OK
Getting ready to put a 440 six pack together.
It's been years since I've done one so I am seeing whats avail for seals and gaskets.
Especially rear mains that don't leak

Rope or rubber lip ( never done a rope seal before) But that wouldnt stop me from using one if its' the best chance I have at NO leaks.
OEM Crank was turned .010 and still has some of the hash marks for the rope seal.

If a particualar brand , why that one ? Have you used it ?

Not only have I used and tested this stuff personally I sell it to many top engine builders.

http://www.superformanceproducts.com/

I certainly hope whoever turned the crankshaft for you didn't take .010" off the rear seal surface!

If its knurled where the seal goes you are going to have a hard time sealing it with a rubber type seal. I ran into this with my 440. I put 2 rubber type seals in mine and both leaked. So I ended up getting a old school rope seal and the leak is gone. I used a Victor-Reniez from Autozone. Do a search on this issue and you will see where many have had problems sealing up their big blocks.

Its been over 5 years since my engine rebuild. Used a rope seal that was in the Fel-Pro rebuild kit. And NO LEAKS.

Thanks all.

I am leaning towards a rope seal , but I REALLY don't want a leak ( very picky customer )

Bill there was a post about a year ago by a member named Troy that went through this with a Hemi and the only way he cured it was the old school rope.
I have never personally used rope myself but think I will on my next build.
Ron

Rope Seal , BEST GASKET is the BEST rope seal so I am told , I just put it in a 383 that I'll be firing up in month or so. Local builder has had too many bad experiences with whatever it is thet Felpro is using now .

Call Egge for the rope seal , they should have it in stock , about 25 bucks ...

" B/ RB rear main seals, that don't leak"

Car Quest has a rope seal kit, a Victor Reinz brand. I think the app is for a small block but it works fine

It seems the aftermarket cranks seem to want to leak more as they have the more pronounced knurling then old factory ones.

I had leak issues with the regular Fel-Pro rubber seals with my stroker crank.

I went with the 440source billet retainer (mine was beat to hell for some reason) and their Viton crank/retainer seal.

Dry as a bone over a year later.

[quote:]

With the proper surface finish and diameter, understanding it's function and attention to the proper installation procedures there will be no issues installing a quality 2 piece rubber rear main seal.

---

Ok, I am all ears.
I've come up with a rope seal #,, Victor Reinz pt # JV551

problem is nobody within 100 miles carrys there product line

I got mine through Autozone.

Look
Several things have contributed to all the rear seal leaks in the recent past

NUMBER ONE--Fel Pro rubber seals have gone from good part we used trouble free for years to an inferior part that does not even look like the old one--is a DIFFERENT size than the old one and will NOT seal like the old one--cause? maybe the tooling is worn out yadda yadda but I think it is offshore crap from company that does not give a S$%* about its customers

NUMBER TWO The offshore cranks have wicked copy cat knurling with no idea in the world why it is there--what it is for or HOW to put it on correctly thus you have a ripsaw effect on any rubber seal and they leak!

NUMBER THREE Some of the billet retainers made from some outfits were defective and held oil up against the seal causing a leak--there were even folks advertising those as "modified" to help this designed in defect.

NUMBER FOUR Crank grinders "smoothing " up stock crank knurled areas in order to prevent the dreaded Leak which will happen for sure when you take too much off the seal diameter of a stock crank

I enjoy building other brands that have good seal designs and don't cause me a PIA with rear seals.

I now use the orange rubber with the BLUE side seals that are advertised on here and they seem to work well though I truly miss the asbestos side seals.

There are other factors with factory seal holders that get into great detail like the spot face for the bolt heads etc etc way too much to go into and...if you are a smart builder you take that seal holder and bolt it to the bare block and Observe how the thing lines up on that block and if you have to move it to get that right--well then which way? and then you mark it with some scribe lines so you can duplicate that precise line up when a seal and a crank are present thus ensuring that the two seal halves meet just right and even then it may still leak when a customer runs it with No PCV hooked up--that very slight vacuum helps out a lot! So........................

Just my 2 cents worth, carry on

Seemed to have good luck with the orange Viton main and side seals. But I hate leaks and will be installing a seal in another project (with stock crank/retainer) soon. Would the Viton or rope be better, a toss-up, a crap shoot?

and....one more little note
Some of the "rope" seals out there right now come all powdered up with a graphite looking powder and Guess What? They install DRY--wet one with some oil and $%#@*&% You have an oil leak anyway.
That info is also not included with some of these seals so you may not be to blame when the gusher starts.

Again I feel like the main issue is with crappy Fel Pro seals that are a shadow of the former part quality--Go with RoadHazzards premium part and hope for the best