Steel or copper shim head gaskets

Pete Whitstone

Pete Whitstone

True Classic
I seem to recall a thread a while back (maybe from Bernice?) that mentioned a supplier who could do either steel or copper shim head gaskets for the X1/9 in any thickness.

Anybody have any info on this? I am looking to up the compression a bit on my race car, which is difficult since the pistons are a bit down in the block (about .020 as I recall). I have already done head milling to reduce chamber size, but with the pistons that low, it only brings things up to the 9.8:1 range. The right answer of course is to mill the block, but I'm not ready for that yet, and the engine is in good running order so I'm hesitant to tear it apart if I can get a moderate compression bump cheaper/easier.

What is the conventional wisdom about how thin you can go with this type of head gasket (assuming surfaces are in good shape and square, etc).

Thanks,
Pete
 
Not me, personally, I'm skeptical about copper head gaskets. These have been around for a long time, but I'm not convinced they are truly better than composite gaskets without problems.

If the head has been shaved already, decking the block or high compression pistons are needed to get the desired compression.

Most times, it comes down to budget, resources and etc as to what gets done. It might be better to get another short block and make it to the desiered compression. Then, install the engine complete.

Pete Whitstone said:
I seem to recall a thread a while back (maybe from Bernice?) that mentioned a supplier who could do either steel or copper shim head gaskets for the X1/9 in any thickness.

Anybody have any info on this? I am looking to up the compression a bit on my race car, which is difficult since the pistons are a bit down in the block (about .020 as I recall). I have already done head milling to reduce chamber size, but with the pistons that low, it only brings things up to the 9.8:1 range. The right answer of course is to mill the block, but I'm not ready for that yet, and the engine is in good running order so I'm hesitant to tear it apart if I can get a moderate compression bump cheaper/easier.

What is the conventional wisdom about how thin you can go with this type of head gasket (assuming surfaces are in good shape and square, etc).

Thanks,
Pete
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