gasket material ID?

I find myself doing a number of rehab of small engines recently, mostly older stuff with hard to find parts. The metal working side of this is relatively routine, but I've been running into issues getting gaskets and other rubber bits for some things. Carbuertors being one of them. The basic gasket material is some kind of fiber reinforced buna-n sheet, or buna-n impregnated fiber sheet. Felpro sells that in various types and thicknesses easy enough to get. I'm wondering if anyone here on PM knows what the stuff used for diapraghms is made from in 2 stroke carburetors? it's anywhere from around .006-.010 thick depending on the application, and appears to be some sort of rubber impregnated cloth, since there is a very mild texture to it where it has not been compressed. Mcmaster-carr tends to have everything else I need in life, but this gasket/diaphragm material isn't one of them so far.

If we have any small engine experts amongst us, please pipe up! In many cases, I can just buy the material pre cut into gaskets, but sometimes I find an odd-ball that nobody seems to have, or it is going to take a while to show up if they do have.

Thanks in advance,
jon

I know the exact stuff that you mean but have never seen it in roll - sheet form, all i have seen has clearly been molded into shape too, hence its more than possible the OEM's buy it in uncured sheet that then goes through a proper vulcanization cycle. For parts like this though, vulcanizing is nothing more than a heated alu platters and for the kinda sizes your disusing you could probably do it with the misses hair straightening tongs if you don't get caught!

adama said:

I know the exact stuff that you mean but have never seen it in roll - sheet form, all i have seen has clearly been molded into shape too, hence its more than possible the OEM's buy it in uncured sheet that then goes through a proper vulcanization cycle. For parts like this though, vulcanizing is nothing more than a heated alu platters and for the kinda sizes your disusing you could probably do it with the misses hair straightening tongs if you don't get caught!

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That is indeed a possibility, but it seemed to me like they were die cut from a sheet, rather than molded somehow. I’ve used the laser cutter to make plenty of other gaskets from fiber rubber and cork rubber and even buna-n sheet. Works like a charm, and I imagine it would cut this stuff too if I could only find it. The only times it looks molded to me is after it’s been in place for a period of time with pressure against one side of the diaphragm or the other.

D.E. Errick

Ask here.

Try Home - Olson's Gaskets a supplier I have used with great success. Their specialty is making and supplying gaskets for antique engines etc.

thanks! hopefully one of those two links turns up some information for me.

All the sheet gasket material I have seen has been fractions of an inch so too thick for you. i wonder if there is something with teflon or silicone that might work better with modern gasoline.
Bil lD

I have seen old natural gas regulators that had leather diaphrams.
Bill D