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Couple of things. First, if you are using a gasket, you should not require a sealer in addition to it, that's why there is a gasket there to start with. I do suggest attaching the gasket to the easily removed side of the assembly with Hi-Tack or Indian Head type gaskets glues just to make it easier to assemble. If there is no gasket at all on what you are putting together, I use a Permatex product called Form a gasket. This is a good product and will give a good seal with little effort, as long as you apply it properly. Silicones have their place but should be limited in sales to only people holding a license to use them. I have more problems with people smearing silicone sealers on things and doing nothing but causing more problems than they are trying to cure and leading to more of a hassle and expense than if they would have left it alone. Wads of squeezed out silicone go into engines and such, plugging oil passages, tapped holes and not doing what they are supposed to do anyway. Put on a gasket, the silicone does nothing but grease up the gasket so it slides out instead of grabbing the mating surface like it's supposed to. If the gasket does not seal, you have some sort of serious problem that needs to be corrected before you go any further. Form a gasket, if applied correctly and allowed to cure before installing parts, will seal like a dry gasket and remain that way withou squeezing out and getting into whatever you're working on. Unlike silicones, this is a very forgiving product that needs only a clean dry surface to work properly. Silicones require a special cleaning and primer in order to stick and will not stick properly. Cast irons are some of the most difficult metals to properly clean and prime prior to use of silicones and in most every case, even a pro will have a great difficulty in achieving a good seal with a silicone. Sorry to sound rather harsh on this subject but it's something that makes my blood boil. I work on and custom build heavy equipment, big trucks and industrial equipment. I use gaskets wherever possible and where it is totally impossible, I use the form a gasket. There are many other products that are gasket materials that come in either a round cord or flat strip shape. You apply it like masking tape, overlap the ends and you have a completed gasket with no hassles and no problems. Yes, they appear to be expensive and are only available from industrial suppliers but they are worth their weight in gold when they save you countless hours of time and costly problems later on.
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