loose valve cover?

[blinduno]

i had a little oil on my exhaust the other day, so i checked to see how tight the valve cover was. the right side of the cover was so loose i could had turned the bolts by hand. just odd, anyone else had that happen?

[bgibb68]

yeah i did....leaked oil all over my head.....i went ahead and replaced the gasket....

[RABID_MP5]

yeah you traditionally could snug up valve cover gaskets till they finally failed. But now these are set up so you quickly get to a metal-to-metal deal between the cover & head. Once the gasket loses its resiliency, it's over. Pretty easy replace tho not too cheap. At least they last several years.

[CTt3P5]

If the issue comes back, I'd suggest replacing it. I just did mine a few weeks ago due to the same issue.

[blinduno]

If the issue comes back, I'd suggest replacing it. I just did mine a few weeks ago due to the same issue.

Yeah it will most likely get replaced soon I want paint the valve cover anyways

[bgibb68]

some your self some money......but the gasket and a gallon of degresser

take off the valve cover and soak in the degresser while you clean the head up...once it's clean paint it.....put in the gasket, apply a liberal amount of new clean oil and replace....done.....

the longest part to it will be the painting since it will take several days to cure

i pulled the intake mani and valve covers on my dakota's motor to clean and replace the gaskets on it and i painted the mani and the ac/alt bracket a semi gloss black(still need to do the ps bracket to match) but they came out marvelous

edit: oh and i used ceramic rattle cans from autozone to paint them. i got a can of primer, base, and clear coat. 2 coats primer, 3 base, and 2 clear

[blinduno]

how long did yours take to dry, this is my DD so i'd like to not be without it for too long. but yeah im not replacing anything more than the gasket.

[echofall]

how long did yours take to dry, this is my DD so i'd like to not be without it for too long. but yeah im not replacing anything more than the gasket.

I did mine within an afternoon with HVLP. I guess it depends what brand and color you choose that determines "touchable" cure time. If you want to sand off the letters afterwards, i recommend waiting at least 24 hours. As stated above... degreaser, primer, paint, clearcoat, masking tape, and a 6pack (drunk)

[bgibb68]

yeah the painting with the rattle cans takes about an hour....cleaning and prep time about 4-5 hours.....it's touchable dry in less than an hour after the last coat.....and totally cured in like a week....i used duplicolor engine enamel when i did my poo....i'll take pics this weekend and put 'em up

and after you degrease it i recomend taking a drill and wire brush and then a dremel with a wire brush(for the small spots and corners) to it