Fender Skirt Seals

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Patrick brophy

Senior Member
I am getting ready to do the final paint on my 1957 Thunderbird, and that would include the fender skirts.

I am unsure of the status of the fender skirt seals as far as paint. Do they get affixed to the the skirt ,before paint ,or after ?

The car is going to be white, and of course the rubber seals are black and will show up.

I bought a Body Trim and Sealant assembly manual from Faxon, and the fender skirts are not mentioned that I can see.

Any advise ?
 
I'd lean toward installing the seals after painting. Rubber seals, being flexible, would cause paint on them to crack and flake and cause an unsightly mess IMO.
 
Patrick brophy said:
... The car is going to be white, and of course the rubber seals are black and will show up.
Any advise ?
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Installed after paint.
I agree they show their black color way too much on a light colored car, that's how they are. :(
(and paint would flake off of them anyway)
I'm considering trimming off the large-ish rounded outer edge, so only the remaining thin edge will show.
.
 

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I never thought about the above issues regarding flaking and the flexibility aspect. I was just questioning the color issue.
Glad I asked.
Thanks for the heads up.
 
Now I am not making any suggestions here as I am CDO (correct alphabetical order of OCD) and like to see cars like this as OEM ASSY as much as practical, but ... :rolleyes:

When bumper covers came out, you added a paint additive, elastomizer) to the paint to make it flexible when dried. Don't know if it would work here but just something to think about.
 
mercman from oz said:
Nice 1957 Ford Thunderbird.
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Thanks. It might be again if I ever get it put back together. :o

Not apparent in that old photo are the: blotchy done-in-a-dusty-barn paint job, blown OD section in the transmission and the Oil pressure light on under 1000 rpm.
The engine and transmission have been rebuilt. Now it's mostly waiting for the painter to finish a couple other cars in line ahead of it so I can take it over to him.

Bought it because my wife originally wanted a yellow Bird but I couldn't find one for a good price back in '12 when I was first looking. The choices were either rusted out or highly restored & too expensive.

Decided to look for a '57 for the two years worth of factory improvements, and Sun Gold because it doesn't have the green-ish tint that Inca Gold has. Finding one with the original G color code took a while, apparently less than 1% were painted this color.

https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/album.php?albumid=5111
 

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KULTULZ said:
Now I am not making any suggestions here as I am CDO (correct alphabetical order of OCD) and like to see cars like this as OEM ASSY as much as practical, but ... :rolleyes:

When bumper covers came out, you added a paint additive, elastomizer) to the paint to make it flexible when dried. Don't know if it would work here but just something to think about.
Click to expand...

I will ask at the paint store. I have never painted complete car before ,so I have asked those guys a million questions, and they they have been very helpful. Same with the body work.
I feel like I owe someone a steak dinner:)
 
Patrick brophy said:
I will ask at the paint store. ...
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Take one of the skirt seals with you so the folks behind the counter can see it. They're much softer and more flexible than a bumper cover.
I suspect getting paint to stick will be a real challenge, if it's even possible.
.
 
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Dmsfrr: I did not know all those great colors were offered for '57 Birds. Thanks for sharing that color chart!
 
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Some of the colors were 1958 colors. The 57 Birds were built up to mid December 57 when 58 car production was going on and the 58 Tbirds were not ready for production
 
I am now ready to install my fender skirts and have a few comments and questions. First my skirts do not have any holes for staples (nor any indication that they ever had holes on the inside of the skirt) so I will have to use just adhesive. I plan to use the 3M Black Super Weatherstrip Adhesive. It is a contact adhesive that you apply to both surfaces and wait till both are tacky before assembling the parts.

Please view the attached photos. Do I have the seal positioned correctly on the top of the skirt?

On the last photo of the side, the wide portion of the seal does not curve to follow the curve of the skirt. How far should the seal go down the side? Do I need to trim the seal? If the seal needs to follow the curve, do you need to cut slits every so often to allow the wide portion to curve?
 

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Patrick brophy said:
I will ask at the paint store. I have never painted complete car before ,so I have asked those guys a million questions, and they they have been very helpful. Same with the body work.
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Now that was just a suggestion Patrick. To me (and I am CDO), if the gaskets go to body color, it suggest (to me) a cheap all-over paint job.

I think (and it isn't my car - you do as you wish) to have it look correct (and to hold value), they should be left natural.

KULTULZ - Hunkering down and looking for his steel pot as usual ... :(
 
I should have done a follow up post regarding my inquiry with the paint store.

While I was speaking with the paint guy at the auto parts store, he introduced me to a fellow standing next to me who does antique car restorations.
He asked him.We were told ,no paint, and he gave us the name of an adhesive made by 3M which is a two part adhesive in a double tube that mixes when you use.you need a special gun and disposable tips. He said that was all he used .
Fascinating guy,I picked his brain for more then an hour.
 
Patrick brophy said:
I should have done a follow up post regarding my inquiry with the paint store.

While I was speaking with the paint guy at the auto parts store, he introduced me to a fellow standing next to me who does antique car restorations.

He asked him.We were told ,no paint, and he gave us the name of an adhesive made by 3M which is a two part adhesive in a double tube that mixes when you use.you need a special gun and disposable tips. He said that was all he used .

Fascinating guy,I picked his brain for more then an hour.
Click to expand...

... hmmpf ....

Interesting.

What I would like to know/see is how staples were applied during this period.

Here is an interesting post on wheel/tire clearances on a BIRD w skirts - https://forums.fordthunderbirdforum.com/threads/1955-t-bird-rear-fender-skirts-what-to-do.10771/
 
The rear stone deflector under the rear bumper is also stapled on. That would require a bear of a staple machine.
I used the same 3M adhesive to fasten that on, and it worked out great.

I have also done some reading on the issues of the rear fender skirts. To say I am a little concerned would be an understatement.
New rubber gaskets make thinks more snug than normal. I had to do some body work in both fender wells, and do some metal replacement. I think I got it pretty close, but only time will tell.
 
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