E30 Zone

I'm verging on the edge of bolting my car back together with a new head gasket, the head's been skimmed and rebuilt at great cost...

My block is slightly pitted, especially around cylinder 6. Will this be a problem? (I'm not taking the block out!)

will the gasket take up the slack or is there a sealant I can use.

I'll try and get a picture later, but pics don't always convey the story.

Cheers,

James

I recently had a similar problem with an MG Midget 1275cc engine, between the middle cylinders. A light cleaning with a fine wire brush and fine sandpaper plus new Payen head gasket and it's been OK since, with even compression across all four cylinders. I did however torque down the head bolts a little tighter than the book figure.

as long as it isnt to bad, i wouldnt worry about it

Depends where the pitting is. Lay the head gasket on the top of the block, and if you can see all the pitting through the various holes, there won't be a problem. If it encroaches on the area covered by the fire rings, then the block needs skimming.

nah, the few mm around the bores is good, it's beyond the 'metal rings' that the pitting has occured.

It'll be fine mate. Best of luck with the re-build and make sure everything is clinicly clean before re-assembly.