Valve Cover, Bolt Torque, Oil Leak

[millsmobile]

I've got a moderate oil leak coming from the valve cover on the #1 side of the bike. I did replace the gasket, clean surfaces, etc when setting all the valves up. I also got brand new rubber since it was all pretty nasty. Unfortunately in this process I also discovered that the two bolts to the far left were not OEM, but the next size up in SAE. I'm going to pull the cover again, clean it up, and want to tighten properly. I see from other threads that the original bolts are only 6-8lbs, and have a shoulder that seats. How do I figure out a safe torque value for the larger bolts? I'm fairly certain everything is under tightened, I was pretty paranoid after reading all the horror stories with these. The rubber was so smashed I'm guessing the shoulder hit way before the cover was tight enough and they kept going.

 

[brettp]

If you have a new valve cover gasket, that is a good start.
1. Clean the real of valve train housing the gasket sits on from old gaskwt material AND oil.
2. Clean the gasket of any oil on both sides.
3. Clean the valve cover of old gasket material and oil.
4. Read the FSM to find the 8 spots to put a dab of gasket sealer between the gasket and valve cover.
5. When you tighten all of the bolts, go a quarter turn in a star pattern across the valve cover. This is also in the FSM. It will ensure equal pressure across the entire face of the cover and engine.