Arp Head Bolts

I missed the part about the ring being intact... Sorry about that. Are you confident the bolts are not bottoming out or running out of threads before they reach the right torque? I have seen holes that were not tapped all the way. Do you have someone who can sonic test the deck of the block and head too see if they are thin in those areas? It's the pressure on the gasket that keep the fluids from wicking into it. Maybe it was just a bad gasket?