Rear window

[Non MemberParticipant]

Hi Guys

Have started to disassemble the interior of my 53 BL, Front windscreen out, no problems.

However when it came to the rear screen I am not sure all is original ??

The rear window glass has a flat rubber seal between the vehicle body and the glass, and the glass was held in place by the metal rear window surround(no gasket/seal).

Number of questions ?

(A) Is the above  assembly correct?

(B) If not,does anyone have pictures of how it should look?

(C) If no pictures, can somebody describe how it should be(a sketch would be helpful)

Also there appears to be the remains of a plywood surround of some description around the window , what part if any does this play ???

Cheers

Ken

[David FaulknerParticipant]

OK not sure about a ‘flat rubber seal’ but when I did mine the glass was loose and letting in water so badly the headlinging had rotted along with the wooden frame.

There was a layer of very old and hard sealant which I scrapped off before refitting the glass using modern Windscreen adhesive/sealant making sure to level the outside bead off and not slope down toward the glass so that the water ran off and didn’t sit there trying to work it’s way in again.

The wooden frame is what you attach the headlinging to around the window  to secure it, with the steel frame acting as a cover as well as holding everything in place.

Parts guide isn’t much help either as it only shows the frame and screw part numbers though you can buy the wooden part from TOC parts and other suppliers.

BTW When the glass was fitted, the metal frame was used to hold it situ until the sealant ‘set’ enough to hold the glass by itself, then removed to fit the wooden frame 🙂

[Non MemberParticipant]

Hi Dave

I have been down to the workshop and found the bits of the perished rubber seal, it is definitely rubber, curved at the corners.

However I am liking the sealant route, however still need to work out the plywood and roof lining shape as both are rotted away.

Having said that it should not take a great deal of working out( famous last word) !!!

Just a quick one, any recommendations about roof lining fabric ??

Cheers

Ken

[David FaulknerParticipant]

Maybe it’s been someones ‘fix’ in the past but is there evidence of water leaking into the car from the rear window, stained headlining, rust on the parcel shelf etc?

There is no point in fitting a new headlining if you can’t guarantee the rear window is watertight….

Couldn’t find the wood frame on the club parts list but if you look at CAS shop there is an image which gives the idea of what your after  https://www.cas-shop.com/en/product/back-window-framing-wood/  it’s made from what looks like 5mm ply (can’t remember exactly how thick it was)

As for roof lining, even though mine was rotted at the bottom I have made a ‘patch’ for it to try and retain some period items in the car. Most of the EU Traction specialists offer a headlining ready to fit, but they do come at a cost. Whether you can get a local car trimmer to make one up for you might be more cost effective, I don’t know.

[Non MemberParticipant]

Hi Dave

Thanks for the info, as for stains one question…..what shelf ,what headlining ???

Looks like the rear window has been leaking for a considerable time , the rear shelf, headlining at the rear, the ply surround are all rotted away.

And dont even mention the rear seats  or at least whats left of them.

Cheers

Ken

[David FaulknerParticipant]

🙂 1st image I posted shows my rear window which had been leaking long before I bought the car and the actual metal shelf wasn’t to bad after a cleanup and paint……

My ‘parcel shelf’ carpet was still there, but looked like this:

Seats had all been recovered in leather (yes it’s a French car and the purists won’t like it but I wasn’t going to spend money on cloth seat covers when the leather was all new and there were bigger priorities)

Good luck with yours though 🙂

[David FaulknerParticipant]

Just to finalise the rear window, had a word with James Geddes today who confirmed that the rear windows were originally ‘puttied’ in place and he uses  a modern sealant when refitting them.

I remembered now that at the bodyshop after the car was painted they used ‘Sikaflex’  to install my rear screen.

[Non MemberParticipant]

Hi Dave

Thanks for all the info, I have some modern sealant/adhesive used to fit windscreens.

Will use it when the time comes.

I think I need to speak to Mr Geddes as the previous owner chopped the big boot off and “bodged” a small boot on (V.Badly), thinking of putting it back to original or if not possible at least have a decent job made of the mess.

Cheers

Ken

[David FaulknerParticipant]

I think I need to speak to Mr Geddes as the previous owner chopped the big boot off and “bodged” a small boot on (V.Badly), thinking of putting it back to original or if not possible at least have a decent job made of the mess

James has done a few ‘Malle Bombe’ to ‘Malle Platt’ conversions that I have seen, but not the other way. He is currently working on a car that had a damaged shell which you can see pictures of on the ‘Traction Repairs’ Facebook page.

[Larry LewisParticipant]

I tried to glue the rear window in place myself on my 54 Light 15 after it fell out. I ended up with the glue, putty, caulking, whatever all over the place including my hair. I then did it the easy way. I took it to a nearby automotive glass shop and they did it. It was easy! All I had to do was pay them, what could be simpler? The back window on my 49 11BL fell out the same way. Off to the glass shop, no trouble at all. Some jobs are best left to the pros.

I did see James Geddes do a large to small boot conversion at John Gillard’s a few yeas ago. If anyone can do it, James can.

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