Door Seals

[sithot]

Bought some new reproductions of the original style seals a couple of years ago and finally got around to installing them.

Not a hard job but they are like handling an octopus. Soon as you think you have them set and ready to measure for cutting they fall out of place. Start over.

What is needed:

Update: 9.18.12 The factory didn't likely make a mitre cut based on observations. I'll call this "dealers choice". It's pretty but it's not the way it was done.
Cheap plastic mitre box or a good eye for a 45º cut. "Eye Ball" not good so cheap box stood in.
A long razor blade or very sharp knife for the mitre cut.



3M Black Weatherstrip adhesive.
Door Panel tools (use of the blade ends is pretty handy in setting the B Pillar section of the seal; photo attached 2 tools starting 2nd from left)
Super Glue to bond the ends at the 45º cut.
Patience is a virtue. Take your time. It's a boring job but you really want to measure a couple of times before cutting.

I didn't shoot photos of the operation because… well, I just didn't find it all that exciting.

I did one side yesterday and then rode 4 motorcycles. That's not a necessary step but it was fun.
Finished the other side today after making my 45º cut on the passenger side seal last night and letting it set up overnight.

Buttoned it up this afternoon and went for a ride in the old SL.

Looks like it should and the doors do shut a bit easier now that the "tubes" are gone.

Tom

[Bert]

Hi Tom,

Thanks for the write up. Any reduction in wind noise with this style door seals?

Bert

[sithot]

It's pretty quiet in the garage.

There wasn't an opportunity to test it yesterday. I'll report back as soon as possible.

Tom

[beh911]

Thanks for the write up.

Can you post a picture of the seal? I'm curious what the profile looks like as there have been a few iterations of these.

[sithot]

Full and Cross Section. The rubber is quite dense and nearly as hard to handle as a black snake! It won't stay where you want it unless the area is tight (like the threshold and B Pillar).
This is where the tools come in handy because there is a groove in the rubber that needs to be slipped under the threshold and B-Pillar channels.

I glued it a short section at a time and once satisfied everything was where it needed to be shut the door and walked away.

Tom

[beh911]

Thanks for the pics

[Sepia911S]

This last June, I replaced the original door seals on the '73 911S. I kept the original seals and will post a photograph tomorrow. I ordered the original profile seal from Stoddard. After the new seals were installed, there was quite a bit of "whistling" that I had not noticed before. Not knowing what was going on, I panicked and contacted Ed Mayo.

The Stoddard reproductions are similar but not exactly like the originals. If you look at the photograph in post #9, the original seal just to the left and a bit below the mirror is wider and thicker for about 6 to 8 inches in that particular spot. The Stoddard seals are uniform from end to end. Ed Mayo explained how to "build up" the seal in that area. With his directions in hand, I returned to the shop for additional work. The window still whistles a bit and I do need to revisit that again. I think it is a time consuming and expensive matter of "tweaking" the thickness of the seal in that spot. If I press on the seal at the spot while driving at speed, I can eliminate the whistling completely. But that is not a wise thing to do.

At the Salt Lake City Parade, the seals were closely examined. I was pleased the judges did not realize the seals had been replaced.

Curious, I contacted Stoddard about the difference between the original and replacement seals. They said no one had ever asked about that before. I even sent them photographs of the wider original seal but did not receive a reply. I understand the concept of "original profile" seal. But, just don't understand why they are not exactly alike ... it is not much of a difference. The terms OEM, original, replacement, reproduction, etc. are confusing.

[Neil '67 911S]

I used the International Merchantile door seals on both Ol' Ivoryh ('67 911S) and Ol' Blue ('67 912). They look right but generate lots of wind noise. Once they have been contact cemented in place, it is no longer possible to pull them back from the channel and shim them out to cut the wind noise without risking tearing the seal. They are especially leaky where the channel goes from vertical to angle on the A pillar.

I didn't have to make any cuts.

[sithot]

The mitre cut I made is incorrect from what I gather. It's how somebody who has been around carpenters and fabricators would do it.

An assembly line wouldn't have time for somebody to make this cut. As I told Ed Mayo the guy doing this was probably fast as crap through a goose!

I'll re-visit the issue this weekend when I can get my hands on the car.

In the meantime keep the photos and experiences coming!

Tom

[sithot]

The late seal was mitre cut. By the time they made these the dimensions were "know" and they pre-fabricated them.

Here are what is available from Stoddard NLA.