[Mrmerlin]

Thanks so much for your kind recognition Kiln. (Austin E.)

Yes infact using RTV is a great way to extend the sealing capability of the WP gasket.
I use the lite blue RTV sealant from Permatex.

Over time the coolant will work its way past the gasket around the bolt holes ,
To combat the corrosion that can happen to the WP bolts,
I also suggest to use a dab of Loctite PTFE non setting pipe sealant on the new bolts,
ACE hardware has new bolts.

Now is also a good time to replace the thermostat the rear sealing ring if you have one and the O ring as well as the heater control valve and the short hose and the coolant bottle cap.
Also consider swapping out the oil pump O rings use Dow Corning 111 on the O rings,
use STP oil treatment for priming the oil pump gear set, this will make sure you will have oil pressure when the engine is started
NOTE the dots on the gears they face the block.

I suggest to use Zerex GO5 coolant you need 2 gallons of coolant and 2 gallons of distilled water.
Make sure to drain the block prior to removing the water pump and installing the new coolant