lip of the valve cover. So somehow it is getting past the gasket and up over the lip onto the valve cover, or it is leaking out of the bolt hole. This is driving me nuts.

How about checking the intake manifold gasket in the rear.
I had a leaker that I looked for for three years.