Gasket material

Cellulose (Vegetable) Fiber Gasket Material

Cellulose fiber, also sold as vegetable fiber or by the Detroiter® name, is plant-fiber gasket paper. It is the thin, low-cost gasket sheet on covers, pumps and small engines. We cut it to your drawing on the waterjet.

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Family: Cellulose fiber sheet
Formats: Sheets and rolls from the maker
Designations: ASTM F104; MIL-G-12803; HH-P-96
Product: Sheet gaskets waterjet-cut to your drawing in Orange, California

Figures are the cited maker or standards values; the sheet datasheet and your application govern the final choice.

Every common gasket sheet material is quick for us to source, and we cut it to your print on our waterjet. The other sheet materials are on the waterjet-cut gaskets page.

What cellulose fiber seals

Cellulose fiber is the gasket paper under gearbox covers, oil pumps, carburetors, small-engine cases and pipe unions where the load is light. It is cheap, it seals well on machined faces, and it comes thin enough for shims and spacers.

It is not a pressure or steam sheet. Wet, it swells and softens; dry, it is stiff. For hot water or steam use EPDM; for higher pressure and temperature, compressed non-asbestos fiber; for a rough cover face, cork-rubber.

Callouts

Prints name it by brand (Detroiter, Vellumoid®) or by specification: ASTM F104 covers cellulose gasket materials [S2], and older prints carry HH-P-96 or MIL-G-12803, both cancelled and superseded by ASTM F104 [S2, S4]. Any of those, with the thickness, is enough to source the sheet.

Specifications

Cellulose (Vegetable) Fiber specifications

Values as published by the cited sources; [Sn] refers to the source list below
Property	Value (in / mm, C / F as stated)	Source
Composition	Fiber gasket paper in sheet form, animal or plant fiber (the HH-P-96 title)	[S1]
Applications	General automotive, aeronautical and other mechanical applications (the MIL-G-12803 scope for non-metallic gasket stock)	[S3]
Designations	ASTM F104; HH-P-96 and MIL-G-12803, both cancelled and superseded by ASTM F104	[S3, S2, S4]

How we cut it

Gaskets are waterjet-cut to your drawing in Orange, California. Send a DXF, DWG or PDF with the thickness, the material or the specification callout, and the quantity. There is no die to build, so a single prototype and a repeat run go through the same setup, and a revision needs only a new file. The sheet comes from the sheet makers we buy from, to the callout on your print; the cutting is ours. Fiber sheet is brittle dry and swells wet, so thin gauges are cut with the least water the part allows and dried flat; very thin shims may go to a cutting partner for dry knife cutting.

Where Cellulose (Vegetable) Fiber is used, and the usual alternatives

The print or the sheet datasheet governs; these are the sheets usually specified instead:

Cork-rubber: when the cover face is rough or warped.
Compressed non-asbestos fiber: when the joint carries real pressure or runs hotter.
Buna-N: when a rubber gasket is wanted in oil.
Felt: when the part wicks or wipes rather than seals.

Frequently asked

Is vegetable fiber the same as cellulose fiber?

Yes. Both names, and the Detroiter brand, describe plant-fiber gasket paper.

What should the print say?

The brand or the specification (ASTM F104, MIL-G-12803, HH-P-96), the thickness, and the quantity. A DXF is best.

Sources

[S1] HH-P-96, Paper, Gasket: Fiber (Animal or Plant), Sheet (S/S by ASTM-F104), DLA ASSIST document record (revision G 1986; cancelled 1991), https://quicksearch.dla.mil/qsDocDetails.aspx?ident_number=50411, accessed 2026-10-13.
[S2] ASTM F104-11(2020), Standard Classification System for Nonmetallic Gasket Materials, https://store.astm.org/f0104-11r20.html, accessed 2026-09-13.
[S3] MIL-G-12803, Gasket Material, Non-Metallic (S/S by ASTM-F104), DLA ASSIST document record (revision C 1989; cancelled 1997), https://quicksearch.dla.mil/qsDocDetails.aspx?ident_number=9771, accessed 2026-10-13.

Detroiter and Vellumoid are trademarks of their owners. No affiliation or endorsement is implied.

Related guides

Setting Conquest Seal up as a supplier?

Orders are handled under Conquest Seal's AS9100D quality management system, whose certificate scope includes distribution.

Send the Cellulose (Vegetable) Fiber gasket drawing and the quantity

Upload a DXF, DWG or PDF of the gasket with the quote request, or a photo of the part with a ruler if no drawing exists. Add the sheet thickness, the durometer or grade, the quantity and whether adhesive backing is wanted. Gaskets are cut in our own shop in Orange, California; a Conquest representative replies. Quotes answered within one business day. A person answers (714) 632-9830, Pacific business hours.

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Last updated October 13, 2026