I am getting ready to put the head back on my D2 5J and I am in need of a couple bits of information. Can I reuse the old head gasket? It looks okay to me, but I thought I should ask for some opinions. Is there any kind of gasket sealer I should put on the block and the head? It looks like there was shellac? on both sides when I took it apart. Lastly does anyone have the torque sequence and the torque settings. Thanks.

Older CAT manuals said it was permissable, and I know that some folks have done it pretty commonly, while others wouldn't ever do it.

Not a bad idea to use the brown shellac or permatex on the parts other than the sealing ring at the sleeve. This was especially recommended for the long 6 cylinder heads of the D318 to keep them from seeping along the sides.

Here's the link to Willie's website. He has a section with all the torque specs and patterns.
www.westernfarmcollectables.com/

If you can get new gaskets, I would recommend it especially if the previous installer used shellac on the gasket. The old gasket (probly a composite) will be torn or missing chunks.

Thanks for the website with the torque specs.