Copper sheet for exhaust gaskets

[Grant Monkhouse]

Is copper sheet good for exhaust gaskets? If so what thickness?

[Dragun]

I know a lot of high performance vehicles use copper gaskets, but also heard that because copper is a very hard metal, it doesn\'t \'crush\' so well so doesn\'t seal well sometimes. In race applications they heat the gasket till glowing red then cool it, this softens it enough to be able to crush well and make a good seal. That\'s about as much as I know. Whether you can use some sort of sealant with it I don\'t know, may help.

[Grant Monkhouse]

Yeh that what I will do anyway, used them before but just wanted to see if anyone had an opinion on them. Cherry red the copper and then quenching it works best, makes it all soft and malleable. Going to get a 3mm sheet to make my own

[TiddlesRX7]

I can\'t see it being a problem mate. Copper is soft what ever but it cracks easily unless you anneal it. Do like you say and warm it to cherry red and then straight into a tub of water. It should be okay then. Keep an eye on it though with your exhaust temps!