Trimming the lower windscreen seal

[foster461]

Anyone have a good guide for how/where to trim the excess rubber from the lower windscreen seal ?. I'm hoping there is an obvious cut line that leaves the correct amount of seal with the correct angle so there are no gaps and no interference when the windshield is installed to the scuttle..

 

Stan

[EdwinTiben]

Hi Stan,

 

Perhaps you have a non standard rubber seal, but the seals of the regular Sellers like Moss, shouldnt need any trimming.

The rubber lies flat to the front on your scuttle. Mind you the rubber can be fitted both ways, when you slip in the rubber it should point backwards.when the screen frame is mounted, the rubber is forced to the front, sealing of the gap quite nice!

[Don H.]

Stan, I checked carefully how my original seal was fitted and duplicated that as closely as I could with the replacement. Mine was from TRF, as I assume is yours. Note carefully the orientation of "FRONT" molded into the rubber -- this ensures the seal is as tight as possible against the bodywork. It's a little counterintuitive at first; one wants the curve holding the seal against the scuttle.

 

Here's what mine looked like with the original seal in place but the retaining plate removed. You can see the outline of where the plate protected the rubber over the years, and the two screw holes where the plate mounts to the stanchion. The seal was flush with the stanchion plate.

 

There was some dum-dum sealing the stanchion to the scuttle (or at least pretending to). You can see it in these images.

 

 

I cut the new seal as close as possible to the stanchion plate, just like the original. I tried to make sure the seal wasn't stretched too much across the windscreen frame, 'cause that would lead to elastic recovery later and possibly gaps in the fit. I reapplied some strip sealer to match the original dum-dum. All things considered, not a difficult job.

 

[stuart]

Unfortunately Don your TR3B end plates are different to the 2/3/3a type which are screwed through the rubber with small self tappers into the stanchion bases. I fit the rubber and try and leave the excess equal at each end and then whilst stretching the rubber slightly outwards then fit the plates by using a pointed awl to find the holes and then fit the screws(easier said than done as you need 3 hands) do one side and then pull the rubber all the way back across to the other side and then do the same while stretching the rubber. Once you have both sides fitted then trim the excess off flush with the stanchion line that will be obvious once the plates are fitted. By fitting one side then stretching across to the other you end up with a very good and tight seal across the bulkhead. When you get a new rubber make sure that it has never been folded for transit as you will never get the kink out of it.

Stuart.

[Don H.]

The bits are different on my car, Stuart, or is it just the way the rubber was mounted in them? I'd have bet good money than seal hadn't been replaced in the car's first 19 years before I got it, but ya never know.

[foster461]

Thanks guys, just what I needed. My seal did come from TRF however it is marked REAR on the back. The seal is now in place in the channel with about three inches of excess at either end. The seal came rolled up so no kinks. Interesting to see the different arrangement on the TR3B, I learned something new today.

 

Stan

[foster461]

The bits are different on my car, Stuart, or is it just the way the rubber was mounted in them? I'd have bet good money than seal hadn't been replaced in the car's first 19 years before I got it, but ya never know.

 

The retaining plate that clamps the rubber seal is totally different on you car Don. The earlier cars have what looks like a brass teardrop-shaped plate that screws into the stanchion with small sheet metal screws.

 

[Don H.]

 

The retaining plate that clamps the rubber seal is totally different on you car Don. The earlier cars have what looks like a brass teardrop-shaped plate that screws into the stanchion with small sheet metal screws.

 

Yes, very different, Stan. My TR3B's windscreen seal plates are thickish sheet steel with that fold to, I guess, ensure higher clamp pressure.

 

Of course the TRF seal is marked "REAR" -- one doesn't want it showing on the up/front side!

 

Stanchions changed a lot over the years, and in more ways than from the earlier (preferred, to me) Dzus-mounted body-plate style to the later screw-mounted direct-to-scuttle style. You'll note in the image above that my plates have an oval depression on the back side. Yours are probably different, although they all seem to work the same.

 

That doesn't get into the chrome over brass v aluminum differences -- there's a thread on here someplace talking about that, and noting that the aluminium stanchion variant is extremely rare in the US, less so in Britain.

Edited July 23, 2015 by Don H.

[foster461]

Yep, your retaining plates are a lot more substantial Don. Re the dumdum, did you dig the old material out of the channel and then apply the strip seal or is that strip seal on top of the original sealant ?

[Don H.]

I replaced the dumdum, Stan. My original stanchions got rechromed, so there was nothing left of the sealant.

 

Here's a detail of the stanchion without seal, plate, or dumdum. Note the small channel on the "wing" sticking up in the first photo below. This channel is where the 3M Strip Seal was placed -- pretty easy to get like it was originally (the second photo).

 

Edited July 23, 2015 by Don H.

[Don Elliott]

During my restoration of the TR, I cleaned up and re-installed the brass tear-drop retainer plates. Even though I've driven my 1958 TR3A 115,000 miles since the restoration in 1987 - 1990, I rarely drive in the rain. I don't worry about a drop or two of rain coming in there because when it rains, my top and sidecurtains are stowed in padded bags in the boot.

 

You're probably not going to drive your "new" TR much in the rain.