cjd160 Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 Please help!!! I recently replaced the timing belt, head gaskets, valve cover seals, crank seal, & cam seals, on my 97 EJ25. I got it all back together and noticed a pretty good oil leak coming from the valve covers. So....I took it all back apart again and found that the sealant I used (permatex anaerobic gasket maker) had completely vanished from the camshaft end caps. In it's place was the smoking gun - a film of oil between machined surfaces of the head and cap. Obviously I'm not very experienced at using sealants! What did I do wrong? I cleaned the surfaces well and used a small amount spreading it evenly over the surfaces. I found some posts saying to use ultra-grey. Does this stuff require removing all traces of oil before applying? If so, how do you lube the cams and install them without getting lube/oil in the sealant? Any help will be greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 You have to remove all traces of oil and grease for any sealer to work. The end caps should not need any sealer because they're silicone/rubber. (something like that) You don't put sealer on rubber gasket/seal material because its supposed to seal itself. Use sealers for metal to metal only. Clean all of the sealer off, and put the end caps back in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjd160 Posted August 31, 2009 Author Share Posted August 31, 2009 the end cap is metal! I'm talking about the last bearing cap in front on the end of the camshaft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 The surfaces do need to be clean and dry. No oil residue present. It's also a good idea to use something like the Loctite Primer-N - it allows the sealants to better attach to the metal surfaces and contains curing agents, etc. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 the end cap is metal! I'm talking about the last bearing cap in front on the end of the camshaft. Mah bad. I was thinking the rear seals on the 2.2. Use a very thin film of assembly lube on the bearing surface and wipe the sealing surfaces with alcohol or brake cleaner before applying the sealant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjd160 Posted August 31, 2009 Author Share Posted August 31, 2009 Yeah that makes sense. I used gasket remover to clean the surfaces and I think that may have left a residue. I'll be sure to follow up with brake cleaner this time. Gasket remover works wonders to clean carbon deposits off the heads by the way. Thanks for all the help. P.S. Its a wonder that the sealant/gasket companies don't have more literature out there for the amateurs or do-it-yourselfers. I guess they just expect you to learn by trial and error. Does anybody know of a good link to more in-depth knowledge on this stuff? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 If they told everyone how to use it properly they wouldn't make as much money on people coming back to buy more after screwing it up the first time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted September 1, 2009 Share Posted September 1, 2009 i'm confused as to what you're talking about. if by camshaft end caps, you mean the actual camshaft end caps that house the camseal - they do not get any sealant. you're talking about machined surfaces and bearing surfaces, which do not get sealant. camshaft end caps only have an oring to seal them. no sealant. so you're terminology (camshaft end cap) is confusing or it doesn't get any sealant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjd160 Posted September 1, 2009 Author Share Posted September 1, 2009 sorry for the confusion...i should say "camshaft bearing cap closest to the timing belt" or as i like to say camshaft endcap this is on a 2.5L engine with DOHC. This setup doesn't have an oring - just a camshaft seal similar to the crank. Two pieces of metal sandwich the seal and last bearing surface on the cam The Haynes manual states "apply a small amount of anaerobic sealant to the number one camshaft cap sealing surface - do not apply excessive sealant or it may flow into the oil seal area and oil leaks may develop" Well I did just that and when I took it apart there was no trace of sealant at all! I'm trying to nail down exactly what it was that I did wrong...in my experience the devil is always in the details:headbang: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted September 1, 2009 Share Posted September 1, 2009 How much is a "small amount"? The smear of anearobic sealant should be VERY thin. Like transparent thin. It takes very little. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mugs Posted September 1, 2009 Share Posted September 1, 2009 Sounds liek A: you used te wrong sealant. B: you did not prep the surface very well. I only use Ultra Grey....it is worth the extra cost trust me. Second brake clean the crap out of your sufaces after initial lceaning is done. I break out the micro pics, razor blades, and emery cloth or wheels on a lot of sealing surfaces. But that is because I hate "comebacks" it is money I am loosing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted September 1, 2009 Share Posted September 1, 2009 I only use Ultra Grey....it is worth the extra cost trust me. Ultra Grey is a hell of a lot cheaper than Anearobic. Also I really don't like or use a lot of RTV period. It is often not the right sealant for a variety of reasons. In the case of flanged mating surfaces Anearobic is prefered as it will not harden and clog oil passages. Loctite makes a lot of very good sealing products and the VAST majority of them are not RTV. RTV has it's places, but they are few, and mostly on older engines that had inferior cork gaskets. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjd160 Posted September 1, 2009 Author Share Posted September 1, 2009 Thanks for all the info! Just wanted to share a great link I found on the subject: http://www.jasperengines.com/pdf/RTVAnaerobicSealerTB.pdf Still doesn't get into specifics! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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