When to fit panels with weatherstrips

B

BenM

Hi,I have been using SPI products for a couple years now and following this forum and have learned a great deal. Ihave done collision work full time and dabbled in some restoration type work too , but nothing to the degree some of you have, since I was 18.My question is I am presently working on a 69 mustang, it is stripped and in epoxy, at what point do you fit the panels when using new weatherstrips ? In the past I have waited until the vehicle is painted and being final assembled but i always end up doing alot of re aligning to get doors to close nice which then leads to re aligning fenders and hood to match. Am I going about this wrong ? Should I fit doors with the new weatherstrips before I do the final bodywork ? Thanks for any input, and thanks for having such a great forum!
 
i paint then build. aligning panels is done after paint with weatherstripping installed .
 
I think it's a good idea to fit new weatherstrip as part of the bodywork process - especially if it's new weatherstrip. The new materials can be much stiffer than original and thicker even. Even taping the weatherstrip in place to verify it won't cause distortion in the final fit is a good idea. When I did my '70 mustang, the drivers door wouldn't even shut w/ the new weatherstip installed, had to trim to fit. In doing the '55 Tbird, signifigant shaving had to be done to the new weatherstrip so the doors would shut correctly. My hot rod is all fiberglass so I taped pieces of weatherstrip around the door opening to simulate how the door would sit after the weatherstrip would be installed and did my blocking that way. If you tape the weatherstrip on first and test, you can shave the backside where it's glued and then you are not deforming the exposed side.

The weatherstip mfg will tell you "It will compress over time" yea, that's true, but I wouldn't expect my panels to come back into alignment on thier own.

I've seen a perfect restoration of another Tbird that had no weatherstrip. The builder said "the doors wouldn't shut".
 
I fitted the door gaskets during metal working to be sure the doors would fit right and also that the weatherstrip would have a good seal. In the wagon curved glass area, the gasket needed a lot of trimming.
 
Some of the repro weatherstrips aren't right dimensionally and also the density may be different, also the build tolerances on the old cars was good when they were new-there was a lot of wind and water leak warranty work being done back then.... definitely check/confirm that your weatherstrips are going to work before the car is painted-potentially saving a lot of grief getting stuff to fit and seal without harming the new paint.
 
Also test lock cylinder fit, bolt your door handle on if a new skin is installed-this will stretch the skin in the handle area so you can deal with the distortions before paint.
 
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