I received the new seals from Precision on Monday. And was in for a surprise. The long section that installs into the big chrome diecast piece does have a small steel plate imbedded in the rubber, just like the originals do. These are the only ones I've found that have this feature. Even the Steele parts do not have this. The originals had three small clips that gripped around the rubber and the steel plate to hold the seal and were then staked into the channel on the diecast piece to hold them in place. Every supplier of the seals that I've talked to said ditch the clips and just glue them in with weatherstrip adhesive. I have the original clips, but chose not to use them after a first attempt with the Metro seals and convincing myself that I didn't have the right tools to properly seat those clips in the channel. I had also heard from Rollaround that he had experience installing seals that had residual mold release powder on them that enabled pretty easy insertion of the seal into the channel. So I bought some baby powder and decided to use it to promote the rubber sliding on the metal surfaces.
So yesterday, my friend and I tackled this project with the Precision seals. This is a kind of chronology of the process:
- Installed the two stainless steel covers on the top verticals of the sheet metal frame.
- Installed the bottom seal onto the sheet metal vent window frame. I put some baby powder on the seal and was able to get the end of the seal that seats against the vertical surface to start on the metal frame and slid it down to its "home". Once happy with its location I worked the end of the seal onto the metal frame to get it seated properly. I had to trim the end of the seal with an Exacto knife on one of the seals to allow it to seat better at the "V".
- Installed the vent window into the sheet metal frame, inserting the threaded stud through the lower seal and the frame.
- Powdered the seal section to be inserted in the diecast piece, cleaned the bottom surface with degreaser where it would adhere to the bottom of the channel, and applied a liberal bead of adhesive into the channel.
- Inserted the seal into the diecast frame by pushing it down with my fingers to get it started, inserted and tightened the two big screws that fasten the frame to the diecast piece, and then inserted and tightened the small screw that holds the frame to the diecast piece at the other end.
- Then got serious about working the seal into the bottom of the channel so that it seated properly. I was not able to get it absolutely tight on the outside at the "V", but it was tons better than my previous experience with the Metro seals.
- Installed the vertical window seals and secured the tabs into the metal frame.
- Installed the vertical run channel "fuzzy". This required removing the small screw at the top of the vent window frame, getting the molded end of the run channel seated, then reinserting the screw through the run channel, the frame and into the diecast piece.
- Trimmed the run channel to length, then cleaned excess adhesive with degreaser, hit the glass with some Windex, and we were done.
Pictures are attached. They didn't turn out perfect, but the small gaps near the "V" were the only areas that didn't seat perfectly, and I'll be happy with the result.
So, I highly recommend the Precision vent window seals. Info on them can be found here, for hardtops and convertibles:
https://www.prp.com/product/detail/351662?SearchType=AGR&sort=u.Name&paginationCount=24&year=1965&make=Buick&model=Skylark&type=AllI bought them here at a significant discount and they were drop shipped from PRP in Wisconsin:
https://www.ocautocarpets.com/wn-product/vent-seal-kit-15833/I also bought all the other seals that they offer for the 65 Skylark, to use on the Verde Howitzer or the Red car; the prices are just too good to pass up!
Chuck
