Gaskets Needed

[Guest]

My 1959 T-bird convertible is being painted tomorrow and I need to find the best/most complete Whole car gasket kit available. Any suggestions where I can purchase
?

[YellowRose]

Gaskets Needed

Eric, you posted your request in the wrong Forum, so I moved it up here where it should have been posted. Try Thunderbird Hqs, or any of the other Tbird parts houses on the West Coast. The Bird Nest is another one to check with, as is Concours, Larry's Tbird & Mustang Parts, Thunderbird Connection. If you have no luck out west, start checking those on the East Coast, like Mac's, the Bird House, Pat Wilson's, and others, that you will find in the Advertisements Forum. Good luck!

[toddgilroy]

I have done some comparisons of the gasket/weatherstrip kits for a 1960 convertible and the Bird Nest seems to have the most complete kit. The kit for the 1958/59 convertible seems very comparable.

[Dakota Boy]

Watch out for door gaskets that are too thick in the dogleg area.

There is a thread or two on here about that issue.

[Yadkin]

I purchased seals for my '64 from a supplier that had everything. Unfortunately much of it was all made in China and didn't fit properly.

First it was the windshield seal. It took me over an hour to get it on the glass because it was so hard. When the installer came to install it, actually the well-experienced owner of a large glass company, he didn't like what he saw, and gave me a pleasant lecture that I should always order from Dennis Carpenter because they have the original molds. He ordered one for me at discount and installed the glass the next week. The back glass seal was OK.

Next was the trunk seal. I used lots of glue, wood blocks and six clamps to get it on there. Now the trunk doesn't close properly. I've set the car in the hot sun for hours over several days, and weeks later the seal doesn't compress properly. After a month of this, I ordered a new one from DC yesterday.

Then the cowl to hood seal. It was too thick and I couldn't get the fenders and hood to line up properly. I'm replacing it with a universal stick-on.

Next the door seals. All of the push-pins were the wrong size, eleven per side, and I mean not even close. Incredibly I found two dozen of the correct diameter in my collection from other projects, modified the heads and installed them, then installed the seal. Now the door doesn't hang right- it's pushed 1/4" away from the body at the bottom. After waiting a week to see if the seal compressed over time, I ordered a new pair from DC yesterday.

[Guest]

I have done some comparisons of the gasket/weatherstrip kits for a 1960 convertible and the Bird Nest seems to have the most complete kit. The kit for the 1958/59 convertible seems very comparable.

Hi Todd, How did the gaskets fit on your vehicle the next response after yours that gentleman had multiple issues with gaskets not fitting properly did you have any issues with your kit of that nature?

[YellowRose]

Gaskets Needed

Eric, I think the important thing that Steve ~ Yadkin said in his post regarding all the problems with Chinese made gaskets he had problems with is this....

"When the installer came to install it, actually the well-experienced owner of a large glass company, he didn't like what he saw, and gave me a pleasant lecture that I should always order from Dennis Carpenter because they have the original molds."

Dennis Carpenter carries a lot of parts for these Tbirds of ours. You will find them listed in the Advertisements Forum. So if you want gaskets that are made from the original Ford molds, contact them...

[jopizz]

The door gaskets that I got from Carpenter were too thick around the dogleg and the doors were hard to close. That was a few years ago. Metro makes door gaskets also and I've heard that they are thinner.

John

[Dakota Boy]

The door gaskets that came with my car (still in package; in the trunk) may have also been several years old, so hopefully the dogleg fitment issue has been resolved at this point in time. I installed them 5 years ago. Time flies....

[toddgilroy]

Hi Todd, How did the gaskets fit on your vehicle the next response after yours that gentleman had multiple issues with gaskets not fitting properly did you have any issues with your kit of that nature?

I have not purchased a kit yet but have been comparing prices and completeness of kits. If you don't want to purchase a kit due to concerns raised here, you can print the list of items included in the Bird Nest kit and use that for shopping other sources. It appears you can only get certain items from Dennis Carpenter.

[Yadkin]

The door gaskets that I got from Carpenter were too thick around the dogleg and the doors were hard to close. That was a few years ago. Metro makes door gaskets also and I've heard that they are thinner.

John

I'll take careful measurements before I change them out. If I have to return them I'll do so buy driving the car down to the factory. It's not that far away from me...

[YellowRose]

Gaskets Needed

John, can you give me the link to this Metro company you are talking about? Maybe I should add it to the Advertisements Forum. Do they supply a lot of other Tbird parts also?

[jopizz]

Here's the link to their website. However, it appears that it's much cheaper to buy their products from Rockauto than to order directly from their website.

http://metrommp.com/index.cfm

John

[YellowRose]

Gaskets Needed

Thanks, John, I don't see the need to list them then, since you can get those gaskets from Rock Auto and get the 5% discount they offer also.. Thanks!

[Yadkin]

I'll take careful measurements before I change them out. If I have to return them I'll do so buy driving the car down to the factory. It's not that far away from me...

The DC door seals are much better. I still have an issue with the bottom of the door on the latch side out a bit, but it's not nearly as bad as with the seal that I replaced. I think this will work its way back flush in very little time.