Re: Door panels and door gaskets

Posted by HH56 On 2023/11/7 15:38:12

Other than getting all the old rubber off it is not terribly difficult to replace weather stripping. Most of the door and trunk pieces are just glued on. A couple of original door bottom pieces used screws or fold over tabs that went into slots but I believe the only replacements for those today will need to be glued. A few bumpers use screws and others have protruding retainers that push into holes in sheetmetal. Doing an entire car will be a bit pricy and Steele Rubber is the best at having most of the pieces. Kanter may still carry some kits which are fairly complete. I believe Max Merritt carries Steele rubber but may offer a slight discount if you order thru them. As I recall, some pieces have not been reproduced so not much option on those. You might check Steele's website. When I did my 47 they offered a service where they would put together and email a custom catalog for a particular year showing all the pieces they carried for that year. Not sure if they still have that service but a time saver if they do.

Aside from any of the window glass rubber pieces, the most difficult weatherstrips are the two vertical pieces at the front of doors next to the fenders. IIRC, those are screwed as well as glued and there is a flange that is part of the weatherstrip which goes under the fender edge. To install those pieces, the rear of fenders need to be unbolted from the cowl and pulled away. There is every chance the bolts are rusted and will cause you grief trying to get them loose. You also run the risk of getting the fenders out of alignment which can take some time and effort to get back correctly.

The upholstery panels can be cleaned with some of the foaming type upholstery cleaners but take care not to get them too wet or saturated since a paper like padding or in some cases, cotton batting is underneath the fabric. Cleaner will help ordinary dirt stains but if the stains are due to water leaks then those rust like stains usually do not go away.

If you were thinking of having new panels made, aside from finding the correct fabric, your panel looks fairly simple and could probably be done locally. If the pattern is heat embossed or made in such a way it cannot be done by your local upholsterer I believe the only place that is willing to do Packard panels is SMS in Oregon. Last I heard they have a very long waiting list.