Yeah, I do have some suggestions.
1. Don't use any sealer or glue under or on top of the end rubbers. Make sure you clean the surfaces very well with brake cleaner, and they are dry when you begin the assembly process. ONLY put a little dab of silicone on the ends where the cork gasket meets the rubber seal, and try to put some of the dab between the materials too. Keep in mind you're going to put some paint on the block as a sealer, right?
2. Install the front piece first. Depending on which pan and front cover you have, there will either be bolts through the rubber piece (early style) or no bolts (late) with little tits that go through small holes to retain it. Chances are, you will only be able to purchase a gasket set that has the late style rubber. If you have an early cover, use a hole punch of some type to poke holes through the rubber on 2 or 3 of the holes. Space them out evenly, as you don't need all the bolts. If you don't use any bolts on the early style cover, your front main seal WILL leak due to warping and deflection of the front cover.
3. Install the side rail gaskets second, as they overlap on top of the front rubber and go underneath the rear rubber.
4. On the rear piece, use a very small screwdriver to tuck the tips of the seal down into the notches in the main cap. Also use the screwdriver to carefully push the rest of the rubber into the wide groove in the main cap. You may not be able to get it to lay perfectly flat into the groove. Don't worry about that, as they are made a little long to ensure good crush when you tighten the pan bolts.
Good luck, and have fun with it!
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David
newbie #4153
P.S. edit: I forgot to say that you need to pull the little tit rubbers all the way up through the holes on the front cover or else cut them off. If you don't remove the harmonic damper, you may not be able to get to the tits to pull on them with a pair of small needlenose pliers or tweezers.
[This message has been edited by just a six (edited 07-10-2003).]
