New Weatherstripping preventing door closure?

[ratdude747]

In the middle of a door rehab project on my '84.

Installed new weatherstripping from LMC... not my door won't close without THROWING it. Hard. As in afraid I'll mess up the hinge hard.

Seems like the front edge of the weatherstripping (by the hinges) is wadding up too tight.

Is this normal for new weatherstripping? I did have to trim 1/4" off the length to make it fit...

[FuzzFace2]

I used Fairchild rubber kit and had to cut maybe 4" off.
I do have to close the right door pretty hard even after little over a year.

You can try baby powder on the rubber to make it "slip" when the door is closed.
After a bit the rubber should compress some and be ok after that.
Dave ----

[Gary Lewis]

That is normal.  Sometimes you have to move the striker bolt so the door doesn't close as far in.  But over a period of a few weeks it'll give and the doors will close normally.

[FuzzFace2]

Gary Lewis wrote

That is normal.  Sometimes you have to move the striker bolt so the door doesn't close as far in.  But over a period of a few weeks it'll give and the doors will close normally.

Gary, I thought he said it was the hinge side he had issues with so I don't know if your adjustment would work for him or not?
Dave ----

[Gary Lewis]

Oh yes, note the difference between closing the door with the windows up vs down.  I'll bet there's a big difference.  With Big Blue and the new weather stripping the doors have to be closed firmly - unless the windows are down.  Then you can close them much easier.

[Gary Lewis]

It won't make a difference on the hinge side, but in my experience it usually isn't just the hinge side.  It is the whole door trying to compress the weather stripping as well as the air in the cab.

[ratdude747]

Ah.

I'll check. I also did window run channels and the outside felt "hockey stick". Window run channels were a pain. The rear window tracks aren't in right but It's all I could to to get the new channels in (wouldn't slide down, too tight and floppy.

[ratdude747]

Just got done with the passenger side. It already was a bear to close, now it's pretty much impossible.

Striker adjustment time?

[Gary Lewis]

Yep, loosen up on the strikers.  But if you set the truck out in the sun with the doors closed the weather stripping will squish.

[ratdude747]

Done. Both doors still close hard, but at least do close. Based on witness marks the strikers had been tightened up previously (probably to deal with the wasted old seals). But now they're a lot looser than the marks... and the doors don't line up with the body lines at all.

Hopefully with time they'll break in. Ugh.

[Bisquik1959]

I did my door and window seals about a month ago. I still need to slam the doors to get them to shut. Hopefully they will compress down to normal soon. Sounds like thats just part of all new seals.

[Bisquik1959]

Just tested it... much easier with the windows rolled down!

[Gary Lewis]

Yep.  With everything sealed you are trying to compress the air in the cab when the windows are up.  I think the 87 and later trucks had a vent to make shutting the door easier.

[reamer]

Roll down the window and close the doors, if it is easier your battling the "Air Cushion" created in the cab, This is why on newer trucks, they have flapper vents on the back cabin wall. they "fart" when the door closes, letting the air pressure out.
I need to crack a window open for the doors to close.

[kramttocs]

Learned something new.  Notice them every now and then and briefly wonder 'why?' But never looked it up.

[Gary Lewis]

Big Blue is sealed so well that opening the kick panel vents or turning the HVAC system to something like Vent doesn't do much.  But if you crack a window, open a wing vent, or crack open the sliding back window you get a lot of air and your ears tell you the pressure dropped.

And closing the doors takes a firm hand - unless a window is open.  There is a huge difference.

[Bruce moose4x4]

When I did my son's 83 Mustang Convertible, I put a sleeve in the bulb where the ends meet to keep them together. Couldn't hardly shut the door. So I put some vent holes in the rubber like the stock seals had. At least on my 78 they did. Shut a lot better.

[66gtk]

This is an original factory seal.  Note the holes.  The reproductions do not have these.

[ratdude747]

What'd you use to put the holes in with? Leather Punch?

[kramttocs]

66gtk wrote

This is an original factory seal.  Note the holes.  The reproductions do not have these.

The Precision brand kit I ordered has them. They are the opposite factory so they aren't seen unless you look for them.

Can't say the entire Precision kit is great but have no complaints on the door seals and would recommend them without hesitation.