How did you make your repro 'S' trim work?

[dtw]

Just got the repro 'S' deco setup in, and the reports are true. Overall the quality is good, but the rubber insert strips literally just hang off the metal trim. I tried using some 3M weatherstrip adhesive to glue down the rubber one end of the mounting rail - but if I try to move to the other end, it looks like it'll pull the trim up off the other side! How have you all fixed this - I'm not running this trim with the rubber just flopping in the breeze.

I guess I've still got the factory rubber from the set I'm replacing. But it's in worn-out shape and I'd like a good-looking set. Any thoughts?

[dtw]

BUMP
Come on! I can't be the only person on the board who's ever tried this...

[Jack Olsen]

I've never heard of this being a problem. This is the bumper piece?

[dtw]

Yeah...both the front bumper trim (one piece), and the two rear bumperettes. Front and rear use the same extrusions/moldings for the rubber and metal. The rubber fits into the groove in the metal trim, but is not snug at all. There's a huge gap in between the rubber and and the metal frame.

There are some references to this in prior threads (did a looong search last night on this), but no one ever mentioned how they resolved the issue.

[Evans, Marv]

I bought a set of S trim to replace the old trim on my '69. It didn't have any problems like you are describing. First thing I would do is contact the place I got it from, maybe email them some pictures & tell them you want to return it for something that fits right.

[dtw]

Ok, no responses here so I decided to go straight to the source.

I just got off the phone with Rudy at Tasker Metal Products; he said he's responsible for these parts and that the parts have not been rev'd in their 7 year history, and that he's never had a complaint.

It was hard for me at that point not to call bull***** based on 73911guy's assertions in this thread.

He suggested I send the parts back and get an exchange. I'm not going to do that until I get some assurance that what I receive is going to be better than what I've got!

Will update as this develops- hopefully I can get some answers.

[Jack Olsen]

As I understood it, there's only one manufacturer of the aftermarket version of the trim. Who was the vendor. Pictures would probably help, too.

[racemor]

Dave, my trim pieces came from Performance but I don't know who the manufacturer is. The rubber was loose in the tracks and too long for the rear trim pieces. I had to trim at the ends where they come up to the reflectors. I did a crappy job of it too. But, once they went on to the car the rubber did not look too bad. It seems to fit better once it's bolted down.

The real problem is getting the aluminum piece to fit flush to the bumpers. I thought that once everything got tightened down that it would be ok. Wrong. What really need to happen is to anneal (sp?) the aluminum by heating it witha dirty aceteline (sp again?) flame and form it to the bumper. Once heated up the metal will stay soft for a while, about a day if it is done right, so I'm told. Randal showed me how to do this, but I did not get a very good result, better than when I first mounted them though. I also only tried the rears, as the front piece was too big of a challenge for my patience at the time. I'll try it again some time. To this end, be careful if you are going to try to glue anything down, you may want to be able to remove the rubber at some point.

[jpnovak]

Just thought of something. Are you sure you didn't get the non-S rubber by mistake? They are narrower and would show the same problem you describe.

[dtw]

Update:

Stoddard set me up with a guy named Paul in their parts department who has been going way above the call of duty on this. He has inspected their stock of repro parts and agrees, all the rubber is sloppy (and no Jamie I didn't get the wrong rubber...give me some credit or I'll pee in your bead blaster this weekend).

Incidentally, I also test-fit the rear aluminum pieces - the fit is so far out, it wouldn't even be possible to get a nut started on the mounting screws. Annealing per Tom's discussion above does appear to be required- the extruded trim is far too strong to be cold hammered into shape with any decent results.

Last night I got curious and looked in the PET. Turns out there are separate part numbers for the aluminum and rubber bits, as well as part numbers for the completed trim pieces. Talking to Stoddard, the completed pieces are still good PNs, as are the rubber separates. I do not believe that the aluminum separates are still good PNs, but am not 100% sure (the PNs got rejected on their online lookup, but I didn't ask on the phone).

The OEM rubber is $111.43 for the front, and $35.43 each for the rears. I'm strongly considering just buying a set of this and seeing if they'll give me some credit back on the repro stuff.. but that still leaves the problem of forming the aluminum to the bumpers.

Hopefully all of this will be useful information to the early car guys...will continue to update...

[brittbolen]

Dave, did you ever make any progress on this? I'm stripping my 911 now, and haven't decided what to do about the rubber trim. My front trim is split in a few pieces already...

thanks,

Britt

[dtw]

Hey Britt,
Yep, I even took pics for a continuation, then forgot all about it.

I did buy the OEM rubber. It cost about $180 all told, but well worth it. The fit is excellent and the rubber appears to be a bit nicer.

As far as fitting the trim itself, I stayed with the reproduction stuff, and annealed it with a torch. Then I was able to carefully bend it to a more conforming shape. Now if I can ever get the car done, I'll bolt it up and enjoy the fruits of my labors...