How to Make Your Own Gaskets

[Stanton]

Gaskets can be made in your workshop for most parts and applications on the Cub. A few benefits for this is:

1. Cost
2. Wait time
3. Fit

Like most of you, waiting around for a gasket to show up (after paying for shipping), can be frustrating. A few of the items you need are:

1. Gasket material (in this example, I'm using Fel-Pro #3157, 1/32" thick, but other thicknesses are available)
2. Ball peen hammer
3. Hole punch set
4. X-Acto knife
5. Good marking pen (fine line)

The hole punch set can be found at most discount big box stores or your popular China-import tool company...

Start by getting the part that needs a gasket. In this case, I'm using the upper radiator neck because it has to open holes and one blind hole. Get a piece of gasket material and trace the outline and the bolt holes. In the bolt hole under the neck, it was difficult to get a full circle drawn, but enough to see where it should be.

You have an outline, now find the correct size hole punch. Use your bolt to determine the exact size. In my case, it's a 3/8" diameter bolt. Punch out the two holes.

Now insert both bolts through the gasket and into the cast iron holes. Use your fingers to firmly hold the bolts in place so the gasket doesn't move around during the next step.

Use the ball end of your hammer to begin tapping (lightly) on where you think is the the edge of the blind hole. After a few taps, you'll begin to see a slight indent, then a tear. Keep tapping all around the hole until you have completed the circle.

The edges on this one are a little ragged, so I cleaned the cut circle up with an X-Acto knife.

Finished gasket. Took less time, money and effort than to find one online at an acceptable cost and then wait for it to arrive. Now I can move on to applying the sealant of my choice and installation.

Hope this helps you as an alternative to manufactured gaskets.

[Mht]

I’m also a fan of cutting my own gaskets. I’ve found that empty brass from rifle and pistol cartridges make fairly good hole punches. They won’t hold up like steel hole punches but are readily available if you or a friend are a shooter. My steel punches stay in my tool box in my shop at home and empty brass has been a great substitute when I need to make a gasket while at my farm where the majority of my tractors stay

[john2189]

Still make most of mine. I still occasionally use a cereal box.

[phill_mi]

Stanton and Mht both got me interested in making them. I have yet to see the results but am having fun so far.

[Eugene]

https://www.amazon.com/Tytroy-Heavy-Rev ... 48913&th=1

Small holes.Edit: Carburetor gaskets.

[Stanton]

I’m also a fan of cutting my own gaskets. I’ve found that empty brass from rifle and pistol cartridges make fairly good hole punches. They won’t hold up like steel hole punches but are readily available if you or a friend are a shooter. My steel punches stay in my tool box in my shop at home and empty brass has been a great substitute when I need to make a gasket while at my farm where the majority of my tractors stay

Good suggestion! I’ll add that to the post.

When this thread gets all it’s comments, I’ll edit my original post and lock it.

[clodhopper]

Still make most of mine. I still occasionally use a cereal box.

I'm curious what cardboard works for as gasket material? Engine oil? Gear oil? Water? I have read about using cereal boxes to make gaskets over the years, but never tried it.

[Gary Dotson]

As a youngster, we made lots of gaskets from cereal boxes. The problem with this type of paper is that it will eventually start to wick and will get damp on the outside. Now days, I keep a good supply of premium gasket material, of various material and thickness. Tractor swap meets are a great place to find cut offs of high quality material.

[Mht]

Any cardboard that’s not corrugated can be used to make a gasket. Cereal boxes are good for a thin gasket, a shoe box is good for one a little thicker. I also agree that they will wick over time. Cork and fiber gasket material is so inexpensive and available these days that I wouldn’t go to the trouble to make one out of cardboard unless I had no other choice at the moment

[Winfield Dave]

I keep photocopies (original size) of gaskets I have made or purchased in a file folder.
When I need to make a gasket, I make a copy of the master copy,
attach it to gasket material and cut right thru it and the material.

[Donegal Cub]

Instead of a ball peen hammer, I have used the curved end of a 3/4” spanner when working on small delicate metal parts like a carburetor.

[Jim Becker]

I have a couple of gasket cutting punches. They have a round end like the peen end of a ball peen hammer. I don't know what the proper name is. They work pretty well to cut round holes, like Stanton described doing with a hammer. It just doesn't require as much accuracy with the hammer.

When using punches like the HF sets mentioned above, I suggest using a good piece of hard wood for the backing. Soft wood will result in a poorly cut gasket. A metal backer will be rough on the punch as the cheap ones are not made from high quality material.

Dave's suggestion of photocopies/scans of original gaskets to use as a pattern is a good one. If needed, you can scan the old gasket. (Cutting through a paper printout is easier than trying to cut around an old gasket.) If you want to make a pattern larger than 8-1/2 x 11, you can do sections and tape them together. When scanning a gasket, include a ruler in the scan. That way you can easily verify that your pattern is really actual size. You don't want to carefully cut out a gasket only to discover you accidentally scaled it to 96%.

It is helpful to have several ways to pattern a gasket in your bag of tricks. Different methods work better in different situations. For example, the method Stanton showed works great on the outlet neck, but isn't so good for a final drive pan, where one piece is stamped sheet metal and the other is attached to the tractor.

I generally prefer to use precut gaskets. But I often don't have the right ones on hand when I get into the middle of something and don't want to wait.

[5 Forward]

I bought a circle cutter off Amazon. It works great for cutting gaskets for the governor and distributer drive. I made perfect gaskets for the fan. I was like everyone else tired of waiting a week for gaskets to arrive. Plus, you can purchase a sheet of gasket material for what one gasket cost.

[Dale Finch]

I had some of the thin flexible cutting boards that I was replacing with new, so I decided to make gasket patterns with them. I THINK I have one for each gasket. As Jim mentioned, however, the final gasket uses a lot of material, and has so many holes plus the blind inside...I usually try to have a pair on "the shelf" for quicker replacement. If/when I place another order with TM or similar, I just add some of the more difficult gaskets to have as spares.
Here are just a few...

[Stanton]

I had some of the thin flexible cutting boards that I was replacing with new, so I decided to make gasket patterns with them. I THINK I have one for each gasket. As Jim mentioned, however, the final gasket uses a lot of material, and has so many holes plus the blind inside...I usually try to have a pair on "the shelf" for quicker replacement. If/when I place another order with TM or similar, I just add some of the more difficult gaskets to have as spares.
Here are just a few...
20220704_153635_copy_1008x567[1].jpg

Don't suppose I ever considered the final opening as a blind hole. I have used mylar (from my drafting days) and measuring with a ruler to get the exact opening dimensions and guideline to cut it. I would think any firm plastic that is not completely opaque would be a good candidate to use. Simply punch a few (or all) your bolt holes, drop in a couple or 3 bolts as place holders, then carefully trace the blind opening and cut out. I've made most of my templates from mylar. In this example (above), I was trying to demonstrate the use of tapping out an inside or blind opening as another way to do it.

Great suggestions, tips, and advice for those who commented. Will be trying to incorporate these into the thread before it's locked down.