Gasket Sealer-Use or Don't Use

[hawg]

I've been cleaning up carburetors on a few older small engines and am noticing there doesn't seem to be any gasket sealer on anything, even cheap paper gaskets. Is good old Permatex a thing of the past? I'm replacing a carb on a snowblower I just bought at an estate sale, same thing, no sealer on anything???

[rwl]

Typically it's one or the other. Either you have a gasket made of paper, rubber, steel or cork in the old days, OR you use a sealer like the proper Permatex product for the application like RTV or anerobic sealer, but not both.

Many times the sealer makes the gasket slip or slide out. Other times sealer goes into the part when it squishes out. Then a piece comes off and wrecks something, like a small port, jet or orifice, seen a few auto transmissions wrecked from this when the pan gasket was also gooped up with sealer.

Once in a while it is nice to use just a tiny bit of sealer here or there to hold a gasket on while replacing the part, on hard to get to or awkward angles. Something like spray adhesive or weatherstrip adhesive is best for that.

Nothing worse than removing a gasket AND having to scrape off all the DIY, backyard mechanic sealer that they didn't need in the first place. I know it is tempting to just goop it all up on both sides of the gasket, but typically don't do it.

[thump55]

Originally Posted by rwl

Typically it's one or the other. Either you have a gasket made of paper, rubber, steel or cork in the old days, OR you use a sealer like the proper Permatex product for the application like RTV or anerobic sealer, but not both.

Many times the sealer makes the gasket slip or slide out. Other times sealer goes into the part when it squishes out. Then a piece comes off and wrecks something, like a small port, jet or orifice, seen a few auto transmissions wrecked from this when the pan gasket was also gooped up with sealer.

Once in a while it is nice to use just a tiny bit of sealer here or there to hold a gasket on while replacing the part, on hard to get to or awkward angles. Something like spray adhesive or weatherstrip adhesive is best for that.

Nothing worse than removing a gasket AND having to scrape off all the DIY, backyard mechanic sealer that they didn't need in the first place. I know it is tempting to just goop it all up on both sides of the gasket, but typically don't do it.

This.

If I use anything on a gasket, it is High Tack Permatex on one side sometimes to hold in place.

[hawg]

I took all your advice and didn't use sealer. Bad thing is I just put a new carb, new plug, cleaned the tank, new filter, and even new gas line on a 4 stroke Craftsman snowblower I got at an estate sale. It only ran on almost full choke so I cleaned the carb to spotless inside and out with no results. I put a new carb on it. Still runs exactly the same, it has to be almost full choke. Any ideas? It has to be carb doesn't it?

[hawg]

Has to be sucking air somewhere, right?

[Custom Eyes]

Originally Posted by hawg

Has to be sucking air somewhere, right?

Or starving for fuel. Did you check the tank to see if it has a filter in there or somewhere between the tank and carb?

[thump55]

Or its not getting enough fuel for the air. New carb/filter should have eliminated that though, unless you got some crud in it from just cleaning the tank?

Could spray some ether around the intake and see if it revs up.

Does it seem to have full power when it is running choked?

[rwl]

New fuel or a few month old stuff?

I'd spray around with carb cleaner to look for a leak, but small engines don't often have that from what I have seen. I usually worked on bigger stuff though and it was common.

Does it have a fuel shut off, could it be not opening properly?

[hawg]

Did not have a filter, but I put one in with the new carb. No shutoff. I will try the starting fluid trick once my temper settles down. Gas is NEW ethanol free premium.

[AllenW]

Check this out for gasket stuff, I use the yamabond or something like that for where there's no gasket in many cases.


https://www.amazon.com/Yamalube-Yama.../dp/B00545V1ZE

Al