In general the quality of the Ansen product is unimpressive - lots of crackle on the underside and some large flakes that make me a little nervous.
The crackles, as you called them, went away many years ago. I have at least 10 sets of Ansens that have been made within the last dozen years, and all are smooth underneath. I also have vintage sets that have zero integrity issues. I do not understand why you are "nervous". It's not like a valve cover is going to fracture, shear off your brake booster, catapult you into the back of a semi and decap you. If the molecular structure of an engine accessory causes you distress, please stay parked.
No fake news, please. Thank you.
Afraid a flake will separate and fall into the valve train. You have quite an imagination. In any case, glad yours are fine, mine are less than ideal.
Well, if you checked the link I posted you can get new valve covers that say "445" to match your foh-fohtty-fahv, with no flakeses. Or, you can shoot some quality epoxy paint or powder coat under your existing covers to inhibit catastrophic destruction of said engine. No need to spread misinformation about Ansen (you do know that company was sold several years ago to a more modernized outfit, which is why we are seeing many more styles and options now, right?).
As for my imagination, let me tell you a secret, Paul. Not a week goes by that I don't "rewrite" someone's post to make for a more entertaining read, of course taking liberties with reality. The most recent post was the one by Chris mentioning the reason for his hood scoop swap. Bam! Instant multi-paragraph scenario in my head. This is habit for me, as my somewhat zany writings used to have a train-wreck following on four continents in another time and place. The only thing that follows me now is the cat, when he wants his Jack'n'Coke freshened up.
Did you ever see Ken's somewhat dull story about his Galaxie several moons ago? That one I actually outlined on paper into a novella infused with low-key drama and intrigue, without losing sight of the car as the central theme. Well, bad guys are far more interesting than heroes, and I
could have made Ken famous worldwide as a Detroit Desperado or such. But noooooo, he got his voluminous undershorts so tightly twisted over me that you could have towed a fishing trawler with it. On dry land. Legacy Lost, Sheffer.
Oh well. I'm not very PC, so I keep as mundane as I can, with the occasional slip-up. After the first of the year, I will be more boring (New Year's resolution) so I can maybe get a little feedback on certain aspects of the Stock Eliminator clone I'm fiddling with, which actually
was a legal Stock Eliminator car way back.
Let's keep all this between us, OK? Don't tell anyone.