Busy, busy, busy. Spent the weekend finishing up the drip rails on each side and pulling the rear window out. Found the small hole that was allowing water to drip in along with another dime size hole. Time to clean it all up today and get everything right before reassembly. I did searches for the seals and came up with 3M's ribbon sealer. The seal that was under the glass was rubber which was glued to the glass and rear frame. Just wondering if the ribbon sealer will produce the same results as the old seal did ie: Will the chrome go back on and be set correctly against the glass. The other option would be to have the local glass installer come out and reinstall it for me. This is something that I have not dealt with til now. I would hate to get it all done only to have it leak and have to redo all the work again. The windshield is probably the next thing to come out, and I will probably have the glass company come remove it, if they break it they have to replace it. Every web site I checked for the seals shows the 3M ribbon sealer it's just packaged differently.

Its a gooey sticky mess doing windows. Sure that sealer is what to use it works and better than the original stuff. I'd suggest that you use some method of applying pressure on 3 spots of the back window for 12 hrs while the sealer has time to harden up.

I placed pressure on the center, and the two bends just a little past where they bend towards the rear of the truck. I used some poles with rubber stoppers on them to put against the glass.

When I removed the back window from the 80 it was unsealed about 3/4 of the way along the bottom. I didn't want the 'wired" bow in the middle to set up without making contact with the metal like it had originally. The 3M stays moderately pliable but sticks well. Clean the glass really, really good and remove all residue like soap and chemicals. I also use some sand paper on the very edge I'd say about 1/4" to rough up the portion that actually comes on contact with the sealer. But that is just what I did I am sure no glass company will do that.

My back window, like I said, was completely loose from the seal almost 3/4 of the way along the bottom. I used a box cutter to finish the job and a guitar string (Next to the smallest one) wrapped around two old pieces of broom handle to finish cutting loose the window. I took a 4" DeWalt offset Dia grinder with a wire wheel to remove all the old rubber and sealer. It was messy but it was cleaned completely off and if there had been rust I would have been in a position then to where I could have fixed it easy.

If you can let it sit in the sun after its been replaced and re-sealed for the time you are waiting for the sealer to set up it will make a better seal. But then the 3M stuff is pretty good stuff. I would say you'll never have to do this again unless you brake the window. You will need one extra person if you do the job yourself.

Thanks for the info on the seals. I started back in on it today, used a wired brush in the drill. That had little effect on the rust, I applied ospho to the area yesterday. I used a 3M black rust removal pad to clean it up a lot better, then applied another coat of ospho today. What can I do to fix the rust pitted areas. ??? prime with epoxy primer then fill with glazing putty if needed???? I'd rather not have to do this task again.... it's the pits. Good thing I don't do this for a living.... it's just a hobby, it's just a hobby. LOL I just picked up a half gallon of Nason epoxy primer today, have a detail spray gun and a place to shoot it.

for any Rusty areas under the glass I would use a small sandblaster (mask off areas with duct tape and heavy cardboard) then prime with epoxy primer followed by a skim coat of short strand fibreglass filler. You could also fill up the pits with a mig welder and grind things smooth followed by epoxy primer and then color coat.
My back window must have about 3 tubes of silicone goop from the previous owner..what a mess, I'm just a bit nervous of breaking it taking it out....not sure how available they are from the glass shop :?

I have 4 small holes that I'll fill with a mig welder, seems as tho someone added 2 more clips to the each of the lower corner trim areas. Probably because the trim wouldn't stay in place properly with all the silicone they applied. I don't think these are factory clips, they used the same clips from the windshield on the back window trim. All the pins for the trim clips are intact and in good shape except one. Can a body shop install new pins? If so I'll get one of the local shops to handle that task. I hate to get this done and then have to do something like using a screw to hold a clip in place. Thanks for all the input.

http://www.atrim.com this people have the "Pins" which are screwed in place. I'd suggest that when installing these you add some seam and body sealer to the threads prior to putting them in. It won't take a lot because they are really, really tiny.

Or you probably could find someone who has the type that are "Spot Welded" on.

Glass, glass, glass......

The old ribbon sealer that was used for years worked OK as a sealant....to a point. When it gets hot, the sealer gets softer, and it is very possible that the weight of the glass will start to push the sealer out onto your interior. Besides the mess it will eventually start to leak, then you are faced with the extremely messy job of cleaning it up. The ribbon sealer is called "butyl tape". The best way to clean it up is with more butyl tape. First, scrape of as much as you can (after the glass is removed). Then, get a new role of butyl tape, tear off a 2" piece, ball it up and "dab" it onto the pinchweld. The old glue will stick to the new, and you will have to get a new piece every so often as the new becomes contaminated with the old. NEVER try to use a solvent on large amounts because it just turns to a black goo and then you'll have a nightmare mess on your hands. Once you have a majority of it off, then you can use a decent body prep or solvent (and lots of towels!) to remove the rest. If you do have butyl tape, your glass guy will love you for cleaning this up for him and consequently, he'll probably do a much better job on the re-install.

The re-install is a very involved process and to upgrade your original seal to the state of the art installation you will need materials that are not accessable to consumers. "Urethane" is the preferred method because the bond is very strong and it seals very well. Each glass shop will use the brand of their choice and each brand of urethane requires special primers and processes of application. These are so criticle that even the glass cleaner used has to be compatible with the brand of urethane used.

And that is just the basics, after that you have different levels of quality depending on the installer. Those finer points have to do with things such as the height of the glue being the proper height to have a nice look against the reveal moulding. Other considerations would be the reveal clips, trapping water in areas that it cannot escape, ultraviolet breakdown of the urethene, glass prep, body prep, etc.

Find a glass shop that is experienced in older vehicles. This is hard sometimes as the big nationwide shops don't usually bother with older cars and even though they will take the job, they aren't usually interested in doing as good a job as your frame-off car deserves. Talk to your restoration shops and ask for a referral.

I got most of the other seal off today using a razor scraper about 98% of it. We made up 2 layers of cardboard to fit the inside of the cab trim area and duct taped it in place. This worked very well at keeping any sand outside the vehicle. Hooked up Dad's sand blaster, got 2 mins. work out of it and down came the rains. Left it parked in his garage til tomorrow after drying it and retreating it with another soaking of ospho.

I'll check the local body shops down the street and see if they have the screw in pins. If not I'll order them tomorrow and do that when they come in.

The owner of the closest one has a nice El Camino he keeps in the shop along with the AC Cobra kit car he is putting together. I'll mention NECOA and see if he is a member, if not I'll give him the web address.

Sorry, forgot about the clip post replacement.....there is a supplier that makes a rivet that will replace the windshield reveal moulding clip post. Try a body shop supplier....also, make sure you get it at the right depth or the reveal moulding will not set correctly.

OR.....depending on where the clip is missing, you could just ignore it as long as you have one on both sides of it.

The weather cooperated today, hot and sunny. Reinstalled the rear window glass using the 3M ribbon sealer. Piece of cake, got the window set and applied pressure to several points as Pete suggested. Let it set all day under pressure in the sun, it sealed up beautifully. A worthwhile effort and I'm pretty sure I won't be doing this again in the very near future. Thanks to everyone for the info on doing this part of the project. All the tips and hints worked like a charm.
:-D
Scrubby