It can be very difficult to heat a whole head gasket to cherry red. The way I've done it for years is to hang it on a nail, play a flame on the gasket until it starts to go red, then chase the red round the gasket and allow to cool naturally. I've found every gasket that I've done that way ends up very soft and pliable. Ron
Ron is correct and I use the same method. Quenching is not necessary for annealing but annealing is necessary every time a gasket is used or re-used. Sometimes I lay the gasket on a gas burner, then use a blowtorch to progressively heat the copper to red.
Did you anneal the gasket first? The gasket will be very soft when done.
Heat up to cherry red with a gas torch or I've heard of it being done on a gas stove. Let cool.
Then I usually use Hylomar gasket spray both sides. Looks like blue contact adhesive.
It will probably never seal unless annealed.
It was one of my new gasket that he used and so it would not need to be annealed, as it is made of C106 soft copper sheet, I think that he may have something else wrong here either the bolts bottoming or the head distorted.
The correct way to anneal the head gasket is to heat to red and quench immediately in cold water...Ian
Wrong.
The copper simply needs to be heated to red hot.
This allows the twinned grains to reset their grain boundries.
Slow cooling or quenching makes absolutely no difference as there is no phase change happening.
You can do it on a BBQ, on a gas burner with a propane torch with an oxy torch.
You can start at one end & work your way to the other with only 1/4" of the copper red at any one time.
The only thing that is important is they every bit of it goes red at some time and the flame is either neutral or oxidizing as copper picks up carbon very easily and they will become a Cu-Fe alloy and tough at the surface.
Some like to drop it in water so the rapid size change causes the oxide layer to flake off leaving a bright clean surface.
I use some vinegar to dissolve the oxide.
If it is really thick then some stainless steel wool and elbow grease.
You can even wire brush it but if you have done a really good job at softening the wire can leave groves in the copper.
Hi Gents, thankyou for all your excellent help and advice. I have now taken the head off again and really cleaned the surfaces, fitted Johns gasket, and followed all the procedures of tightning bolts down etc..(did have one that bottomed out, placed a steel washer on the bolt)..think i have won...yippee
So thanks again all that responed.
excellent forum you have here.
bike will be back on the road after a 10 year rest.
All the best everyone
tony