Re: RTV

[GLewis4457@domain.elided]

In a message dated 12/23/99 12:32:19 PM Central Standard Time, 
owner-alfa-digest@domain.elided writes:

> Date: Thu, 23 Dec 1999 08:53:36 -0500
>  From: Steve An <san@domain.elided>
>  Subject: Re:  Wet truck?
 <snip>
>  For the truck poster, if it isn't your Alfa tail lights, my guess is the
>  trunk gasket is not sealing properly. Also, IMHO, RTV is a bad idea for
>  sealing the lens cover, I am currently trying to figure out how to get the
>  lens off my Owdi wagon without breaking them because the DPO RTV'ed them to
>  the car. Dum dum (what is the proper name for this black tar like
>  substance?) is better for this purpose.
>  
RTV is wonderful stuff.  Instead of using it to glue the lens to the 
sheetmetal (I did do it once when all the mounting bolts were broken off on 
my old Spider)  I have used it to recondition the old gasket and allow it to 
conform to any irregularities in the sheet metal.  Take off the lens and 
smooth an even bead over the mating surface of the old gasket, now cover the 
wet edges with SaranWrap or other flexible plastic kitchen film
 and reattach,loosely, the lens to the sheet metal enough to conform to the 
mating surface and leave it overnight for the RTV to cure.  Next day take off 
the film, it will peel right off, and now you have a freshened gasket that 
will seal very nicely without sticking.  You could even recreate a gasket 
using this method, just remove the old gasket and use a much larger bead.  
Trim afterward and you are back in business.  not difficult at all.  I have 
used the same technique to replace missing parts of window channel.  With a 
bit of trimming you can hardly see it at all.

Jerry in Houston

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