Rubber seals source?

[diverdan]

Is there an alternative source for window scrapers and door seals? Hopefully available in bulk.... Ferrari guys were helped by a couple of enthusiasts, Chuck Betz for one, who had some extrusion moulds made and went into business to help the Ferrari community. There's a heck of a lot more 928 business to be had. The 911 crowd pays a fraction for these parts due to th ehigher production figures. Come on...is their anything else that fits our 928s?

Diverdan

[Danglerb]

I've just pulled most of the rubber off my parts car, some bits I'd say are possible, straight sections that could be extruded and cut to length, but my guess is no on any of the curved molded pieces like the big seal around the door.

Here is a link to the Pelican catalog page on rubber body stuff.
http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/shopcart/928M/POR_928M_BDYsl1_pg1.htm

Pricey items are;

928-537-323-03-OEM
Door Weatherstrip Window Channel Seal, Left, 928 Brand: Genuine Porsche $185.25

928-537-321-03-OEM
Door Weatherstrip Outer Window Seal, Left, 928 Brand: Genuine Porsche $170.75

928-537-322-03-OEM
Door Weatherstrip Inner Window Seal, Left, 928 Brand: Genuine Porsche $162.25

928-512-129-02-M100
Rear Hatch Seal, 928 (1978-86) Brand: Genuine Porsche $92.75

928-512-129-04-OEM
Rear Hatch Seal, 928 (1987-95) Brand: Genuine Porsche $211.75

928-543-038-04-OEM
Quarter Glass Seal, No Spoiler, Right Brand: Genuine Porsche $227.00

928-537-346-05-M260
Door Seal, Right, (1978-95) Brand: OEM $143.75

Prices vary from difference sources, but these are typical. Maybe we should just be glad the parts aren't NLA.

[ROG100]

As already pointed out the only seals available from OEM sources are the door seals. That reduced the price by 50%.
The problem with making copies is that there is no volume in 928 parts.
I am trying to have some FI seals made and could possibly sell 500 a year. Nobody will even talk to you unless you want 50k.
Up front tooling costs are prohibitive as the return is over a very long period.

[Danglerb]

Saving money related to a 928 sometimes doesn't seem worth the effort, but at least its a cheap hobby. Rubber parts need extra caution because quality issues may not immediately be apparent, and its no fun to have rubber parts start cracking etc. a few months after installation.

http://www.metrommp.com/ makes replacement trim parts, but generally I think they are seen as less than OEM quality.

Like it or not, the more rubber I pull off my parts car, the more rubber I see as essential to have replaced with new during a paint job or any other time its removed.

*************

The window inner and outer seals, the squeegee at the bottom of the glass, is a funky shape to fit into the body channel that holds it, but its straight so it might be possible to extrude a decent replacement.

[diverdan]

The mold for weather stripping extrusion is a super simple deal. Its basically a flat rectangle less than an inch thick of metal with the shape of the cross section cut out. Its clamped in the front of the extruder and the machine with liquid rubber/urethane is pressurized and the weather stripping is pulled out. You want to change the shape, you unclamp the mold and slap in a new one. The stuff is made in long strips and cut to length. A lot of this stuff can be made well in very primative shops. In addition, the mold for the 928 weather strips is probalby the same for some other (allbeit unknown to me) applications.

Right now I have at least 3 928s that could use these parts replaced.

Diverdan

[Danglerb]

I think a "couple" could be done that way, inner and outer window, rear hatch, but nothing with bends is my guess.

I've got the pieces I took out in a box, some are kind of odd in the fit. I'll post some picts later if I get the chance.

Lots of trim is still pretty cheap, but there is a lot of the "$30" simple part that non Porsche cheap substitutes might be found for. Even for three cars is the hunt for a cheap part worth the time?

[diverdan]

Danglerb: At 650 bucks a car for the basic door and window scrapers that is 1950 bucks for the three and no telling how many other folks could save a bit too. Future knowledge adds to the value of the hunt for all of us.

Diverdan

[Fabio421]

There are catalogs with nothing but different weatherstripping. They show a cross section of the piece so you can match it to your application. Hs anyone actually looked through one of these catalogs?

[911blex]

Originally Posted by Danglerb

Saving money related to a 928 sometimes doesn't seem worth the effort, but at least its a cheap hobby. Rubber parts need extra caution because quality issues may not immediately be apparent, and its no fun to have rubber parts start cracking etc. a few months after installation.

http://www.metrommp.com/ makes replacement trim parts, but generally I think they are seen as less than OEM quality.

I know that Metro Moulded Parts is very responsive to requests to make new items and that they will if they are asked by several potential customers. The company I work for sells a tons of their weatherstripping and I have yet to receive any complaints from customers.

[Danglerb]

Originally Posted by 911blex

I know that Metro Moulded Parts is very responsive to requests to make new items and that they will if they are asked by several potential customers. The company I work for sells a tons of their weatherstripping and I have yet to receive any complaints from customers.

Sorry, senile moment, Metro is the good one that is very close to OEM quality.

[911blex]

Originally Posted by Danglerb

Sorry, senile moment, Metro is the good one that is very close to OEM quality.

No problem. I'm glad you brought Metro up as I just sent them an email asking if they would consider producing seals/weatherstripping for 928s.

[MPDano]

Originally Posted by 911blex

No problem. I'm glad you brought Metro up as I just sent them an email asking if they would consider producing seals/weatherstripping for 928s.

Cool, post your findings from the email. My 928 has prehistoric moulding material on it.

[Danglerb]

Here are some picts of the rubber seals from my 84 Euro.

Main seal for the whole door.


Side view of cut off section of the main door seal.


Window inside seal? Looks like the top part is folded on itself.


Window channel, maybe outside seal?