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Date:         Tue, 05 Apr 1994 16:00:51 EDT
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         cchubb@ida.org (Chris Chubb)
Subject:      Re: Summary of Door rubber

>From: James Wallace <jwallace@uoguelph.ca> >Subject: Re: Summary of Door rubber > I'd appreciate it if you could forward me the phone no. &/or the >adress of this infamous J.C. Whitney. I have a notorious gambling streak >in me you see....or else maybe I'm just collecting catalogues. Either way, >my mouth is bigger than my wallet tho I'd dearly love to actually order >somethng more than catalogues from Berg or Metric. I know J.C. Whitney's >are as common down there as Eaton's are up here (they don't sell VW parts >tho, too bad), but I hear we're getting our first Walmart so...the times >are still a'changin'. > I have finally found my old copy of JC Whitney. I went around a threw out about 40 back issues about two months ago, firm in the belief that I would be getting another monthly catalog. But none came, so I was without. I will remember to bring in the address tommorrow.

On a related note, I finally installed the door rubber on the drivers side of my Bus. Installation went in without a hitch. Only one place where I was puzzled. The rubber includes a hole for the limiting strap but I was not tearing apart my door to do the limiting strap. So I cut the gasket diagonally, slipped it around, and glued it all back together. The old rubber pulled out easily, and the groove was reasonably clean. I used a little denatured alcohol on a rag to do it right. I then put a bead of the contact cement around the door, mostly where the old cement was. HINT: Use a small piece of tubing, about an inch long, screwed onto the tip of the cement tube to get the cement into the channels, the tube wont reach by its self. Cut the tip of the tube at 45 degrees. You also have to take the new gasket and lay it out on the ground with the adhesive side up. Be sure you are putting the goop on the right side, it can be tough to tell. Then spread the contact cement around the gasket. Be liberal, it gets soaked up by the rubber. By very careful not to get too much on other parts of the rubber, it never really gets hard by its self. Also dont get too much dirt on the glue. It is really helpful to have a flat, concrete surface to work on. Also a helper when it comes to installing it to keep the glue from touching the door. Let the last glue you applied sit for about 5-10 minutes. Now the tricky part starts.

Start at the limiting strap, press the rubber seal into place. A stick or something will help along the top and bottom channels. When they come together, they will bond, so get it right the first time. Work counter-clockwise for the drivers side and clockwise for the passengers side. Your friend should hold the gasket up and out of the way of the door, so you dont get glue on the paint. Just push it in all the way around. I had a little too much gasket, so I had to cut about 2 inches out of the gasket. Cut out the part you dont need at the bottom to prevent leaks. That is about it.

You may need to adjust your door catches. I had to move mine from all the way in to all the way out to get the door to catch on all but a full out slam. I checked the next day after a decent shower, and all was dry in the places that normally got wet.

JC Whitney rubber was what I used. I do not usually use thier rubber parts, as it is usually Brazillian or Mexican, but I had a credit from some other returned junk, so I took a shot. Other than being slightly too large it fit in all the right places. And at $25.00 a piece, it was about $50.00 less than the 'proper' guys. If I was doing a show car installation, I would not have even considered it. But I consider my VW a transportation vehicle that just happens to be 'way-cool' and a hobby. The JCW rubber wont last another 22 years, but if I get 10 out of it, I will be ahead of the game.

Next on the project list: The granddaddy of all rubber---The sliding door seal. (And mabye a new windsheild gasket too.) But first those cylinder heads.

--- Chris Chubb (cchubb@ida.org) __________________________________________________________________________ \All opinions expressed or implied may not reflect those of the Institute \ \for Defense Analyses, the US Government, or anyone else. \ -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | o | \\ // |Currently | ___ | Oo | /\, | \\ \\// // |Experiencing | (___)|_o | -|~(*)/ | \\//\\// |FarFromMovin'| //====--//(_) | (*) /-' | \/ \/ |'71 Bus | \\ ^


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