Re-sealing the engine sump

I had a slow leak on my Mondi 3.2's oil pan, so I decided to R&R both the oil and transmission pan gaskets at once. Pulled both covers, cleaned 'em up real good, and noticed that there was a nick in the metal of one of the covers. The car's previous mechanic was right handed, and it looks like he had two left hands...

Two issues I was hoping I could get some help on:

1) I'd like to use a sealant (threebond?) between the cover and gasket. I've never done this before... any tips on application?

I tried once already, using a small brush to apply a thin layer to the cover before reassembly, ended up getting sealant on a stud during reassembly, then promptly stripped the stud while torquing the cover back on.

2) I bought some new studs (the engine side of the old studs looks fine) and am finding they don't screw into the engine very easily... but the old studs screw in just fine. The threads look fine on both the old and new studs. Do I need to helicoil the engine, or just clean out the old threads with a tap?

I appreciate your thoughts, opinions, laughing at my pain, etc.

 

Never heard of thread classing... but that makes a lot of sense. Thanks!

I found this thread on sealants that answered my other question:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/308-328/419187-how-much-gasket-sealant-too-much.html