windshield Gasket

[1952gary]

Good morning to every one. After installing the windshield the gasket on the outside pinch weld appears narrow and does not cover the pinch weld dimples. I called steele and talked to the tech department about my concerns. They checked their inventory and compared against NOS samples thinking a may be a mfg problem. They state it is a match to the original gasket. Has anyone experienced this problem?

[Dave72dt]

How does the gasket look on the inside? Possible to have installed backwards?

[DollyDodge]

post a couple of pictures so we can see.

[John-T-53]

My seal from Steele didn't cover all of the dimples too....I just figured it was because of the glass being cut a little small. It does look like the outside lip of the rubber is a bit smaller than the original, though. Let us know what they come back with.

[geopcanuk]

How does the gasket look on the inside? Possible to have installed backwards?

Yup,been there done that....put Steele in backwards.Sure makes a nice looking job when it is put in properly...narrower rubber to the outside wider on the inside

[1952gary]

No the gasket is not in backwards as that was our first question to ourselves. In working with steele they say this is the original copy. They asked for a sample of my old gasket but it came out in pieces. Eddie from Steele said They could make a proper fitting gasket if I could supply a sample. I will be sending him pictures of their gasket installed so they can evaluate the fit. I found another source from Precision rubber products that I will contact to see how there fit matches Steele.

[Merle Coggins]

Have you installed the inside trim pieces yet? I remember the windshield rubber seemed to be rolled towards the inside, pulling away around the outside, until I installed the inner trim pieces. That seemed to push the seal into place and look right again. I also have window rubber from Steele.

Merle

[1952gary]

No I haven't installed the trim however in order for it to cover the pinch weld I would need an additional 3/8 inch to cover. Still working on the problem. Will keep you posted. Will finish up on the door glass today. Completed the left side and it looks great. Steele did a good job with these moldings. Took a little longer since I had to fabricate a fastner to hold the beltline in place. The original clips did not want to work on the beltline Steele provided.

[HanksB3B]

Bob at Alvin's Auto Body brought this to my attention after my windshield rubber was installed. "Hey you bought the wrong gasket". No I didn't I said,but I see what you mean you can see the spot welds.

I had purchased my one piece windshield rubber from Roberts and was pretty happy with it despite the fact that you could see the spot-weld-dimples. When I started hearing how everyone touted Steele Rubber, I had second thoughts and wished I had done more research and gotten sample pieces from the vendors.

Now I think I know what is happening and I'll throw this out there for lack of a better explanation: "All the rubber comes from one manufacturer" I believe where possible the extrusions are simplified to cover the widest range of fit. I think the extrusion for the truck windshield "works" but because of the narrower profile would but it's the same as for Mopar Cars as well. I could be wrong.

If I had it to do again (and this is my recommendation to anyone restoring a truck. Do stellar bodywork and fill the dimples around the windshield if seeing them is objectionable to you. Personally I really don't mind because I do remind myself on "It's a truck". As everyone knows, our tailgates have a series of spot welds. Even though I started with a brand new tailgate from Bruce Horkey I chose to maintain the assembly-line look and not fill the dimples. On the windshield however, since you never saw them because the original extrusion was wider, it doesn't matter and they should get filled unless someone can convince Steele or whoever actually molds the rubber to make new tooling and supply the part to the original dimension.

Hank

Edited February 18, 2011 by HanksB3B

[1952gary]

In the event that I must except this gasket as the best available, I will pull the glass and fill the spot welds and repaint the area repaired. That requires a lot of work but will improve the overall look of the truck. I do not want to except this look after all the time invested. Maybe this discussion will help other owners planning on painting their trucks. My facebook account has several pictures of the 1952 B3B rebuild and my 1964 dodge B body restore. The 64 dodge is a car I purchased new when I was 18. If any of you are on facebook send me a friend request to see the pictures.

[John-T-53]

3/8" is a lot of room. This sounds like the glass is partially to blame. If you pull the windshield out, hold the glass up to the opening - it may be a bit small. If you get another piece that's bigger it'll push the rubber lip out and probably cover the spots. This might be a lot easier and a lot less costly than filling them and repainting the cab.

No I haven't installed the trim however in order for it to cover the pinch weld I would need an additional 3/8 inch to cover. Still working on the problem. Will keep you posted. Will finish up on the door glass today. Completed the left side and it looks great. Steele did a good job with these moldings. Took a little longer since I had to fabricate a fastner to hold the beltline in place. The original clips did not want to work on the beltline Steele provided.

[Barry Maxwell]

I am reluctant to jump in here since I am no where near installing windshield rubber. I am, nowever, at the start of the process that will eventually end where you guys are now. That is, I am trying to get my windshield and rubber OUT.

I am working on a '51 B3C. I have removed the inside and outside verticle moldings in the center, as well as the inside molding on the passenger side. I have run a thin blade around both the inside and outside rubber and it is as free (separated) as I think I am going to get it. A few minutes ago I started to cut away the outside lip from the center and working towards the outer corner post, and the spot welds you are talking about are exposed.

I am at a dead stop now for fear of buggering the glass up, or worse. How do I get the window out? The rubber is too stiff to work with - that is why I started cutting. Does the winshield push in from the outside? Is the rubber on the outside and inside all one piece as I think, or is there an inside and outside strip? Should I continue cutting the outer lip?

As you can perhaps tell, I am flying blind. Any advice? Thanks

[JBNeal]

the good thing about the Pilot-House windshields is that they are flat glass and are an easy replacement at a windshield shop as they can cut the size you need in minutes. A windshield guy told me years ago to cut as much of the gasket out as possible cuz the glass was meant to be popped in place from the outside of the cab.

[Merle Coggins]

I would take a utility knife to the rubber around the outside and cut it away so that the windows can push in easy. I've done that on mine and on my parts truck to remove the glass. You really only have to cut around the top and about half way down the side and you can get the window to push in enough to remove it/them.

Merle

[DollyDodge]

To remove some of my window rubber I took my dremel tool with an abrasive wheel and cut a grove in the rubber, and then it peels away easily. It stinks but it works.

I just got my steele front window gasket. I won't get to install it for a while, but given some of the comments in this thread I was wondering how well it would fit. I measured the depth of the groove in the gasket where it goes on the truck, it is 13/32, and the metal lip measures about 16/32 or so. The new gasket appears to be just a smiggen shorter than the old, but it looks to me like it should fit really nice. My other steele products are awesome.

[1952gary]

I have sent pictures to steele and they acknowledged with a phone call today. They see the problem and they are now talking about possible solutions. I did find the original center bar piece with an original part number. I gave this number to steele to research for possible solutions. One suggested solution is to modify their gasket mold to enlarge the width of the outer seal to cover the problem area. Another is to provide a filler piece that would slip under their gasket to extend it to cover the entire pinch weld. Input from the field would be of great help. I think the part number I provided today might be of some help to steele. They have factory original gaskets from the 49 and 50 trucks that they use to do reproductions. The currant gaskets are made to the 49 and 50 specs. Bottom line Steele wants to improve their gasket beyond factory original to give the desired look for our old trucks. The new gasket is installed from the inside out. Instructions are to run a bead of sealant on the inside edge just below the pinch weld. Place a 1/4 rope into the glass channel of the new gasket, center into the window opening. With one person on the inside, apply pressure while a second person on the outside pulls the outer seal over the pinch weld by pullling on the rope. Note: The rope begins and ends at the bottom center of the windshield. The process works very well.

To addess the removal of the old glass and gasket I suggest a cut around the edge of the glass from the outside. Apply pressure and push the glass into the cab with the help of another person. The ease of the removal depends on the last install. Some used a lot of sealant and or urathane.

I will update as information changes. If anyone has an old gasket cross section with a wider outer edge steele would like a sample. I can provide the address and contact person. I made steele aware of this website and its many experts with their wealth of knowledge.

[Merle Coggins]

So, is the B3 cab that much different? I didn't recall any issues like that with my truck so I just went out to the garage and snapped a couple of pictures of the windshield molding on my truck. I don't see anything that resembles what you discribe. This is molding from Steele, as stated earlier.

[HanksB3B]

I hope Steele does take the problem seriously. I'll be first in line (well maybe not first) to get the correct windshield gasket when I pay attention to my next bit of advice (which I didn't take). I wasn't smart enough to replace the glass with new. I'll just end with this quote "It would not be wise to put new wine into old wineskins" It was at the tail end of my restoration and I'll admit, I was being penny wise and pound foolish.

Hank

Merle/Gary not sure what good it'll do but I'll try and find if I made/saved any section-slices of my original B3B gasket.

Edited February 23, 2011 by HanksB3B

[Dave72dt]

I don't have any glass or molding in mine so the all the pinchweld is readily visible. My B3B measures 3/8"of pinchweld on the outside and 7/16" on the inside. Having 3/8" exposed on mine would mean all of it is exposed. I've kept a section of molding but it was weatherchecked badly on the outside so that crucial lip that straddles the pinchweld got cut off when I removed the glass. It looks similar but not identical to the illustration RS shows for a 49-50 Plymouth.

[1952gary]

Dave probably all old removed gaskets have come out in pieces. Mine was so rotten the previous owner had applied several layers of black silicone to stop the leaks.

[Dave72dt]

How wide is your pinchweld?

[1952gary]

I just completed the door glass and moldings on my 52. I also ordered the division bar seal from Steele. The steele rubber layed into the bar but my concern was the thickness. When I test fitted the wing glass against the steele seal my vent glass did not seal flush with the side glass. The original was on back order and I need results now. On the 1964 dodge restore I ran into a situation where I fabricated a belt line. Velcro is available in 2 inch wide stock. (use the loop portion of velcro non stick). On the 52 division bar I cut the velcro 2 times wider than the seal service. Using a sticky back thin foam between the folds of the velcro I achieved the desired thickness. I used 3m glue to complete the install and the result was a nice looking seal with a similar factory appearance.

[1952gary]

When talking to Steele the measurement needed to cover the pinch weld was 3/4 inch. This is the same for the back glass. The back glass seals were perfect from steele.

[Dave72dt]

I just looked at my old back glass rubber and it has a 3/4" long lip but the pinchweld on the truck itself is only 3/8" as it also is on the front glass. All the spot welds are in the pinched area so 3/8" of lip should cover it. Steele is saying it should have a 3/4" lip on the front seal as well? If that's true, Merle's is wrong as well as most others out there. Maybe Barry can measure the front lip of his when he finishes cutting it out.

[1952gary]

My conversation with steele was that I needed 3/4 inch to cover my pinch weld area. Steele is saying their 3/8 measurement is stock replacement according to the orig 49/50 NOS gaskets.