Hey folks,

Just installed the windscreen on our 69 bug, went with the slotted rubbers from west Coast Metric after initially unwittingly purchasing the Brazilian ones (Crap).

Once I'd fitted the rubber to the screen and the chrome strip I noticed the windscreen was made in China which at the time I didn't really worry about.

Installed the screen today which was surprisingly easy ( Thanks to videos like Chris Vallone's on Youtube ) but noticed on the bottom corners that the rubber tucks under. I'm now worried that this may be due to the shape of the Chinese screen being wrong. Anyone else had problems when fitting Chinese windscreens or am I missing something here?

wish I'd laid the new screen on top of the old one to check now.

Any help greatly appreciated I've attached some pics to explain the problem.

Cheers Ryan

Ryan

you will have to remove the screen from the car to fix the problem in the corners

When its out you will have to Pull the rubber into each corner from the center outwards also do the top corners as well you need more rubber in each corner than on the flat sections hope that makes sense

Hey vw54, thanks for that mate.

Any tips for windscreen removal without causing any damage? When I installed the rubber on the screen it was extremely tight not sure how much extra I'll be able to push into the corners.

Thanks again I appreciate the help.

ideally have 3 people for removal

One to push with feet - starting in a corner
One to to "flick" the rubber on the inside to get it going
One to stop the screen popping out and crashing on the floor

I had that problem on the L bug and was more under the impression it is just crap rubbers.
Yes - WCM fit in that category

With the L Bug VVDS (Boris & Holzl) got some specially made in Thailand that had a MUCH better profile.

My last L bug had one of those put in and the difference was night and day

Thanks Bizarre, I got the WCM rubbers from Boris they didn't mention anything about a Thai one. Never mind just saw another Vallone vid on removal so I'll give it a shot tonight.

Thanks for the quick replies fellas much appreciated.

As far as I know VVDS only did a custom job on the L bug

If the glass is laminated then you will have to cut the rubber and get a new one

If the glass is Safety type the old style then you can kick it out as such

best rubbers I've found are from Wolfsburg West and Custom & Commercial.
does your rubber feel more plastic like then say a good quality pencil eraser? I'm just wondering because if it's a good quality rubber and not cheaper brazilian/chinese crap, that is more like flexible plastic than rubber, then by heating with boiling water and stretching you may be able to reset the materials memory and make it fit better than at present.

Being a new screen, it will be laminated. Being Chinese it will be brittle. I have removed and fitted hundreds of rubber screens on all types of cars, and if the screen is to be saved, you just have to be patient. The best types of rubbers are ones that your fingernails will grip when you scratch them. If your nails glide and wont grip without force, then they are not supple enough. Still it all depends on the shape and style of the screen. Some have square corners, some have stainless insert moulds, some have mylar insert moulds, some have aluminium insert moulds. Some have overlay stainless moulds.
With the one you have fitted, the procedure I would have followed is like VW54 said is to push more rubber into the corners. Unfortunatley if the rubber was tight to fit around the screen already, then that could be part of the issue.
Last resort, and it is a cosmetic fix, not really correct, is to put a couple drops of instant dry superglue under the 'flap' and hold it down for a few seconds and cosmetically the rubber will be in the right position, and well eventually it will be shaped that way. The drop of glue is no consequence in the future, as it will always be a covered part of the car. No one will know it is there.

Received this advice from Boris over this very issue:

' What we do is (before you install the chrome on the window),we pull the rubber in to each bottom corner ,as to give it a bit of extra material in the corners .You then also have to keep this gathered-up material in the corners by taping the inside with masking tape to the glass ,then you can start installing the chrome moulding ,keeping an eye on the corners being still generous in material .Once installed in to the window opening ,the extra rubber will fill up the corners and not want to pull in'

Thanks fellas, sorry didn't see these last replies until today.

I ended up trying something a little different which ended up working perfectly, I looked for a rubber putty type product that I could fill the gap without having to use a messy silicone as to be honest that's all it needed in order for the seal to sit correctly. Unfortunately no-one makes such a product unless you order it in from the states which is a two part mixture used for making rubber moulds.

I then stumbled across a craft website which taught you how to make a silicone rubber which they use to make moulds for crafty type applications. Tried it by using some black silicone and Corn flour and it works bloody well, once it's mixed with the flour it becomes a soft pliable putty, you've got about two hours before it becomes too hard to shape but best to give it about ten minutes to set or it is too soft to use.

I did a test piece first and after one day to set it'd become completely dry and behaved like a firm but flexible rubber, mixed up a new batch today and set it into the gap on the windscreen. Silicone rubber, Job done!








Thanks again for all the advice, much appreciated.

That is a really cool find man

I'll be adding that to my knowledge base