Performance 3406E head gasket solution ??

Hi folks, looking for advice from someone that has done a lot of power adding mods to a 3406E, 2WS is what I’m dealing with. I have a 600hp ecm tune, performance cam & injectors, a borg warner non wastegated turbo. Rough estimate on power level would be 700-750hp. I had a problem with head gasket blowing over a year ago. First time it blew I removed the head and found the fire ring cracked on number 5. Checked liner protrusion and found it to be slightly out of spec. I had some liners taller than the others. I didn’t have the down time to correctly address the issue so I installed a new gasket and ran it for a few weeks and planned to schedule a time to get the block machined and liner shims installed, however after talking to a couple performance companies they said the key to getting a high hp cat to hold a head gasket is to start with a block with a machined deck to ensure it is completely flat from front to back, whereas doing the in frame machining and installing shims it is nearly impossible to get all the liners EXACTLY the same height and the block deck completely flat. So I did, I bought a refurbished block and it was flat within .001” across the width and length, installed new liners and spacer plate and had a consistent .005” protrusion on every liner. I used all OEM car parts. Now, little over a year later the head gasket has blown once again. Does anyone know a permenant solution to making cat head gaskets hold long term at higher horsepower besides reducing the power? Thanks for the help

 

Thanks for the info guys! I haven’t ever seen a cat head with O rings but I totally agree it’s a solution because I have put o ringed heads on my Ford diesels with great success. Anyone feel the need for head studs or do the factory bolts provide plenty of clamping force?

 

ARP shows a part number in their online catalog for Caterpillar C15 Head stud kit so I called them and asked about it but they told me it’s still in development and isn’t available to purchase yet. She said to check back at the end of Feb.