rear window seal - way short

dhoch14 · Post by **dhoch14** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 2:13 pm

So I'm in the process of putting a new rear window seal in and lo and behold I'm in a holding pattern.

My issue is that the new seal is not as deep (hey-oh!) and you can see the pervious paint jobs. I have already treated the rust and ground the metal down.

do I.....

1) Get some paint from Maaco and some bondo and fill in the edge then use the new seal? Keep in mind my body work skills are average at best.

2) Find a seal that covers the same gaps the OEM ones did? Does this exist?

FYI - the seal I have is WCM without the flashy metal. My previous seal included the metal (mine wasn't nearly as shiny as Bookwus') and I'm not sure if this has any impact.

hambone · Post by **hambone** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 2:22 pm

satchmo · Post by **satchmo** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 4:33 pm

No, number 2. Find the right seal. Check out BusBoys, Bus Depot, or OEVeeDub. I know the one I got when I did this job had very good coverage (I just don't remember where I got it).

Don't settle for 'barely acceptable' here. The rear window seal isn't that expensive and you don't want to find rust under a so-so seal in the future.

Tim

dhoch14 · Post by **dhoch14** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 5:54 pm

Great. Thanks for settling the debate guys....

:)

hambone · Post by **hambone** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 9:48 pm

I have a WCM rear window seal and it's slightly oversized so who knows. I just don't think a seal should be hiding sins. The area underneath needs to be treated before application, otherwise water will get in there and cause rust.
At least get a good German seal if you're worried and see if it covers better.

chitwnvw · Post by **chitwnvw** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 10:13 pm

The seal won't do jack to prevent rust. It might help hold moisture and encourage rust. I haven't had a bad back seal yet, or any other really bad seal, lucky me.

The rear seal is easy, dhoch, i would just finish you job, if you run into trouble later, spend the 30 buck and do it right.

Post by **Amskeptic** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 10:23 pm

dhoch14 wrote:Great. Thanks for settling the debate guys....

:)

Look around your bus. Is all the brightwork on the way out? 1973s had the plastic coated trim that inserts straight into the channel groove on the deluxe seals. Pre-'73 buses had the true aluminum trim with a hooked profile that required the hooked groove. I switched the Road Warrior over to true aluminum trim in 2001.

If your bus still has nice brightwork, get the deluxe German rear window seal and get whatever trim fits it. If your brightwork is all blackened and nasty, you can get the non-deluxe rear seal. I was just re-writing the Mission Statement today. In it, you will read in new bold highlights "buy the real quality parts and quitcher crying like a baby when you buy cheap crap that falls apart before you even install it" or something like that. OEVeedub should have the proper profile of that rear window seal . . . I hope.
When you get your carbs dialed in, the gain in acceleration could suck the thin rubber sealed window right off the back of the car. . .coughcoughbullshitcough
Colin

BellePlaine · Post by **BellePlaine** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 2:23 pm

I got the German seal from Bus Depot and I love it. For me, the rear window is by far the easiest to install.

Maz804 · Post by **Maz804** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 7:10 pm

Hi Dave!

I'll be doing this to my 1971 here in a few short weeks... I just picked up a sweet interior set for my bus and want to get the new floor installed and furnace hooked up... But first things first, and that is to get rid of the puddles on the floor after a major rainfall.

Which brings up a point. Should I swap my drivers rear window for a one piece of glass for simplicity? I'm all about it now because I have a cabinet that covers it... I need to find that one piece of glass, without the vent wing.

BTW... I'm moving over to your neck of the woods within the month! YAY! We can dial in your man cave and be bus buddies and talk about how cool "The Bus" is... And drink good beer... And spin some cool records... *finger snap* Oh... yeah... I'll be following this thread of yours.

dhoch14 · Post by **dhoch14** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 7:40 pm

Maz804 wrote:Hi Dave!

I'll be doing this to my 1971 here in a few short weeks... I just picked up a sweet interior set for my bus and want to get the new floor installed and furnace hooked up... But first things first, and that is to get rid of the puddles on the floor after a major rainfall.

Which brings up a point. Should I swap my drivers rear window for a one piece of glass for simplicity? I'm all about it now because I have a cabinet that covers it... I need to find that one piece of glass, without the vent wing.

BTW... I'm moving over to your neck of the woods within the month! YAY! We can dial in your man cave and be bus buddies and talk about how cool "The Bus" is... And drink good beer... And spin some cool records... *finger snap* Oh... yeah... I'll be following this thread of yours.

amazing.....i love it dude! give me a call sometime you hoser...oh wait you hate phones. fine. An email will work!

I'm going to call around and see if the original seal is available. Also, maybe I wasn't clear, I have already treated the rust. I am debating whether or not to fill in the old rust spots and then paint.

hambone · Post by **hambone** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 7:52 pm

I got rid of my rear dr. side vent for a 1 piece. It's nice.

Maz804 · Post by **Maz804** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 9:21 pm

Yeah that's right Hammy, I think I remember reading a post about that awhile back... I bet that IS nice! My wing vent is rusted out and there a big hole filled with silicone that doesn't keep the water out...

Dave, where you gettin' the seal from? I'd like to go for the 'spensive german seals just cause I don't want puddle issues now that I have a sweet interior...

I wanna do the back 5 windows first. I'll deal with the water puddles up front later...

chitwnvw · Post by **chitwnvw** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 9:38 pm

Do you still get air flow from front to rear? CK seemed to think that the rear wing vent was vital for drawing air into the rear. Shoot, some summer days my kids are still back there with bead of sweat dropping off of them. "Keep drinking water!"

Post by **Amskeptic** » Thu Dec 03, 2009 1:16 am

chitwnvw wrote:Do you still get air flow from front to rear? CK seemed to think that the rear wing vent was vital for drawing air into the rear. Shoot, some summer days my kids are still back there with bead of sweat dropping off of them. "Keep drinking water!"

Above 120* it is nice to have the rear vent wing open. But if it is a rather chillier 100*, the middle vent wings can take of airflow. And all of the buses with the air extractors do pretty well with allowing incoming air to get in.
Colin

Maz804 · Post by **Maz804** » Thu Dec 03, 2009 9:21 am

Hey Kirk!

What seal did YOU use?

Get some nice air flow with that setup... Until you come to a stop... Yuck! It's nice when you're parked though!

Kirk! Gimme the other one!

Itinerant Air-Cooled

Itinerant Air-Cooled

rear window seal - way short

rear window seal - way short