29 Tudor rear window install dilemma

fred93

fred93

Senior Member
So I am installing a new rear window glass in a 29 Tudor. I have cut the new rubber gasket and super glued it together, then installed it around the new glass. I trial fitted the glass into the rear window opening and it seemed to fit okay. I then put the inside window frame in place and started to screw it down. I installed several screws (but not all of them) and only snugged them down a little bit. I then went outside and looked at how everything was lining up. I noticed that the bottom corners were not tight against the body but the center area was tight against the body. I took some pictures but they don't show the gap too well.

I am reluctant to tighten the inside frame too much, afraid that the glass will shatter (it is tempered glass).

I know that the rear window will leak like a sieve if I don't somehow caulk or seal that area.

So where do I go from here?????
 
One option is to tighten the corner screws a little bit at a time 1st, then the middle ones.
Use a good black (not latex , silicon or polysulfide) automotive caulk sparingly. Some folks like butyl sealant or red rubber grease which is hard to find..
 
Had very good luck using "Big Stretch". I was going to use auto glass bedding but it can be a real mess and stinks for a long time too. Several club members turned me on to Big Stretch.
 
Well, from my experience you got to scrape, ie., big scrape, like all the old hard rubber out of the window channel in the body or you will find what you have found.
 
I have been there and done that. For the rear glass to seat properly, it has to be pulled up against a straight surface. On my '31 CCPU, I broke two of my rear safety laminate windows before I got smart enough to check my window opening with a straight edge. Yep, after all of my body work, the window opening was not longer straight. With a block of wood and a heavy hammer, I bumped the window opening until it measured out straight again. The third time was a charm. Your tempered glass will take a lot more abuse than my safety laminate and you will do well. Just don't let any sharp corners get pinched in with your new tempered glass. If so, your window will disappear faster that you can blink your eyes.
 
Brian in Wheeling said:
Well, from my experience you got to scrape, ie., big scrape, like all the old hard rubber out of the window channel in the body or you will find what you have found.
Click to expand...

The entire body has been disassembled and sand blasted before paint, so there are NO surprises around the rear window!
 
SSsssteamer said:
I have been there and done that. For the rear glass to seat properly, it has to be pulled up against a straight surface. On my '31 CCPU, I broke two of my rear safety laminate windows before I got smart enough to check my window opening with a straight edge. Yep, after all of my body work, the window opening was not longer straight. With a block of wood and a heavy hammer, I bumped the window opening until it measured out straight again. The third time was a charm. Your tempered glass will take a lot more abuse than my safety laminate and you will do well. Just don't let any sharp corners get pinched in with your new tempered glass. If so, your window will disappear faster that you can blink your eyes.
Click to expand...

I wondered about the very thing that you mentioned--however the body was in very good condition. There was NO rust through on the body at all--I could still read the serial number on the body rail. There was NO collision damage of any kind, so I assumed (I should never assume) that the new window would pop in just like the old one popped out. All paint work has been completed, so there will be NO heavy hammer work done at this point. Looks to me that I will be using some kind of caulk to seal it completely. I'm thinking CRL 44NC BLACK should do the trick!
 
Using super glue definitely committed the seal to the glass! At this point, I would use a Dremel with a sandpaper cylinder to dress down the high points on the rubber, do some test fits as you proceed, and a good fit will result. It will take some time, so have patience.
 
When I installed the rubber channel around the tempered glass for my on my 28 coupe's rear window (same as a tudor rear window), I really and I mean really pulled the rubber extremely tight around the glass. I stretched the rubber a lot and used a number of pinch spring clamps to hold the rubber in place as I stretched it around the glass. I then marked where I needed to cut the end of the rubber. I glued the 2 ends together with super glue. After letting the glued rubber ends sit for a couple days (maybe not needed, but I did), I stretched the rubber channel over the glass. I didn't have any puckering on the corners as the puckering was eliminated by the extreme streaching. Then I installed the inner metal trim. The finished result looked great.

Rusty Nelson
 
When I tried to install the 1st rear window in my 30 Tudor a few years ago it was a very tight fit. It broke as I was putting the screws in the frame. The 2nd one I had cut 1/16" smaller than the pattern all the way around. It fit perfectly with the rubber and so far hasn't leaked a drop.
 
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