Vandeejim

My Van will 25 years old this Sept 15th and I witnessed a rotted channel around the windshield, so I need to remove the windshield and the best way of this removal.
Need some clues as too rebuilding this channel as well?

Any ideas?

Jim

old dog

you have a not very easy problem to fix ,depending on how much rot is there and how caryed away you want to get there are options . depending on your skill level and tool avalibility, if there is justa small amount of pin holes remove the window ,clean the channel down to bare metal and repair it with JB weld spot repair the paint ,reinstall the window .
with out any pictures to worjk with you may have to weld patches in to repair .

Vandeejim

Thanks William for the reply, yes it's going to be a big job hogging out the silicon, butyl and rust. I have some patience with that and the cover that will hang over the opening once I remove the windshield. I think I could use POR-15 or Silver Bullet with 22gauge SS sheet metal welded in place, how far do I want to go is all up too the patience given. I will take photos and display on the site when ready.

Been out of a job for 15 months and I start back after Labor Day so now I will loose time on this project?

Jim

200OZ

I did the same to my '95 Chevy G30 in '04. I turned out to be more of a head ache than expected. I only had 2 small patches in the channel, the rest I ground down to bare metal, primed it with por15, and top coated with the factory met. grey. I called a glass shop to re install the glass, but when the installer showed up he wasn't happy that there was no sealer in the channel, apparently the old stuff helps them locate the glass correctly, and it take about 10 big tubes of urethane to fill it all in properly. He had to come back a few days later. The bill ended up being about $900.00 for the install. Still glad I did it though.

Vandeejim

Thanks, 200OZ for warning me about the build-up and target positions. The cost to replace a new windshield hear is $250 so if I break the windshield removing it no problem. Now to deal with that build-up, I guess find a solid extruded product that is available to fill the void and seal to channel, this will take some time to think about? God only knows!
I start new new job next week so less time will slow this project down.

200OZ

Wind shields are in the $200-250 range here as well.... unless the installer needs to use 10 or so $65.00 tubes of urethane as opposed to 1/2 of one tube.

Vandeejim

What I am looking for is an silicon or urethane extrusion bonded bonded around channel as a filler.
Example:
Rubber Extrusions & Profiles | Products | PAR Group