Body / Glass: Softening old weatherstrips????

[LarkTruck]

Getting ready to attack the resto-mod of my significant others 59 Wagon. With some of the rubber weatherseals made of un-obtainium I want to try to save the originals. Anyone have any tips on trying to soften them up before trying to remove them?
Jim

[SN-60]

Spraying them down with something like 'WD-40' may help. Heat carefully applied with a heat gun would also probably help. Rubbing brake fluid into them would also tend to soften the weatherstrip, but
be very careful as the brake fluid (DOT3) will attack the paint!

[jclary]

Careful with the heat gun. I have a couple of heat guns and find it difficult to judge or gauge how close or how long to apply the heat without harming surrounding paint. Right now I need to remove some grommets from a motorcycle fender. I am going to use a hair dryer first. Should be enough heat to make them pliable for removal but not burn them up.

As far as softening the rubber for preservation...do a little research and try to find a product that will impregnate and restore the rubber without harming the "plasticisers" that keep it flexible. Some chemicals will soften rubber temporarily only to cause long-term damage.

[(S)]

You can use things mentioned above, but remember:

WD 40 and brake fluid or other silicones will seep into the paint and metal and must be carefully removed before any body work takes place.

Sometimes it never comes off.


If the seals ever need to be glued, nothing will ever stick.

[E. Davis]

[QUOTE=LarkTruck;620228]Getting ready to attack the resto-mod of my significant others 59 Wagon. With some of the rubber weatherseals made of un-obtainium I want to try to save the originals. Anyone have any tips on trying to soften them up before trying to remove them?
Jim[/Q
I have had pretty good luck keeping rubber parts pliable by periodically applying plain old glycerin. Available in most drug or box stores.

[Mrs K Corbin]

Have you tried to give Fennessey a call?
She may reproduce that stuff.....

[FlatheadGeo]

Has anyone tried Mineral Oil or Baby Oil? I would think that these wouldn't harm the rubber. (Just a thought)

[jclary]

Ok...this morning I make it out to the man cave to do a little more work on my motorcycle project. I am armed with one of my wife's old hair dryers instead of my shop heat gun. It is thirty-two degrees at 9:30 am and the rubber grommets I need to remove are pretty stiff. The hair dryer does the trick without burning up anything. With a little effort, the grommets softened up and popped right out.

That could be your solution for safely removing rubber components without damage. For rubber items that are still available...you should seriously consider replacing them. For the unobtainable items (like vent window rubber for Land Cruisers) that need long-term preservation, we need to consult with somebody who knows the chemistry. I know that at least one of our forum members is a chemical engineer, but can't remember who it is. There are plenty of chemicals that will soften rubber, but absolutely ruin it as well. Additionally, there are other chemicals that will invade your work area and contaminate everything it lands on. It is the horror of every paint and powder coating facility. Unless you are into "fish-eye" effects, you want to avoid that kind of invasive contamination.