I did the head gasket on my 500 this weekend and everything went well, and it was easy to start thanks to Larry's compression release modification. When I took the new head gasket out of the package and compared it to my old one, it was obvious my new one was thinner. The old head gasket measured 0.4mm thick, and the new gasket (11004-1187) measures 0.2mm. I adjusted the new carburetor and drove it around my block, and it seemed to run awesome! My question is, do you guys think I may run into detonation problems due to the higher compression? I always loved not having to run race fuel, so if I do I will go back to the 0.2mm head gasket (11004-1209).
I had to get the job done because as soon as I come back from vacation at the end of this week, I'm packing up and heading out to the desert for some riding. If you guys think it may be an issue I can always grab a few gallons of race fuel for next weekend's ride.
I torqued the head in an incremental a star pattern, doing the KIPS bolts last. Sprayed the head gasket with Permatex Copper for added insurance. Here are a few shots.