Date:         Wed, 15 Feb 95 08:08:00 MST
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         M.Radtke@az05.bull.com
Subject:      Headbolt Leak


Hello,

I've been on this mailing list for about a month.  I found it when I was 
desperately searching for a fix to my leaking headbolt (actually cap nut) 
problem.  However, by the time I found the group, I already had over a month 
on my fix and I wanted to wait a bit before I said anything about it here.

Today I saw a reference to a "head bolt leak" in the "Dan H's Heater" chain. 
 So maybe now's the time to talk about it.

I had a what was more like a seep.  I tried two different brands of silicone 
type sealant after removing the cap nut, and carefully cleaning all the 
surfaces.  The third attempt was to use the VW sealant at $6 for a tiny 
tube.  That leaked as well.  I closely inspected the surfaces for pits, 
corrosion, etc. each time, but found nothing.  After the third attempt, the 
seep was definitely a leak!

Probably going against everybody's advice on this mail list, I dumped in a 
container of "AlumaSeal."  I figured that I didn't have much to lose, and 
the huge surface area of the "AlumaSeal" particles would probably be 
sacrificial and disintegrate instead of my cylinder heads.

The leak stopped leaking, then stopped seeping.  It has lasted several 
months now.  Have I ruined my vanagon?

Mike  '84 70K Miles


Michael A. Radtke  -  Z74               Voice: 602-862-4897
Bull                                      FAX:         4853
13430 N. Black Canyon Hwy.
Phoenix, AZ  85029                      Email: m.radtke@bull.com