pgtr

I have the black center metal piece of the center support beam out for a repainting and weather stripping project. The factory used thin foam rubber strips at the ends of the center metal trim piece to prevent leaks.

I have the yellow 3M weather strip adhesive for the new weather stripping. But for the ends of the trim piece I am considering using silicone as in RTV gasket material or simply plain old bathroom caulk.

I was thinking of putting a heavy bead around each end, fasten the trim piece down and let it dry. Then come back the next day with the 3M stuff for the weather stripping... The silicone should be thick, pliant, not shrink and if need be, be somewhat reasonable to release the trim piece in the future should I ever need to take it off again.

Thoughts?

t-top havoc

iTrader: (3)

pgtr--

Any way you can post a pic of the areas you're talking about??
Not too long ago, I asked if anyone knew about the foam//rubber you now mention, & no one had any idea what I was asking.
Ours was assembled a few yrs ago, but I am now tired of chasing the leak.
A couple days ago, I went to ACE Hardware & got silicone caulk that's supposed to stay soft & pliable.
NOTE---If you use this or something similar, DO NOT GET IT ON YOUR PAINT!!!What a bcht to try to clean!
I was also thinking about looking for some sort of foam//rubber to put the whole length & width of the T-bar.

Thanks for your Q,
I hope there will be some great tips!!
( edit )
I was going thru my cleaners // thinners & found some
3M General Purpose Adhesive Cleaner
Part # 08984. Cleaned the silicone off in a few seconds!!
I had forgotten I had it!!......DOH......

pgtr

No pix right now. Basically it's the very 'ends' of the metal trim piece that screws onto the T-bar held in by 10 screws. Just the ends that meet at the windshield and at the rear 'hoop' is all that should need to be sealed - if the rubber is good and properly glued in.

You have to remove the rubber to get access to trim piece and the 4 'inner' screws can be rusty (about where I plan to apply the caulk).

My trim piece had a little pitting - if it goes bad enough I could see it rusting thru on some cars...

t-top havoc

iTrader: (3)

Ours had the foam//rubber on 1 end, but could be seen where the other was gone!!
I am not looking forward to attempting to remove the stripping, but if it's gotta be done......

By chance,do you know the material & the thickness it has to be??
All I recall is it is about a 4 inch square piece, but don't recall what it is, & no idea where to get it.

As far as adhesive, if I end up removing the T-bar, I'm thinking of staying with the clear silicone. I got it at ACE Hardware. If it interests you, I will give you the info on the tube.
Also, in another thread there was mention of some sort of stuff that comes in a box laid out on " cards " of a putty that is a few inches long, about 1/4 inch wide, 1/4 inch thick. We called it " Dum Dum " but I don't know the real name of it. It doesn't harden or become brittle.
The poster used it to make a dam to keep water from finding it's way between the T-bar & weather strip.
I can't recall the thread, but if I find it, I'll give you the link if it interests you.

pgtr

THanks but I don't need the details on your silicone - I'll probably go with GE or similar 100% silicone. Generally this stuff is NOT paintable. The 'dum dum' stuff you're talking about is more of a traditional caulk material which painters use on houses - it can be paintable but it can also shrink/harden over time.

auto body paint supply stores carry thin double sided foam tape for reattaching trim etc. THat would be essentially identical to what the factory used on the ends.

pgtr

Stopped by the local home improvement store - found GE II Silicone in black no less - just applied a thick bead to each end and screwed it down, wiped up the excess that squeezed out and am waiting for it to dry - will use the 3M trim adhesive tomorrow to put on the new rubber seals.

As long as you're using silicone I think it is ideal for this sort of thing.

duckmanquacker

You don't want to use either silicone or bathroom caulk. the bathroom caulk will get super hard and brittle in the sun, and the silicone makes it very hard to repaint that area later. It's much better to use the butal rubber for winshield sealant around your T-TOP parts. It stays soft, keeps it water tight and looks factory.

Scorpner

iTrader: (4)

Is butal also what they use for the rear hatch glass where it connects to the deck lid?

scottmoyer

I used the 3M windshield rope caulk. You need this stuff to bridge the roof channel to the A pillar and roof channel to B pillar under the weatherstripping. I can guarantee a leak if you don't bridge those with the caulk. I have pictures up here somewhere of where to bridge it and how the factory did it. Caulk will eventually shrink. Even when they say it doesn't, it does. I bought the good stuff 5 years ago when I put up crown moulding in my house. About a year ago, I noticed some areas where it needs to be redone. And that's indoors.

duckmanquacker

Yes it is used there as well.

Scorpner

iTrader: (4)

Thank you.