Water neck with o ring,seal or not to seal?

72 chevy elcamino · Mar 20, 2006

Hello
I have a mr gasket brand water neck with an o-ring on it. you know the cheap ones at advance/autozone. and wanted to put it on today when i realized i didn't know to seal the neck on with sealer or without. i looked on mr.gasket.com and they say you don't have to use sealer with it but i doesn't say you can if you want.
my water inlet on the manifold is a little corroded up so i figure i better use sealer/form a gasket on the water neck.
but i want to make sure i can, i have seen that the o-ring will give out after time as on the website everyones asks where they get a replacement ring!

And i have heard not to tighten these down real hard as they will warp/leak if over tightened? are these pot metal or metal with fake chrome? lol

"to seal or not to seal that is the question"!? thanks :thumbup:

72 chevy elcamino · Mar 20, 2006

Hello
i cant get my hands on a metal one at the moment! i have to drive this car tommorow night so i took what i could get, the metal one i had has been misplaced by my ***** brother and it hasnt shown up in days. i would have to order one for 38.00 and would be few days before i could get it.
i have already called everyone i know that sells older parts with no luck and not enough time to drive somewhere else to look. so im having to take advantage of the cheap one, trust me i would MUCH rather have the original metal one. so im stuck for a week with this one!!

poncho62 · Mar 20, 2006

Put some sealer on it, and a gasket if you wanr to, it will be fine.

72 chevy elcamino · Mar 20, 2006

thanks poncho, i have a gasket but i seemed like the o-ring wouldnt have any purpose if i used a gasket, ill ultra blue the sucker and hope it doesnt leak :sweat: ill still go find me a oem neck on ebay cheap and suffer the cheapy chrome for now lol.

steve t · Mar 20, 2006

they are bad for sealing, but i have run one on my 61 for years, the hose has never come off, did not use any sealer , you could take the o ring out and use a gasket

72 chevy elcamino · Mar 20, 2006

thanks for the replies ive sealed and mounted the neck so ill see in the morning if it works!

65Stanger · Mar 20, 2006

I have cracked the ears off of them, and the best advice I can give you is to MAKE SURE THAT THE THERMOSTAT IS DEAD CENTER IN THE HOUSING! Move the housing around without the bolts on...it should be a smooth surface. Once the thermostat is dead center, and you have the gasket on (never used the o-ring), just tighten down both of the bolts evenly. If it's even and you hold the housing against the block, it won't crack. Just don't overtighten. Do you have a shop manual? Check torque.

MI2600 · Mar 20, 2006

I found my local NAPA had a good selection of housings. I don't know your application, but their books were complete with pics.

Personally, I've seen the type you mentioned. They're good for about one time. The best seal is a cast iron housing and studs.

sbchevfreak · Mar 20, 2006

If you are going to use sealant on it, I'd scuff the chrome surface up with som sandpaper or steel wool, just to give the sealant something to adhere to. If the surface is too slick, it may not "grab".

Water neck with o ring,seal or not to seal?

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