As long as Edelbrock has not changed the design since I was selling them, you are correct.  The original Olds manifold did not seal off the intake valley like the Performer does. 

We sold Mr.Gasket when it was still Mr.Gasket.  I think FelPro has a gasket available in their performance line.
The gaskets we sold were a thick paper type gasket, kind of like a header gasket.
Any good speed shop should have something or you can call Jeg's or Summit if you have to 

Hey Crewchief,  Why is it that everyone is so against the Olds 455, other than the fact it's hard to find parts for them?  What is the real weaknesses of this mill?  and are they good enough just for river cruising?  I'm not a hot-rodder anymore but a burst of go-fast now and then is fun.

Thanks

I'm not Crewchief but I have read a LOT about the Olds 455. It's a great engine with a design flaw (for boats or racing), the oil doesn't return to the pan fast enough. The oil return passages in the cylinder heads need to be drilled out larger or hit with an air hammer and a larger oil pan than stock is also recomended. I've read over and over that you don't want to run it over 4,000 RPM for extended periods of time due to the oil return problem but it will handle W.O.T. runs for short periods.

My Miller had a 455 with a larger than stock oil pan and the heads had been drilled. I cruised that boat for hours straight at 4,000 RPM with no problems whatsoever and every so often over that 4,000 RPM mark. I had it to 5,800 RPM for a very short period of time (? 5 seconds ?) with no problem. It had great power for a stock mill.

Another friend of mine had a Olds 455, an acqaintence flocked with the water inlet valve and my friend blew the engine up. He switched to a 460 Ford and his boat was substantially slower than with the Olds.

I've also read build-ups on the Olds 455 and they can make a lot of HP. 

Hey Crewchief,  Why is it that everyone is so against the Olds 455, other than the fact it's hard to find parts for them?  What is the real weaknesses of this mill?  and are they good enough just for river cruising?  I'm not a hot-rodder anymore but a burst of go-fast now and then is fun.

Thanks

Rod covered this very well (from everything I've read); if using for cruising, 455 Olds will be no problem; if want to run excessive RPMs for extended period and hit 70+mph, you may hear a pop; if motor is out, you should put in the 10quart oil pan (at least 7; don't run with the stock pan); as Rod said, the oil doesn't return to the pan very quickly when running high RPM for a long time.
The 455 has good torque and should quickly pull a skiier out of the water and run them 35-40 as long as you want.

Also, I'm finding parts without much problem; they may not be in stock so you have to wait for shipping.

Kinda on the same subject; I do need an oil pressure sending unit (sender) for my 455; I picked one up yesterday but haven't installed; I started reading and get a lot of different opinions regarding psi/ohms/etc must match the gauge in order to get accurate reading.
Any thoughts on this?

Some oil sending units are for idiot lights, got to make sure the one you have/get is for a gauge. It is true that it has to be the right sender for the gauge. If you have the wrong sender no damage will be done, it will just read wrong.

I've swapped out a lot of gauges and/or senders and as of yet I haven't had any problems. It may just be my luck but I seriously doubt it's my luck...

my olds in my miniday runs hard, i only had one problem when the boat came out of the water and i broke the crank, i guess it spun a little high!!!, i have a 40ovr 455 as big of a cam i could fit in w/ the stock valvetrain ,performer manifold 750 carb, and "k" heads and it gets my miniday out of the water just fine....ps( its faster than my ford)shhhhhhhhhh...

Wanabe could also use a rocker arm pivot for early 70's 455. Having trouble finding one. Someone out there must have one laying around. If so please contact.

Bob

Flytime is jacking this guy's thread for things I need; go figure   
OK, I started it. 
Anyway, here's a pic of the rocker arm pivot (you can't see it but it's broke on the right side); I'm running with it broke since they are torqued down, it don't move man.

Wanabe could also use a rocker arm pivot for early 70's 455. Having trouble finding one. Someone out there must have one laying around. If so please contact.

Bob

Uhmmm... what's this?

call mondello 1-805-237-8808

... Rod's pic is the correct one.

  You know the drill wanabe   

you need to call mondello he has a lot of stock parts

you need to call mondello he has a lot of stock parts

Rod's sending me that one he has