Front "China wall" sealing issue on SBM

MopaR&D said

You mean the roll pins that go into the block? Yes those are long gone. I'll check again when I get around to taking it apart but IIRC I had to remove those anyway as they were interfering with the intake manifold seating down onto the heads; intake manifold mating faces were milled because it sat too high for the bolts to thread in.

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Are you certain it is the china rail leaking? When installing the machined intake, verify the fit before torquing with a feeler gauge. Any gap should be identical top and bottom. The coolant can still seal because of the printed sealant or embossing, but still seep out just above the head gasket. Could the head gasket be leaking slightly in that thin area by the pushrods?