valve cover gasket

[Ron in Buffalo]

1999 885i 

Okay I took the valve cover off to check the valves. The valves where in spec.
exh 17mm 20mm   17mm 20mm   17mm 17mm
int  15mm 15mm    10mm 12mm   13mm 15mm

my question - the valve gasket did not come off so do I have to take it off to reseal it or can I knock  the sealer off the top of it re goop the valve cover and put it back on the bike? all advice and suggestions are welcome.

[Bixxer Bob]

The valve cover seal is re-usable as long as it's not damaged, and doesn't need sealer except for aslight smear around the half moon bits.  I'd take it off, remove any old sealant and then re-fit it. Don't drop old sealant down the chain gallery or anywhere else for that matter.

[Ron in Buffalo]

Bob thanks for your response this is the info I was looking for.

[Timbox2]

Its a bugger to see, but make sure its correctly positioned along the front edge of the head otherwise you'll know soon enough when oil starts pissing down onto the headers.

This happened to someone else of course, not me