QUOTE(sean_v8_914 @ Feb 14 2010, 01:15 PM)
an engien can leak from anywhere. poor assembly preparation is the cause 99% of the time. contamination or mechanical blems.
I agree (except for the spelling, and Sean is on his own there...) for initial or early-stage leaks.
But these are also old cars, with old seals, and hard, brittle elastomers exposed to lots of heat over a long time. (Especially pushrod tube seals, which see cylinder head temps.)
Old seals lose their flexibility due to oxidation and other aging effects and leakage follows. Even "perfect" Porsche-factory assembled engines will eventually leak. In some cases, 'garage-queen' cars that are rarely driven (and therefore exposed to more air and less oil than they were designed to experience) are the worst.
So as is often the case (and Sean's point about the details is spot-on) you won't get good results with cheap parts, cheap sealants, and sloppy technique. There were a lot of really crappy pushrod tube seals out there for a while. Maybe they've all be flushed out of the marketplace by now - I donno - I don't own any pushrod cars*... Once upon a time the 'good' Viton seals were green - or was it black? The point is - don't buy this stuff on price alone unless your objective is to get really good at doing the job a lot of times.
There are plenty of reputable dealers for The Good Stuff. Engine Builders Supply, Pelican, Automotion. I have no doubt Jake uses the very best stuff available and the
only reason I didn't put him in the first list is I don't know if he's set up to sell individual small parts. If so, it's where I'd start for replacement seals for a T-IV...
Even good stuff will whither and crack eventually.
_____________________
* this is a small fib for drama. My '53 Normal Coupe has pushrods. Wooden ones. In a box, somewhere, with the rest of the 2-piece engine parts...