<VV> "61 window chrome removal

[Tony Underwood]

At 08:12 PM 6/11/2009, Michael Kovacs wrote:

>I'd like to remove the chrome trim from a '61 900 windshield. I have 
>the assy book, but advice is necessary to see who has a method of 
>taking the chrome off the rubber from someone who has done it.




Been there done that several different times with my own stuff and a 
few more with other peoples' stuff.    And yes, I managed to break 
one windshield along the way during my learning experience.


It's no fun.   If the rubber is hard, you may as well remove the 
windshield because you're never gonna get the stainless trim out of 
that gasket with the windshield in place without ruining either the 
trim or the glass.     It's not actually all that hard to remove the 
windshield with gasket on it from the car if you're careful... and 
dedicated.   It helps if you have someone helping, to assist in 
pushing the glass (with gasket still on it) out of the frame from 
inside the car.


Do not try to remove the glass from the gasket first.   It will only 
ruin the gasket if it's original (and hard) but still usable.    Do 
not try to remove the stainless from the rubber in any event without 
having the glass with gasket out of the car.



Others in here have removed glass with gasket and I'm sure they'll 
chime in.   I've done it by CAREFULLY bracing my back in the seat and 
putting my feet up against the glass (wearing tennis shoes) and 
pushing... slowly... a bit at a time, carefully spacing feet so as to 
apply pressure equally across the glass, with someone else in the 
seat beside you doing the same thing.    It takes CARE and a gentle 
touch, and prying up the lip of the gasket inside the car 
helps.    The gasket lip inside the car is usually still soft enough 
to bend sufficiently to allow the glass with gasket to come out, but 
it's still a good idea to be very careful.   It won't hurt to grease 
things up a tad with WD-40 or Black Magic to help that gasket slip 
out of the window frame.


If the gasket is already trash and rock hard, cracked, brittle, and 
for all intents and purposes useless, you may wanna replace the 
gasket anyway and in such an event it's ok to cut the gasket away 
from the windshield, which also allows you to wiggle the trim out IF 
you're careful.



Watch it... the lip of the trim is "L'ed" into and under the gasket 
up beneath the glass itself so if you try to pull it straight out 
it's gonna hang at best, or kink and bend, or just snag on the glass 
and crack it at worst.     Considering the scarcity of early 
windshields these days, it may be worth taking no chances and 
sacrificing the gasket...  which is available new from vendors and 
it's cheaper that a replacement windshield.

If you replace the stainless trim even with a new gasket, put it all 
together FIRST, trim in the gasket which is then installed on the 
windshield, then install the lot into the car.    Don't try to 
install the trim into a gasket on the car with a windshield in it 
unless you wanna chance cracking the windshield...  or unless you're 
DAMNED good at it.



This is my observation on the subject as gleaned by trial and error 
over the years.    Others may well (with good reason) have better ideas.



tony..