Randy:
You are quite right - it's one of the ugliest jobs on a convertible Healey.
No great mysteries - best bet is to feed it into the groove rather than
wedge it in with a screwdriver. Too much chance of damaging the rubber.
Sometimes you can 'tweak' the lead-in to the groove sligtly to avoid snags.
And make sure that the corner bracket screw heads are not too high. Here,
we do it with 3 strong guys (and a lot of beer) pushing and pulling. Like
Marek, we have had good success with WD40 as a lube, but you need to keep
the whole channel continuously wet as you go. And of course your hands get
the stuff on them, which is lots of fun!
It's simply a lot of scut work, but the key (for me at least) is enough
help. FWIW, we have been using seals from AH Spares for the last few years,
and once installed, they seem to work as well as any.
On the other hand, you could do what Ed suggests, but then the guys at the
auto glass shop would get to drink the beer instead of you and your buddies.
Your call.
Earl Kagna
Victoria, B.C.
BT7 tri-carb
BJ8
----- Original Message -----
From: "Randy Dickson" <rdickson@midwestarchaeology.com>
To: <healeys@autox.team.net>
Sent: Tuesday, December 02, 2008 5:32 PM
Subject: [Healeys] Windshield to body seal????
Fellow Healeyoids,
I have been having a hell of a time trying to get my rubber seal installed
from the bottom of the windshield to the body on my 63 BJ7. Mind you, I
have three different windshield frames that I have tried. As well as three
different seal suppliers. They are Moss, AH Spares and Healey Surgeons.
Moss seemed to be the closest fit. I read in the archives the Healey
Surgeons is the best but I disagree thus far.
I have tried to "pull" it through after judiciously lubricating the channel
as well as the seal and tried three different lubes in three long different
attempts. Windex, silicone seal and lithium spray grease.
I have also tried to wedge it in just a little at a time with a thin
screwdriver. This worked better than "pulling" the pig-bitch seal through.
I have also tried to razor cut a small portion (1/16th ") off of the "T" in
the rubber seal to no avail. It then would not stay put.
As far as difficulty of operations is concerned, I put the rubber vent seals
in and it took about 10 minutes. That was super easy. This is one for the
hardest things that I have done on a frame up restoration. Harder than
getting the door gaps to look good.
I have two Healey buddies coming up this weekend and I will again attempt
this futile endeavor with them. That is, if we can find a sober enough
moment. My buddy is turning 50. Anyway, I'm looking for a detailed
description of how to perform this seemingly impossible task without
seriously maiming or killing anyone. Any and all advice is much
appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Randy
Healey-Archaeologist
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