Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

[James B.]

Has anyone else had the problem of not being able to seat the stainless trim when putting in a new windshield? On my '67 coupe even using a rubber hammer (on my freshly polished original trim) we can not get the trim to seat flush with the body. In most areas it is 1/16 to 1/8" proud. Before I took the car apart the fit was great so the culprit must be the clips, screws or the rubber seal.

As you all probably know the clips have three ridges on the inside to hold the lip on the trim as it is pushed down. Typically with each additional push you get it another ridge deeper until it seats and is flush (or close to it). With the new set of clips I have we cannot get past the first; sometimes the second ridge. We have compared the new to old clips and the ridges are wider (particularly the third or deepest ridge) on the new so we assume that is the problem. Screw heads could be larger and be part of the problem but won't know that until we take the windshield back out to look at one and compare with the originals.

Clips, screws and seal were ordered from a supplier who I think is quite good. Ive ordered sets from two other suppliers and we will compare the three against the originals to see which is best. However my fear is all three parts houses buy from the same manufacturer. I will try to clean the caulk off my originals, see if they still have temper & not too rusty and can be reused.

I have helped my restorer to two other mid-year coupe windshields in the past year and we haven't had this problem before. What we can't remember is were new clips used and if so where were they sourced.

I would appreciate any ideas or help, Regards, Jim Baker

[Gene M.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

I use the original clips. In additional I have added some reproduction between the originals in the problem areas. Having more is more chance of moldings staying put.

[James B.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

Thanks Gene,

Yes, I am cleaning up my originals and will use all I can. I just hoped someone had recently bought clips, screws and rubber that had worked well and they could recommend a source.

[Gary J.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

Did you fit the trim to the body with the clips before it went to be painted? Just want a little background.

[Jim S.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

James ,

As I recall when I went through this , those that know said only the better or more expensive "Made in the USA" clips from Paragon were any good !

I read many posts on the subject and all agreed, repo clips from anybody else didn't work! However once they used the Paragon ones everything worked ! The Paragon clips are what I used and they worked fine .

Jim

[James B.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

Gary, not sure I understand the question but our process was- before primer I cleaned up the windshield channel, got all the rust out and brushed on a coat of POR. After that I masked off the channel. We then did two coats of high build primer, a coat of red primer, then a coat of gray primer and finally the lacquer color coat (all work done in our shop). Clips were only installed after final paint. No body work was done in the area of the windshield channel and the SS trim came off the car and fit well before I took it off.
What we didn't do was install the clips and try to snap in the trim before mounting the windshield and rubber seal. We will do that this next time. Part of the problem could be a wider rubber than original, I didn't measure the width of the new vs original; should have done that too.

[James B.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

Jim,

Clips, screws and rubber came from Long Island Corvette. I have usually found their stuff quite good. Sat. morning I ordered same from Paragon so your response is appreciated and encouraging. As noted above we will try snapping in trim to new clips before windshield is reinstalled. With only 2+ weeks to go before B Gold things are getting tense...

[Gary J.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

What we did was basically the same thing, with the windshield out we installed the new repo clips, then the windshield rubber then the trim. Had to do this several times make sure there was no gaps under the trim. Also as we took the rubber back out so we could tell which clips were not engaging. If they were not engaging we block sand that area a little. I do remember we added some clips up at the top and around the curve on the bottom on the left and right side.

[Joe R.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

As a general rule the reproduction clips are junk and will cause you to pull your hair out! The more expensive clips from Paragon are the only ones that will save the day. The description of the clips includes "Made in the USA."
Yes, other reproduction clips will work SOMETIME but when the chips are down you will be better off using the original clips or the "made in USA" clips.

JR

[Gary J.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

Something else you may need to do is remove the screw from the clip that you are not getting full engagement from, then push the clip up to full engagement, move the clip to either the left or the right, then redrill the hole. Next fill in the abandoned hole.

[Stewart L.]

Re: Stainless Trim Not Seating in Coupe Windshield

There are some that feel the reproduction weatherstrips are a bit thicker than the originals causing the molding to tilt a bit when it hits the weatherstrip thus causing problems with the molding engaging with the clip. I have installed either the upper molding or lower part of the lower moldings first and the molding will sit down fine. Then slide the windshield in. The good clips are a must also.