Albert de Boer recently posed two questions that I have some experience
with.

The rule about shiny side versus suede side, which side should contact
the valve seat, has gotten a bit misunderstood.  In general, the shiny
side of leather does not hold glue well, particularly hot hide glue.

Regarding which side should be the working side, the word "may" should
be used.  In other words, if the valve seat is metal, the shiny side
_may_ be used.  If the valve seat is wood, the suede side _must_ be
used.  It is always acceptable to use the suede side as the working
side on all valve seats.

To my knowledge there are no valves in the Ampico that use the shiny
side as the working surface, regardless of the seat composition.
The suede has the ability to conform, thus correcting for slight
irregularities.  Valves using the shiny side, such as the Standard
secondary, are extremely unforgiving of any slight irregularity or
misalignment.

The recent discussion about cork gaskets is one of my favorite topics.
Yes, cork was original, but it dries out, shrinks,  and loses its
sealing properties by taking a permanent _set_.  Yes, there is some
new stuff sold that is cork and something else that doesn't seem to
hold up well.

But there is also an excellent product available that has none of the
bad properties and it is quite permanent.  It is used to seal delicate
instruments and natural gas meters.  It is made by Armstrong, perhaps
the oldest and largest cork products company.

The product is Armstrong DC-100 and comes in 36 inch square sheets and
may be in 1/16 or 1/8 inch thickness.  It carries a healthy pedigree
and has a lengthy list of applicable US military specifications.
I have used this product in all my rebuilding for the last twenty-five
years.  The gaskets I installed twenty-five years ago (Ampico unit
valves) still look new and have no _set_.  It is the perfect gasket
product where cork was originally used.  The last time I bought it,
it cost about $20 for the 1/16 inch sheet.

Bob Taylor