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83 GS850L Valve cover gasket thickness/material

93Bandit

93Bandit

Forum Mentor
I'm looking for the OEM valve cover gasket thickness. I searched the forum but didn't find an answer specific to my model. Not sure how much it varies by make/model.

I've tried to order an OEM Suzuki gasket twice now. The first one got lost in shipping, says it's still on it's way but it's nearly 2 weeks late. The second one I ordered hasn't shipped yet and there's no ETA. I'm missing fantastic riding weather and I'm getting frustrated so I think I'm going to make my own, but unsure what material and thickness to get?
 
Have you tried a local Suzuki dealer? Mine surprises me sometimes with what they have on hand. And if they don't have, can get in a few days.
 
On a 2-valve-per-cyl engine like the 850, the valve cover gasket thickness is not critical. As long as it's the right shape, it's good. I've used the OEM ones and the aftermarket ones. At least one set of aftermarket gaskets I bought was obnoxiously thick, like 3mm at least. It worked fine. That's a little extreme but thicker is probably better than thinner in this application. Anything labeled as "gasket material" will seal in oil.

The 4-valvers with tach gear in the cover are a different story, those _do_ need to be a certain thickness or the tach gear will get chewed up. Can't even go aftermarket on those.

The biggest problem with making your own valve cover gasket is that it's a tremendous pain in the hindquarters to actually do by hand.
 
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