Had Glass Installed, Questions

[judsonhauling]

I had the windshield, back and quarter glass installed.  my question is they did nothing to seal them up. when you all had yours installed how did you seal them.?

 

Steele windshield glass and Roberts quarter and back glass.

 

James

[ggdad1951]

nothing "seals" them like modern glass, it's a friction fit.  That's why it can be critical to get the proper thickness of glass.

Edited April 19, 2013 by ggdad1951

[John-T-53]

Automotive glazing compound (made by 3M) is an absolute must between the rubber and the body openings. Applying a sealer between the glass and the rubber is optional, but recommended to get a more water/air tight seal.  The local glass shop recommended RTV, or better yet urethane for this.  If not, water will migrate in between by capillary action and tend to pool at the bottom of the rubber glass channel. Not a huge deal, tho.

[ggdad1951]

Automotive glazing compound (made by 3M) is an absolute must between the rubber and the body openings. Applying a sealer between the glass and the rubber is optional, but recommended to get a more water/air tight seal.  The local glass shop recommended RTV, or better yet urethane for this.  If not, water will migrate in between by capillary action and tend to pool at the bottom of the rubber glass channel. Not a huge deal, tho.

odd, none of the glass guys around here recommend either of those.

[Merle Coggins]

My glass guys didn't use anything, but suggested that if it leaked that I could bring it in to their shop and they had some stuff that would seal it up. It did leak a little, but not enough to worry about. This past winter I went around the outside of the seal with some urethane sealant. We'll see how that works this summer.

 

Merle

[judsonhauling]

thanks guys!!!  we will see how it goes

[wallytoo]

any leakage is not good. that will migrate along the dash and to the floor if the glass/gasket leaks, and you'll get rust. some water will also likely go to the underside of the dash if the body/gasket leaks; this can ruin the cardboard glovebox, among other things.

fwiw, i used rtv along the body/gasket interface and along the glass/gasket interface. that has worked well. the only leak i have now is through the wiper pivots, which is a few drops in heavy rain.

[ggdad1951]

rtv and metal...not a good idea.  I've heard chemically it can actually accelerate rust formation.  We stuck some on my buddies 72 chevy truck a few years back to stop a leak and it rusted BAD under the RTV.

Edited April 19, 2013 by ggdad1951

[wallytoo]

i hadn't heard that. if i had, i might have used something else.

the packaging does state "non-corrosive".

permetex makes a "flowable silicone windshield sealer" that probably would work for this application.

[JBNeal]

RTV does not cause rust, nor is it corrosive. If it were either, then the automotive industry would have done away with it years ago. In fact, the auto industry has embraced RTV & silicone/urethane sealants as cost-saving & performance improving gasket alternatives. The problem is that shade-tree mechanics (myself included on occasion) attempt to use RTV as a cure-all for any type of leak condition. If a RTV seal is formed improperly, it can pool moisture rather than shed moisture, which can accelerate oxidation in exposed steel areas. The key to any RTV seal is that the base materials have to be cleaned & dried and free of debris; this detail gets overlooked more often than not, so the attempt to address this issue with more RTV is often erroneously attempted, similar to turning the heat up on a welder to 'burn' through surface contamination of base metals. Sometimes it works, sometimes it only masks a brewing problem. Ideally, a friction-fit of a pliable rubber gasket should be adequate unless there are surface irregularities that the gasket cannot seal over, then it's time to supplement that rubber gasket with a flowable sealer

[ggdad1951]

My local paint guy says no rtv on metal ill go with what he says

Edited April 20, 2013 by ggdad1951

[Bob_Koch]

At the BBQ we had two trucks using Steele Rubber on the windshields.  Both had been install by the same installer.  And both had been installed backwards.  It took awhile to figure out way the glass stuck out so much in front.

[MBF]

I noticed that in one of the pictures but I didn't say anything because I wasn't sure and God knows my stuff aint perfect either.  I did it myself once years ago as a trial to see if I could get the windshield in by myself.  It went it pretty easy but when I went outside and saw what I had done I immediately took them out and had a glass guy install them so I wouldn't screw up my new gasket.   Mike

[Dodgeb4ya]

When silicone adhesives cure they release acetic acid. Acetic acid is what gives vinegar its "bite", and silicone adhesives their characteristic smell. Be careful where you use certain types of RTV. If it smells like vinegar it will be acetic. It can cause rusting of metal for sure.

Silicone is great in bathrooms!

Edited April 21, 2013 by Dodgeb4ya

[gramps1951]

do not use silicone use a low viscosity urethane the urathane used to hold up a urethane set windshield is a high viscous urethane this helps hold the windshield off the pinch weld until the urethane cures. to get the urethane under the rubber gasket use a low viscosity urethane or heat the tube of high viscosty urethane but this will hurry the drying time two things control drying time of urethane temp. and humidity. greater temp. and humdity wil shorten drying time. had my own auto glass co. for 24 years.

[Scruffy49]

My local paint guy says no rtv on metal ill go with what he says

 

I'd guess primarily because rtv silicones are so hard to get out of the metal's pores before a paint job, be it full or touch up. Nasty stuff to try and degunk.

 

If your windshield frame is so pitted that the rubber seal weeps, go with the urethane. Doesn't leave as much slippery gunk to interfere with future repairs.

[gramps1951]

i will never use silicone on the body of any vehicle what the prior post from dodge4ya said was correct. it can gas for much longer than when it cures can fisheye paint even after the silicone cures please dont ask me how i know the silicone gas is heavyer than air wll look like tear drops going down the side of your truck.

[gramps1951]

just want to make my self clear on prior post i was talking about fresh paint jobs but still i will never use silicone on any body part .

[Jeff Balazs]

Gramp1951;

Can you recommend a brand for this urethane? It sure makes sense to me. Any specifics about the application and potential clean up would be appreciated. I am getting my cab back from the painters any day now and will attempt the glass install myself when the time comes.

 

Thanks, Jeff

[gramps1951]

it's been a while since i had the glass shop but essex u418 it cost me whole sale back in the day about 5.50 per tube might cost you about 15.00 but it goes a long way.  for clean up if a lot oozed out i would spray it with glass cleaner and use a plastic stick and scrape of the ooze then i would use a bug and tar remover with a rag will leave a haze on the paint but that will clean off with terri cloth. if you use urethane on the body of your truck it can be tuff later on if you try to take the gasket out but most times once you get it started it's easy. to bad you didnt put in the glass your self it's real easy i made all the glass for my truck my self but not the cab corner ones. i have auto glass part books going all the way back to the 30s i think.  one thing mention by someone else was the thickness of the old glass being much thicker man that old stuff was way thicker it could realy take some hard shots before cracking which was not good for buissness.  when the urethane cures and all is clean you can put soap water on the outside and use air gun in side and look for air bubles i would wait sometime before doing that i still have my ulta sonic leak detector somewhere in the garage . sorry bout the long rambleing post got my self going there. good luck neil  ps dont use paper towel on your fresh paint !!!

[judsonhauling]

I will look for this u418.. thank you all!

[pflaming]

At the BBQ we had two trucks using Steele Rubber on the windshields.  Both had been install by the same installer.  And both had been installed backwards.  It took awhile to figure out way the glass stuck out so much in front.

 

Bob pointed that out to me on my truck. I haven't gone back to the installer but will. The Steele Rubber is great and the company easy to work with. 

 

If memory serves me correct, silicone is a 'trade name' for teflon or vise a versa.  

[ggdad1951]

no silicone and teflon are different critters.

 

Silicone is a polymerized siloxanes family

 

teflon is a poly tetra flouroethelene  "teflon" is Dupont's name for the version of this chemical they make

Edited April 22, 2013 by ggdad1951

[BulldogTom]

At the BBQ we had two trucks using Steele Rubber on the windshields.  Both had been install by the same installer.  And both had been installed backwards.  It took awhile to figure out way the glass stuck out so much in front.

 

Bob pointed that out to me on my truck. I haven't gone back to the installer but will. The Steele Rubber is great and the company easy to work with. 

 

If memory serves me correct, silicone is a 'trade name' for teflon or vise a versa.  

Paul,

 

Let me know how the installer reacts, as I am the other one.  If he fixes it no questions asked, let me know and I will drive down and get mine fixed.

 

Thanks

 

Tom

Hollister, CA

[Jeff Balazs]

Gramps1951;

Thanks for the info on the urethane.This is one of those installations that I only want to do once.

Jeff