The Ford Barn

Daves55Sedan · 02-12-2019, 05:49 PM

You have two problems JWA. First, that door is not properly adjusted. Second that foam rubber seal outer lip has been bastardized by the door mis-alignment and also appears to have suffered some shrinkage.
The Dennis Carpenter door seal reproductions are horrible for shrinking very quickly, often rendering them useless to seal out wind and rainwater leakage.
You may never get any weatherstrip to seal properly until you first get the door adjusted properly.
I fought leaky seals in my cars for 40 years up until 2017 when I finally broke down and decided to commit to a thorough adjustment of both front doors on my '55 car and my '55 Courier. It is difficult, especially for a smaller size guy like me, but I got that done. I think there is a detailed description of that door adjustment posted in this forum back in 2017.
THEN, knowing that my Carpenter seals (which were not very old) and still looked good, had shrunk drastically, especially around the corners of the window frames, I searched for a better quality seal. I selected a roll of reproduction Mopar seal from Metro-Moulded-Parts.
First, I removed only the portion of the Carpenter seal off around the window frame and left the old Carpenter seal intact from the bottom of the window on down.
Then I laid the new Mopar seal on a flat table and cut it using a boxcutter.
The secret to getting this particular seal to fit right on the '55 Ford is to cut 1/8 inch off the entire bottom of the seal across the top and back side of the window frame. I cut about 1/4 inch off the bottom of the seal at the front.
It is absolutely essential to cut "V"-shaped cutouts (about four each) at the bottom of the seal where the seal will go around the window frame corners. This will prevent the corners from buckling over at the top of the seal. Do this by fitting the seal up to the window frame (after the old seal has been cut-off). Then mark where the corners begin and end.
When all the cutting is finished, fit the seal up to the window frame again for a last look. If it's good, glue it on and clamp it using large binder clips, or C-clamps, each having a strip of 1/8 inch thick Masonite as a backer-board.
You will be amazed at the fit and how well it seals. I haven't had a leak since I did it.

02-12-2019, 05:49 PM	#4
Daves55Sedan Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Granite City, Illinois Posts: 3,008	Re: A Pillar Wind Noise Water Leaks You have two problems JWA. First, that door is not properly adjusted. Second that foam rubber seal outer lip has been bastardized by the door mis-alignment and also appears to have suffered some shrinkage. The Dennis Carpenter door seal reproductions are horrible for shrinking very quickly, often rendering them useless to seal out wind and rainwater leakage. You may never get any weatherstrip to seal properly until you first get the door adjusted properly. I fought leaky seals in my cars for 40 years up until 2017 when I finally broke down and decided to commit to a thorough adjustment of both front doors on my '55 car and my '55 Courier. It is difficult, especially for a smaller size guy like me, but I got that done. I think there is a detailed description of that door adjustment posted in this forum back in 2017. THEN, knowing that my Carpenter seals (which were not very old) and still looked good, had shrunk drastically, especially around the corners of the window frames, I searched for a better quality seal. I selected a roll of reproduction Mopar seal from Metro-Moulded-Parts. First, I removed only the portion of the Carpenter seal off around the window frame and left the old Carpenter seal intact from the bottom of the window on down. Then I laid the new Mopar seal on a flat table and cut it using a boxcutter. The secret to getting this particular seal to fit right on the '55 Ford is to cut 1/8 inch off the entire bottom of the seal across the top and back side of the window frame. I cut about 1/4 inch off the bottom of the seal at the front. It is absolutely essential to cut "V"-shaped cutouts (about four each) at the bottom of the seal where the seal will go around the window frame corners. This will prevent the corners from buckling over at the top of the seal. Do this by fitting the seal up to the window frame (after the old seal has been cut-off). Then mark where the corners begin and end. When all the cutting is finished, fit the seal up to the window frame again for a last look. If it's good, glue it on and clamp it using large binder clips, or C-clamps, each having a strip of 1/8 inch thick Masonite as a backer-board. You will be amazed at the fit and how well it seals. I haven't had a leak since I did it.