Rear main seal installation on 400B?

[Chiphead]

We're putting the crank in the block today on the 400. There is a rope seal and some sort of rope seal carrier thing. At the parting line is some sorta space that requires a rubber-type seal spacer. We can find the rope seal, but not the parting line seal gizmos. What the devil is going on here? Can we RTV this shut?

How do you install a crank and rope seal on this goofy mopar?

[John Kunkel]

A normal rope seal kit contains the two seal halves and two composite gaskets that are inserted in the grooves on each side of the aluminun seal retainer.

The seal halves are pounded into the block and retainer with a special tool and the excess is trimmed off level with the block/retainer. The side seals are supposed to be soaked in mineral spirits and installed immediately because they start to swell when exposed to the spirits.

Most builders nowadays use the neoprene main seals and omit the side seals entirely....instead filling the side grooves with RTV and applying a thin film of RTV to the block/retainer parting line. Once the retainer is installed push a pipe cleaner into the wet RTV on each side and snip it off level with the retainer. For added insurance I brush more RTV on the outside of all parting lines.