Boxerworks.com

disston wrote:When reusing head gaskets, . . .

I've also thought about reusing airhead head gaskets, principally since they are airheads and not water cooled engines.

IWHT that if the head and cylinder mating surfaces are without any nicks, and thus also the used gasket metal sealing surfaces, it should be OK - at least wrt maintaining cylinder compression.

Our airhead cyl head gaskets also need to contain the oil flow, from the upper cylinder stud passages into the heads, and thereafter into the PRTs and back into the sump. If no damage to the sealing surfaces is obvious, IWHT the head gaskets could be re-used. But that assessment is only based on my thoughts, not the accumulated experience of airhead mechanics.

Some silver frost paint on a used gasket will help to seal.
I believe it's the aluminium in the paint.

I have reused head gaskets in a wide variety of situations. Some were still stuck to one surface and not damaged, so it was easy. All the way to the other extreme of just picking up a used gasket that was "laying around" and using it with a head and cylinder that had never kissed before.

When one can see leakage on the gasket, it is probably due to a warped head, not a bad gasket. One better see this condition when doing the autopsy, not later and wonder what it means. A new gasket won't matter much if the head is warped.

I have cleaned off used head gaskets at the edge where some carbon often builds up. I do want it to have a flat surface.

We make too much of this stuff and it is safer to do it that way, but it need not be required. I built up one engine with all used parts that had never been together. I didn't rebuilt anything, just put the decent parts together. It worked out just great and ran as long as I knew it.