UPDATE: May 24, 2019
Got my Toy head gasket and ARP stud kit. Waiting for my thread chaser kit.
I took a preliminary look at the head gaskets – the one from engnbldr kit (assume it’s DNJ) out of my engine rebuild, the Fel Pro, and Toyota OE.
I believe I figured out why the head gasket was leaking coolant during one of my leak down tests. If what I see if true, I’m very disappointed in the DNJ (engnbldr gasket) as it was a complete gasket failure in less than 27,000 miles on a new head and machined block. I need to look closer with a magnifying glass and take some photos.
A quick measurement shows the DNJ gasket is thickest, then Fel Pro, the Toyota gasket is thinnest. The DNJ and Toyota look similar, but there is one significant difference. They also are the slipper plate style. The Fel Pro is not slipper plate. There is debate on the slipper plate design and an issue with sealing. The topic of head gaskets, especially on a bi-metal engine is a raging debate.
I got my new fuel injector connectors wired on numbers 2,3, and 4 to replace the cracked and broken 33 year old original connectors.
https://imgur.com/N9ygTTuI have lots of cleaning of the top of that engine deck and tops of the pistons. Then lots of solvent cleaning and compressed air before I can install the new head.
I’ll post some more detailed findings with these 3 head gaskets later.
The one on top is the one from engnbldr's kit (I think it's a DNJ label) the one in the middle is Toyota OEM, the one on the bottom is the Fel Pro PermaTorque.
The Slipper plate design in the DNJ and the Toyota have the metal layer on top facing the bottom of the head when installed. The design is supposed to allow slippage on the gasket surface while the coefficient of expansion is about 1.5 time more for the allow head than the cast iron block. But some experts say they are more difficult to get a good seal and the tend to leak.
https://imgur.com/f93JT1Hhttps://imgur.com/WzrjJHNGnarls.
