Head gasket price

[kjmdes]

Hi All,
I'm new here. I've worked on a few d722 engined tractors on my buddy's farm, and have a Beta Marine marinized d722 in my boat. We're anchored in La Paz at the moment, with my top end torn down.
I spent five decades building high performance engines and transmissions for competition. I just did a search for a head gasket for this engine. Wanted an OEM part.
Am I nuts, or is a OEM gasket for this, what, near millions built engine, more expensive than a pair of racing head gaskets for a Ferrari 348? Is that possible?
$135+? Seriously?
Any trusted alternative?
I'd like to order new valve springs, seals and gaskets.
I appreciate any help. And yes, I'm an old guy, and ranting slightly.

Cheers All
KJM

 

[JasonW]

Seems pretty cheap to me. How many times do you plan on rebuilding it? What’s the reason for the rebuild?

 

[JasonW]

First hit searching for a Ferrari 348 head gasket is $430. And that’s for one.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Yes an OEM head gasket is that expensive, adjust your budget, and possibly your thinking.
Everything got expensive after several world events.

 

[Trash Panda]

135 bucks for the most critical sealing surface on an engine is fairly pedestrian.

What’s the alternative?

 

[TimAT]

I tried to aftermarket head gasket on a D1105-- leaked like a sieve. Water all the way around the outside. It was $35. OEM gasket doesn't leak. Lesson learned.

 

[kjmdes]

Alright. I appreciate all the unexpected responses.
Yes, the 348 gaskets are considerably more than I let on. Though my price in 2021 was about 30% what you found on your pass.
To answer the need. The people who installed the conversion, did so considering wave action in puget sound. Which meant the exhaust seawater feed was not sufficiently isolated from the head to prevent backwash in the event the boat took 15+ foot seas. I missed this deficiency while I restored the rest of the boat. On the way down from Washington, rounding Point Conception in some hairy conditions, the engine took its first gulp. Wasn't running. Just backwashed through the stern tube. Now, there will no doubt be comments about fluid locking, and who knows what else. Suffice it to say, over the next month, enough salt water washed in, in very small amounts, to cause rough starts, power loss, etc. When I pulled the head, the seats, valves, intake and exhaust tracts were caked with deposits.
So now, I am doing a full job. I inspected the rings and bores, and they look ok. But I bought a cheap head gasket, and will simply install the head, do a compression and leakdown test, and if it looks good, I'll remove the head, install a premium gasket and valvetrain components, and call it a day.
I was serious about the price concern. Seems steep for a small 3 cylinder. And I fully understand the comment about it's importance of course, if not how it's relevant to the question. If you're equating price, with quality and reliability these days, you're likely missing something in your analysis.

Guess my real question should be, can you recommend a supplier that is trusted not to slip cheap subs into an order, and not charge shipping costs equivalent to the parts total? I'll have them shipped to a forwarder in San Diego if that makes sense.
Thanks everyone.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Guess my real question should be, can you recommend a supplier that is trusted not to slip cheap subs into an order, and not charge shipping costs equivalent to the parts total? I'll have them shipped to a forwarder in San Diego if that makes sense.
Thanks everyone.

Coleman equipment

 

[BAP]

Boats and Cheap are 2 words that definitely don’t go together!!

 

[Trash Panda]

Boats and Cheap are 2 words that definitely don’t go together!!

Bust
Out
Another
Thousand

 

[hagrid]

"If it flies, floats, or f***s, 'tis better to rent than to own."

 

[GeoHorn]

"If it flies, floats, or f***s, 'tis better to rent than to own."

…Fractures…..? ?

 

[hagrid]

Yes, exactly. Never own bones... only rent them.



edit: strike that last. The obscured word is "flips". So, never purchase a spatula. Only rent them or you'll be sorry.