Thanks for all the help -- after doing the RTV sandwich trick, it was
better but I can still hear and feel leaking, and I think it's in more
than one location.   Looking more closely reveals that pretty much all
the exhaust gaskets everywhere are not much more than rust held
together by bolt pressure.

I notice that bus depot has a $379 special for a complete stock
exhaust system.   I'm very temped to order that and stop messing
around with patches & fixes.

Any thoughts on the quality of the BD system?  Is the cat in that OK
(I remember a prior thread where folks said that most aftermarket cats
are not high quality).

If I just take it to my mechanic and say "fix it" any idea what the
retail cost of a new exhaust system would be?

> 85 vanagon with exhaust leak at the junction between the two header
> pipes and the collector pipe (part #G on this picture:  http://www.bus-boys.com/vanwasser83-91.html
> )    I removed the parts, sanded off the remains of the gaskets,
> installed new gaskets, bolted it back together and... it leaks just as
> bad as before.   Took it apart again --   The collector pipe (G) seems
> ok, but the ends of the header pipes are pretty rusted, and I can see
> how it may be difficult for the gasket to seal.   Tried some high-
> temperature metal gunk to fill in the gaps, then reassembled but
> didn't really seem to help :(.  FYI, I put the metal side of the
> gasket towards the collector as that seemed the most logical and
> seemed to match the prior parts, though Bentley was not clear on that
> topic.
>
> I'm tempted to take it to my local mechanic, hat in hand, and say
> "make it work!" but I haven't entirely lost faith yet.   Is the
> solution new header pipes?  A MIG welder? :)