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MG MGA - Windscreen rubber

What would be a good lubricant for installing the rubber strip to the bottom of the windscreen frame? Vaseline? Silicone grease? Water + detergent?
I think it has to go on before assembling the frame, but then it will cver the corner screws - can it be pushed along to get at these?
Art Pearse

I put my rubber strip on after putting the glass in and screwing up. I used soap/water solution - definitely not silicone even if you've finished painting.........................Mike
m.j. moore

Good point Mike.
But the side frame member seems to block entry to the groove for the rubber, when assembled.
Art Pearse

There area few different way of going about it, depending on tools at hand and your personal approach. See here: http://mgaguru.com/mgtech/windscrn/wt_102.htm
Barney Gaylord

Ok Thanks Barney. I'll loosen the side plate as you describe.

Now, you talk about trimming the excess rubber strip. My (Moss) rubber is 1.3" wide. The groove is 0.7" deep and the glass 0.3" thick, so shouldnt the rubber be 1.7" wide if it is to fill the frame completely?

Also, what's the best way to hold the rubber on the glass while fitting the frame? I'm thinking I have to tape it in several places, and that tape has to stay there after trimming.
Art Pearse

If I'm not too late, may I suggest baby powder....Always worked well on bicycle tubes, and I have used it myself on windscreen rubber....Just sprinkle it onto the rubber...works wonders. Easily cleaned up.
Edward
Edward Wesson 52TD

The bottom rail groove may be deeper than the others, as it originally needed a packing strip before the glass.

I don't recall width of the seal strip (11 years ago), but it was definitely wide enough to have material left over for trimming both sides after assembly.
Barney Gaylord

Art, Your glass seems thick at 7.5mm. I always thought that the original thickness was 6.25mm but that replacement windscreens were thinner. The new screen I got was 5mm thick and I used Todd Clarke's glazing rubber which from memory was around 1.5 mm thick. The channel is 9.5mm wide so if your rubber is 1mm or more it may be a squeeze to get the glass in.

Don't forget that the width of the glazing rubber required is not really related to the depth of the channel but how much the glass goes into it. But in any case I wouldn't worry about the width of it as long as it acts as a cushion for the edge of the glass.

In my own case when I had finished there appeared to be some gap between the glass and the rubber in places which I thought would let water through from outside to in and so I removed, with a Stanley blade, all signs of the glazing rubber and filled in the gap between glass and frame with Arbomast windscreen sealing compound. This is black, doesn't set and forms an excellent seal........................Mike

m.j. moore

Well, I fought hard with the Moss rubber, but could not get it in all the way. It is .075 thick. Found some foamed polyethylene packing that is only .060 thick and it goes in fine. But its not black, but so what? And I cut it wide enough to fill the channel. Maybe I'll do what mjm did and put some black sealant around the edge.
Art Pearse

Eureka! It is all assembled, bottom rubber flap as well.
Art Pearse

This thread was discussed between 18/07/2013 and 21/07/2013

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