I'm looking for a non-permanent, gap-filling, oil-resistant sealant to finish off my current project. Must be reasonably obtainable, not too expensive, and I want to be able to take the pieces apart if necessary (on rare occasions) without destroying anything. Sealing steel to aluminium, no gasket, fairly tight gaps. Atmospheric pressure only, normal engine bay temperatures.

Any suggestions?

Normal silicon sealant, as in bathroom stuff? I'm fairly sure it's oil resistant, and only needs a razor blade at most to disassemble?

If the above doesnt work, have you considered a liquid gasket type sealant? It can handle under bonnet heat as ive used it on a supercharged setup before in place of a gasket, all around an intake plenum and throttle body. A sharp blade and sealant remover gets rid of it with ease if you need to take parts off occasionally and refit

Something like this

That looks ideal. Plain old silicone might not be up to the job, but that looks promising. Even better - I think I've got something very similar in my garage!

Thanks, and keep the suggestions coming...

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Originally posted by number-1
If the above doesnt work, have you considered a liquid gasket type sealant? It can handle under bonnet heat as ive used it on a supercharged setup before in place of a gasket, all around an intake plenum and throttle body. A sharp blade and sealant remover gets rid of it with ease if you need to take parts off occasionally and refit

Something like this

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quote:

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Originally posted by David Jenkins
That looks ideal. Plain old silicone might not be up to the job, but that looks promising. Even better - I think I've got something very similar in my garage!

Thanks, and keep the suggestions coming...

BTW: All will become clear very shortly!

quote:

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Originally posted by number-1
If the above doesnt work, have you considered a liquid gasket type sealant? It can handle under bonnet heat as ive used it on a supercharged setup before in place of a gasket, all around an intake plenum and throttle body. A sharp blade and sealant remover gets rid of it with ease if you need to take parts off occasionally and refit

Something like this

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If you can get hold of "U9" silicone that would definitely work.
We use it in the caravan industry. There are silicone's and there is U9 silicone. ;-0

[Edited on 8/7/21 by roadrunner]

nonsetting mastic?

Not at all sure ordinary silicone is oil resistant, so defo go for a proper "instant gasket" type if going that route. None of the silicone sealants are petrol resistant so be aware of that.

Siroflex is both oil & fuel resistant, intended as a permanent sealant, but is easily removed once you prise 2 gasket faces apart & easily stripped off with a knife blade - once sealed, I've never ever known it to leak

Ebay Link

Bathroom silicone is definitely not oil/fuel resistant.

I would go for Bardhal type "liquid black gasket", used t oseal oil sumps or rocker covers. It is oil and temperature resistant, reversible (you will be able to take the pieces apart if necessary), and cleanable with acetone.

Hope that will help

I've now got some sealant!

It's 'Pro Seal Black RTV Silicone' and it looks like it will do the job - it's not totally petrol-resistant, but good for oil, which is what I want.

I went to Halfords (yes, I know...) looking for a Loctite sealant they advertise on their website, and is supposedly in stock in my local branch. Wandered about, eventually was accosted by a sales person, told her what I wanted, and she took me to the glues... oh deary, deary me. I don't know why I bothered. Went to a little local shop I used to frequent (Eastern Autospares, Ipswich), told him what I wanted, and he went straight to this stuff. Much cheaper than anything Halfords was offering (no surprise).