Interesting that your comment regarding a decent seal with a narrow platform,,,,matches my comment that my best outcome was with cork,,albeit using a load of silicone.

Yes I have assured that hold down bolts are not bottoming out before gasket compression has very well occurred. I remember very well the experience that I had several years ago with rear main seals. I had purchased a brand new set of pan bolts from Mr. Gasket,,,installed them, ended up with a massive leak at rear main. Started engine flywheel cover removed. Had a look see up the flywheel, looked like rear main leak,,,,closer examination was that rear of pan was cause of leak.

Apparently Mr. Gasket did not know,,,,nor did hardly anyone else for that matter,,,that the 2 pan bolts that go into rear main retainer, are per Mopar specs must be shorter than the remaining 18? pan bolts. Mr. Gasket packages all bolts at exact same length. Therefore rear main two bottom out.

I do have more than adequate clearance between Harland Sharp rockers and valve cover.

Imprints on gaskets at the head side of them show substantial crush all about the valve cover,,,just very narrow at the rear of each.

Cannot understand why radiator end of heads has a valve cover gasket platform likely twice as wide as is firewall end. Would Edelbrock does this deliberately,,,would seem odd as the rear of the head is where the majority of pooling is likely.

Has anyone a set of these heads not mounted, that they can have a look see if the rear platform is much narrower than the front platform as I see on mine?

Do any of you run your valve covers with no gaskets,,,only using a bead of silicone? Likely this would make them very difficult,,,,and time consuming whenever valve covers must be removed.