anyone whos used RCD's black onyx head gaskets chime in

[fordfreak4life]

put a set of black onyx in my truck and made it 15000 miles before they let go..... i will be doing machine work and factory gaskets the next go round, as well as decomp pistons

 

[Spindrift]

My BO have been in for close to two years now. At the time I purchased them, I was told I coudln't get OE gaskets by themselves (had to purchase the entire upper gasket kit) so it was more a decision based on cost than any other factor. I've got 20K since the install, mostly towing. Knock on wood, no problems yet. You gotta' check the deck and heads.

 

[strokin6L]

So far knock on wood...my thick single layer hypermax gaskets with o-ringed heads have been holding up good compared to the multilayer black onyx and OEM gaskets.

 

[STROKIN N STYLE]

Ask sick97psd what he thinks about them. Not a fan at all

 

[yeehaw]

the black onyx gaskets are a different thickness then oem gaskets, so they take the difference out on the lifter courtesy of the pushrod. Also they have issues with the layers in the gasket spliting and blowing.

 

[lubeowner]

I had always used ford gaskets. This past spring I got a great deal on VR gaskets and got 6 sets. Of those 4 went into trucks running race tunes the other two went into trucks with just tow tunes. I then went back to ford gaskets. This past week I change set #3 of those 4 and the guy with the 4th truck called and said his truck puked. So I say they are not worth the money you save. I have never had this happen with ford gaskets.

 

[Extended Power]

I used the black crap gaskets on my last build bacause they came in the engine gasket set I bought at the time.
Never had any issues at all when running the 64mm turbo and stock injectors, or the 225cc injectors. (Both on a Extreme Street tune)
Put twins on, and it only took a week and ahalf of 1600*F heat, and lots of boost to blow the gaskets out of it.
Lesson learned...stock ford gaskets...

 

[Canadianredneck]

So far knock on wood...my thick single layer hypermax gaskets with o-ringed heads have been holding up good compared to the multilayer black onyx and OEM gaskets.

You sir must be one of the lucky ones still running those gaskets...if you ever have issues the telltale sign will be when your radiator explodes....:doh:

But hopefully you never have to experience this!

 

[strokin6L]

You sir must be one of the lucky ones still running those gaskets...if you ever have issues the telltale sign will be when your radiator explodes....:doh:

But hopefully you never have to experience this!

haha...yeah lets hope not Tyler. I know Shawn ran them waaaaay back. I was given a lapping tool to lap the block around the top of each cylinder and the grooves of the heads so that the rings seat good....i was told that not all customers received this tool when they install this kit. I've got some truck pulling runs, drag runs and some burnouts on these gaskets. So far no coolant loss, or high coolant temps. ECT always stays around the 190-192 mark or a little lower. I did this back in '06 when the truck has roughly 43K miles on it and when head gaskets where just starting to become an issue....now the truck has 67K miles. Back then i don't think many knew if stock gaskets would hold up with ARP's. If i would've known then what i know now....i would've just went with stock gaskets and saved tons of money. But hopefully these will live for a while longer.

 

[SaNnDnSurF]

mine didnt hold up.

 

[6.0 p-stroke]

Stock gaskets ftw!

 

[SIX_OHH]

You sir must be one of the lucky ones still running those gaskets...if you ever have issues the telltale sign will be when your radiator explodes....:doh:

But hopefully you never have to experience this!

I did :thumbsup: I love this mod........it cost me a new motor No regrets though LOL

 

[Redneck6.0L]

Stock ford gaskets

 

[java]

Mine lasted less than 6 months.

 

[wetnsloppy4x]

the black onyx gaskets are a different thickness then oem gaskets, so they take the difference out on the lifter courtesy of the pushrod. Also they have issues with the layers in the gasket spliting and blowing.

I'm a little suprised this hasn't been discussed more in depth.

 

[yeehaw]

doug had a thing on gogo's FB page awhile back on that

 

[Moremph]

I have had 4 sets fail now!

 

[Breaking Habits]

For what its worth. I've personally used 4 sets of black onyx headgaskets and had no problems with them, but that is irrelevant to you guys, given the fact that RCD employs me. I have customers that choose to use stock gaskets, and I dont try to talk them into black onyx ones if they prefer stock. My .02 on the situation is, I dont care if they are black onyx, ford, copper, or hypermax, or some you had custom made for your direct application. You MUST make sure both mating surfaces are true, and follow torque procedures.

You'd be suprised how many people call in with failures then openly admit to not even checking the deck surface or machining the heads! Prime example, yesterday, guy with 67,000 miles since he studded his truck, black onyx, arps. Truck had 145,000 on it when he studded it, 03 6.0. Didnt check his heads, didnt even CLEAN the block. Just threw it together and let it rip. It lasted 67,000 miles and he was mad, asked me what I thought. Told him he was lucky, and I wish everyone who didnt do the job properly had as much luck as him. Would make my job alot easier!

Case and point, Are they better or worse? I couldnt PERSONALLY tell you, I've had a 100% success rate. Larry (our tech) is also meticulous when he does stud jobs, and Larry is the only one who will ever be under the hood of my truck besides Josh or me. TO EACH HIS/HER OWN, is my philosophy on the subject. I will tell you, we have a much better success rate to failure rate thought, by far.

Not trying to ruffle any feathers, just throwing out some input from the source of the thread!

Thanks Guys!

Jared
River City Diesel, Sales

 

[strokin6L]

thanks Jared for your input!

 

[DevilDocTater]

Ive been running BO HGS from when RCD studded my truck back in early 2009, i had 99,000 miles on my truck when RCD put in ARPs and HGS , got 155k now still running strong! Its all about the quality of work and attention to detail that will make your truck last!