Reply to "intake gaskets"

...Place your manifold onto the heads with NOthing under it! With a flashlight look down the ports (can do this with a single plane manifold) and see how well the manifold ports align with the head ports. I found that with NO gaskets, the ports align perfectly. I also found that there is a 1/4" gap at both ends; too wide to seal with just silicone or other sealant, making it a Must use of the two thick Black rubber end seals. I used 'Permatex Ultra Black' RTV sealant (seems to work well with Gasoline), around the ports and on the tips ONLY of the ends seals. NOT on or under the rubber seals, leave that alone!. Doesn't leak a single drop. You do NOT need the 'Turkey Pan'; unless your manifold has the exhaust heated 'underbelly' that would cook oil and form 'ash' that can cotaminate the oil. On SOME manifolds any gaskets at all, will cause a misalignment of the ports. This may not be of importance to some engine builders. If you DO use the tray and the composite gaskets, the comp gaskets go between the turkey pan and the manifold because the tray must have an 'absolute' contact with the heads and block in order to seal the lifter gallery of it's oil, and Don't forget to place a 'Bit' of sealant at each of the four corners. If, when placing your manifold on the heads with Nothing under; you find that there IS No gap at the ends (Front and Rear), then there is no need, and No room for the END rubber seals (as Edlebrock advises) and RTV should be sufficient. In my case I only had to use the end seals and a little RTV around the ports and 4 corners. It sealed perfect. This was with a Highly Modified Weiand Dual Quad Intake. Good-Luck with it!!...