Greetings,

As a recent list member, thanks to all for the interesting and helpful
threads. I recently purchased a 83.5 Westy with "drooping seals." I
contemplated buying seals but wanted a "quick solution." [Canadian mail can
take forever and I was ready to go camping and whale watching on Grand
Manan Island, New Brunswick.]

FYI, here is what I did.

1. Basically, I found an adhesive that bonds, seals, is waterproof and
suitable for rubber (the one I used is called SEAL-ALL). Lepage has similar
adhesives that are available at most hardware stores.

2. I tested it out on a short section of the pop top seal to see if it
would hold without damaging the fiber roof and if I could remove the seal
if I wanted to later. It worked fine and I have glued the entire pop top
seal & it has worked very well. I used 2 1/2 60 ml tubes of adhesive--total
cost = approx. $8.00 CDN.

3. If you are going to try this, the following may help:

4. Lift the top only a few inches & clean out most of dirt in the seal. I
only spent about 15 minutes of superficial cleaning (I used a household
cleaner and a tooth brush. I left most of the rusting metal in the seal and
only removed obvious loose metal and dirt. Suggest you wear safety glasses
and of course an old tooth brush ;>)

5. Squeeze adhesive into about two feet of the seal groove and on the
corresponding fiber top lip. Wait about 3-5 minutes & press the seal onto
the fiber top. You can hold it manually for 5-10 min until it sets. I made
up a quick jig that consisted of a 3 foot piece of 2x4 lumber and another
piece that was cut on a 45 degree angle. I wedged the wood under the
section that was glued and pulled down on the fiber top to provide constant
pressure.

6. I then moved to the next two foot section and repeated the process.

It didn't take much work--the hardest part was waiting for the glue to set.
I will next apply a bead of silicone to reduce water entry into seal grove.

Cheers,
Terry: '72 Westfalia, '83.5 Westfalia, '89 Cabriolet

ps the side seals on my '72 Westy have been removed for about 3 years. I
haven't noticed their removal. My mechanic says they improve the
aerodynamics of the top so it doesn't "helicopter" on the highway.

Q: Does anyone have information on the importance/lack of importance of
these seals?

Terry Haggerty
'72 Westy; '83.5 Westy; '89 Cabriolet
Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada