On a quest for the elusive "Dry AeroVee"

[daleandee]

I started using these rocker cover gaskets after I accidentally pinched a cork one when installing it and ended up with an oil leak: https://realgaskets.com/product/valve-cover-gaskets-49/
I've reused them for a couple of years now and don't put anything special on them. They don't leak.

Hi Chris,

Looks like a great gasket. I scoured their site but none for a Corvair. Back when I had a VW engine I used cork gaskets as they seal well for me.

I tried using rubber gaskets and had a concern with them but it was my error. I had changed the oil and set the valves so I would be ready for my second trip to ASA. I went the day before departure to Tennessee to a nearby airport to fill the fuel tank. When I landed there was oil everywhere in the cowling & under the airplane. What I had done was doubled the rubber gaskets as the valve cover bolts were a tad too long for a single thinner rubber gasket. Once the oil got between the rubber gaskets, one of them slipped and allowed oil out of the cover and it went everywhere!

Thankfully I only lost about a 1/2 quart of oil (sure looked like Jed was a millionaire!) and I had the aircraft quickly back up and running. I made it over to Crossville OK but my departure was delayed a little.

Dale Williams
N319WF @ 6J2
Myunn - "daughter of Cleanex"
120 HP - 3.0 Corvair
Tail Wheel - Center Stick
Signature Finish 2200 Paint Job
166.2 hours / Status - Flying
Member # 109 - Florida Sonex Association

[Darick]

Just read an old issue of kit planes, April 2016, about the thatcher CX5, which uses the Revmaster 2300. In the article it says he uses no oil and gets about 2 drips out of the breather on a long flight.

[Area 51%]

A potential leak source to consider.

The sealing surface on a stock VW flywheel is ground to the same standards as the bearing journals. The sealing surface on the Aerovee flywheel is a machined surface and is very rough by comparison and is in constant motion pulling at the seal lip. Picture the grooves cut into the prop hub to keep the oil from coming out the front of the engine, only on a much smaller scale. Adding insult to injury, the zinc (or whatever) plating adds to the roughness. It doesn't seem like it would take long to compromise the seal.

I plan to polish the sealing surface of the flywheel before installation.

Nothing much to do here @Area 51% since I lost my fidget-spinner.

[WaiexN143NM]

Randy any word on the parts? Maybe they can just ship you the parts and you can paint them yourself .
And give you a credit or something. That way you can get your engine together.
Any word on the reason for the delay on red annodized parts? Hmmm......

WaiexN143NM
Michael

[lutorm]

I recently noted we also had small oil leaks from the stud holes on the head. It's not in the Aerovee manual, but some instructions say to coat the tops and bottoms of the stud washers that are inside the valve cover with Form-A-Gasket before torqueing the heads, since this is a path for oil to exit. Seems like a good idea to me.

[RodgerC]

I have one of these rare beasts...But it wasn’t always so. Until my recent overhaul, my AeroVee would leak 4 or 5 drops a week. Since the overhaul ~6 hrs ago, not a drop. Not sure why I’ve managed to eliminate the leak, but here are some things I changed from my first build.

1. Dropped Permatex Aviation No.3 in favour of Loctite 518 anaerobic gasket maker.
2. Sealed the cam plug (carefully) with Permatex Ultra Grey sealant.
3. Used Loctite 518 to replace most of the gaskets...e.g. Block off plates.
4. Expanded the push-rod tubes and used premium quality silicone rubber seals.
5. Used a press to insert the rear main oil seal. Make sure you buy the very best quality oil seal recommend by your local VW performance workshop.
6. Sealed the threads on the case saver inserts that were not “blind”.
7. And this is the one that I suspect gave me the best result, ensured that end-float on the crankshaft was at the bottom end of the tolerance. You’ll need to use a “thrust jacking bolt” and a carefully mounted dial indicator with clean dry “lacquer free” shims to achieve this. My suspicion is that excessive end-float “pumps” oil out of the rear seal.

The result is, I no longer remove the cowls after EVERY flight to strategically locate a rag to catch drips.

Happiness is a leak free engine.

[Area 51%]

No Mike.........not yet. A note dropped to Kerry, instead of the order folks (you know........the ones that cashed the check), at least prompted a sympathetic reply and a nudge in the ribs to Steve in the warehouse for an explanation.

Something about a circuit-board supplier and where the parts need to go once (if?) produced to become a part of a larger picture. Then to the "pretty" shop, then to the masses. Not a peep, however, about the Aeroinjector and nothing in the text about lead times.

I've bought them a little extra time though. I sent the "hand hewn" flywheel to my machine shop to have the sealing surface ground rather than just trying to polish it smooth.

Hoping I get to travel at least as far in the Waiex as all the parts have here @Area 51%

[Area 51%]

How much time do you have after the application of the anaerobic to get the case halves together? I used something similar (probably the same stuff in a different package) on an Evinrude block. It said to assemble with "no delay" because of the possibility of it forming a shim rather than a seal. The product I used did come with some kind of accelerant though.

[RodgerC]

There is no rush to assemble...The compound only cures in the absence of air. Where it is exposed to air it remains “gell-like”. Any excess squeezed out of the flange contact area can be wiped away with a rag or is “washed” away with oil.

It was recommended to me by the maintenance outfit at my local airport who restore and maintain Gipsy Major engines in Tiger Moths.

More info here: http://www.loctite.com.au/3320_AUE_HTML ... 2626633729

[lutorm]

1. Dropped Permatex Aviation No.3 in favour of Loctite 518 anaerobic gasket maker.

I've read people saying to not use 518 for the VW case halves because it is too viscous and won't squeeze out completely leading to loss of bearing clamping. I haven't tried it myself so I don't know if there's any truth to that.