Pete Kay recently informed us of a method for refitting front and rear windows, as noted whilst watching an expert at work:
Clean window frame, glass and rubber with liquid screen cleaner
Apply 10mm wide masking tape around the outside edge of window frame, thus
smoothing out spot welds
Fit dry rubber seal into frame, with the vulcanised join in the rubber seal at bottom middle, seal fitted fully with both inner and outer lips in position either side of frame
Check roof lining and rear shelf trim are behind seal
Apply glass lubricant to inner glass groove in seal (looks like
thin white grease but he wouldn't tell me what it was. It did later
wipe off with screen cleaner though and it wasn't washing up liquid
as he said he would never use it)
Push bottom edge of window in to corresponding position in groove
Holding window glass with one hand and pointed plastic spatula in
other, ease remaining rubber over edge of glass as spatula is
pushed around window periphery. Took about 2 minutes to do this!
Cut end of locking strip square, then fit it, using usual diamond
shaped fitting tool to spread locking groove as seal was inserted.
Tool did not have roller as item in Rover manual
Start at top centre, then just push both tool and locking strip together
counter clockwise around periphery - the joint in the locking strip should be positioned at top centre
Mark overlap point of ends of locking strip then pull about 4
inches of free end back out of groove. Cut to length using Stanley
knife, using piece of wood as backing support
Apply nail varnish to both cut ends of strip; this prevents water
getting into cut end and travelling back by capillary action causing
it to discolour
Insert free sealed end of locking strip to abut start end, then work
backwards towards corner as remaining strip is pushed back in to
position using spatula and finger
Fit clip over joint
Job done!
The spatula he used to lift rubber over
glass was nylon, about 20mm wide, 3mm thick and 150mm long, shaped
to a curved point over the last 30mm at each end.
He certainly didn't seem to apply any force, just inserted the
spatula into the gap between glass and seal then lifted the rubber
into position as he went around the glass, probably by a twisting
action.
Incidentaly, the nail varnish was clear.
Another Fitting Method
Put the seal on the screen first. Put a little soap-water
in the groove. Insert a rope into the groove. Then get someone to push the
screen onto the car. The rope has to hang inside the car. Then pull the rope and
it should slide the seal onto the body.
Another Another Fitting Method
I've just fitted the front and rear windows. Here's
roughly how to fit them:
Put the seal round the window and lube the outside of
the rubber (I used washing up liquid)
Ed's note: washing up liquid used as a lube may dry out the rubber. Use
'Waxoyl' which will repel water, helping to stop leaks & rust.
Find some pretty thin (But STRONG) string and thread it
round the outside of the seal, in the groove, making the two ends meet up just
past the split at the bottom of the seal
Fit the window as best you can in the frame at the
bottom making sure the pieces of string are INSIDE the car
Get an assistant to push on the window and to keep it
pushed down in the seal
While the assistant is pushing the window in, start to
pull the string towards you. *HOPEFULLY* as you pull the string the lip of the
seal should pulled over the ledge and start to settle in to position. BE
CAREFUL! Especially round the top corners
Stop every now and then and try and push the window
back down into the seal (it is virtually guaranteed that the window will try
and make a bid for freedom)
When you get about halfway round use the other end of
the string and do the same, pulling it round (with the assistant pushing the
window in) to the top
Your window should now be in. Before you put the
finishing strip in make sure the window is sitting square in the rubbers.
FINISHING STRIP
This is a bitch as well.
Lube the groove up
Starting at the top and using controlled outbursts of
rage and something like a screwdriver go round pushing the strip in
The diagram below shows best how to get the strip in
without it twisting.