1992 D250, new Steele Rubber issues...

Just had our 1992 D250 painted. The original windshield / back glass rubber was rough, so I order new rubber and locking strips from Steele Rubber.

After having glass installers come to the shop twice to attempt installation, the locking strips will not fit in the rubber for either the front or back glass.

I called Steele yesterday and they admitted that these gaskets and lock strips are not actually produced by Steele but are sourced through third-party manufacturer Precision Products.

They also admitted others have also had issues with this particular gasket and application, and offered a refund with return.

I went with Steele because of their reputation for quality, and expected no issues after paying over $475 for just the front and back rubbers and strips.

Now I need to find GOOD QUALITY rubber and locking strips for the front and rear glass from another source that is NOT Precision Products.

Any advice VERY MUCH appreciated! Thanks, Moparts!

I've heard some talk about Fairchild Seals on the 1st Generation Diesel Forums. Maybe you can contact them for more information. Maybe Detroit Muscle Technologies (DMT) which is a sponsor here might have something that would work for you? The other issue is I'm assuming you're using aftermarket glass. I've read that some aftermarket glass for the trucks don't play well with the compatibility of Precision Seals.

Good to know, I'm about to buy the same seals for my 85, I don't want any issues who is the best company to buy from? (If everyone just repackages the precision brand I would rather buy straight from them,)I've heard of several issues with precision brand sealsin other applications that our trucks need, like wing window seals as well

Contacted Fairchild, they don't carry them.

Contacted Detroit Muscle, theirs are made by the same manufacturer.

Much as I dislike to say it, the demand for rubber gaskets for glass for 30 or more year old Dodge trucks probably isn't a very high demand. I suspect there is probably only one, or maybe 2 choices and everyone sells the same stuff. The cost effectiveness of companies manufacturing limited quantities of specific items is simply not there.

We likely are going to be hearing more and more of this sort of thing. It is probably a idea these days to ask the company if they are manufacturing the parts themselves or if they are selling someone else's product. If they are not making the part themselves, and several suppliers are selling the same product, we may well be to the point of simply buying the lowest cost specific item we can find.

Its been the consistent story with parts for older Mopars for years. One company is producing the part, everyone else is selling the same part. Might as well buy it for whom ever gives you the best price, has the product in stock, or can deliver it in the most cost effective and fastest time frame..

You could have bought the Precision seal and lockstrip for under $100 at Rock Auto.

Metro Moulded Parts appears to make their own and can even make seals that aren't available elsewhere,

https://metrommp.com/windshield_sea...93_mopar_suv_with_trim_groove_vws_2720b/

Vans Auto has been adding a lot of stuff and usually has quality stuff. I only see lock strip right now though. Maybe they'll add soon. But better yet would be the Metro one above works well for you.

https://vansauto.com/product/wls-848-853-sp-windshield-gasket-seal-chrome-lock-strip-chzwls01/

How about using the gasket and getting a different diameter lockstrip? There are sources for the lock strip, perhaps McMaster Carr or similar vendor.

maybe it was for some other vehicle but I thought I read that somewhere that the gasket was OK but it worked better it someone elses lock strip.

So you are saying the $220 Steele Rubber windshield gasket is just the $35 Precision piece? Or just the lock strip?

That's my understanding.
I've been looking around for this seal in the past couple weeks since I got the windshield out of the 85....... The old one was way hard/brittle, I ended up cutting it out.

Called Metro, theirs is made by Precision Products also. 🤦‍♂️

But the lock strip fits in the Precision gasket. I've had two of them installed recently.

That's disappointing to hear about the window seal. I know a OE Window Seal doesn't bold well with the newer Chinese windshields as well since the newer glass is supposedly slightly thinner.

Can't win.

I've sold no less than a BILLION of the PRP truck windshield seals and cant remember ever hearing an issue. Precision has a great video to show the installation.

Have had one guy (out of probably 2000 sales) tell me the PRP seal that fits all A bodies from 68-76 didn't fit. My PRP guy said thats BS. Said he has an A body windshield frame in his office. He said did your customer watch the video and use the rope method. My customer calls back and said it fit great?!?!? Least he fessed up.

They don't fit worth a crap, they are too small, the corners don't conform right and they are a PITA to install and yes I've watched the old video (the one they did in a junkyard) and the newer video they did in the shop. I had one glass guy with 32 years of experience, give up and walk away, another ended up slicing the seal in the bottom middle of the gasket and filling the 1.5" gap with sealer. The last one I had done I had to help the glass guy do the job, you really need two people, and it was a total PITA.
There, now you've heard.

I doubt theyve made a billion of those seals counting the originals that these trucks left the factory with.
Knowing what they really are now though if that's the only game in town I definitely ain't buying someone else's overpriced repackaged one....

This is all great to know about the reproduction seal. I'll add this to the thread, from what I understand if you can find a factory seal the new aftermarket glass doesn't play well either from what I understand because the aftermarket windshield isn't as thick as the factory windshield.

Yep I bought a new windshield thinking I was doing the right thing since there was mild delamination around the edges and I was putting in a new seal anyway. WRONG. Thinner glass, chitty new seals, bad combination. Professional installers two tries still struggled big time. I've learned a painful lesson.

Made the same kind of mistake several years ago replacing an old gas tank. Figured that was the time to replace sending unit even though old factory one still working fine. Big mistake. Spectra (sp?) branded tank was fine but the sending unit sucked and never worked right. Should've just cleaned the old one and kept it in tank!!!!

I have said over and over again, the biggest hurdle to clear with keeping these old trucks on the road is the sh!t poor quality of replacement parts for them, and that is if you can even get them. If you can't figure away to fabricate what you need or at least make what you can get fit and work, you are going to have a rough time of it.

Very true ^

With the span of years these windshields and seals fit one would think there's enough market for them to have more than Precision manufacturing replacement products. But even if there was I guess it still might be junk nowadays.

Youd also think that with all the issues going on they would correct them because it's all around bad for business. Well I guess not when they're all coming from one company but if someone else started making parts like the seals properly people would jump ship pretty quick.

There you all go, a marketing plan to get rich and corner a market.

Invest the millions of dollars to develop, design and build a manufacturing company to make wonderful replacement windshield gaskets for 73-93 Dodge trucks. Then all you need to do is hire a hundred or so dedicated employees that show up to work every day and actually produce products of high quality.

Then once you get the corner on the market for those windshield gaskets, which shouldn't take long, I'm sure countless other items will be on your client wish list your company can design, manufacture and market. You can be the King in the Mopar restoration service supply lines.

Good luck!

Okay okay, we forgot. This is the new America. Ain't gonna work.

There should be at least one other company around already making the rubber seals that could do it properly without much trouble,
I guess maybe that's what the problem really is? They probably took a seal that was close, cut it to fit Dodge windshields and called it done even tho there were enough differences to not work properly.

HA! Or the guys that tell me all the time, "if you make this widget you'll sell a million". I tell them YOU make it and I'll buy from you. Crickets

A local guy came in with a mid 70's truck he had restored. Said his windshield guy, a guy that just does muscle car era stuff (not Jake from State Farm squirting urethane from a tube), said it fit great. How can that be? Maybe he has a rare truck? I just looked, I've sold nearly 3000 and bet I've only had a couple complaints. Maybe there are 2900 people that accepterd a poor fit BUT TRUST ME, if someones 5yo daughter can't figure it out, THEY CALL. So no news is good news.

It's the same with 66-70 B body 2DHT windshield seal. I've probably sold 10,000. Over the course of those 10,000 sales people have told me the other brands they purchased that didn't work but the PRP does.

Lastly, you have to ask if the company you are buying from makes the product or is reselling. I do. There are a few companies that double the price (or more) on a product and resell it. I bought an early A body convertible windshield seal from one scammer just to verify. It was just the std non convertible seal but at 2.5X the price! The ONLY difference between the 2 is not the fit but a 3/8" "lip" along the top that covers a gap. A local guy showed me and said if you don't point it out, no one will know. A convertible seal IS NOT being reproduced for earl A bodies.

I don't care what you say, they fit like sh!t!

Here is my 92 that was replaced last year at this time. Fits great huh?

Here is the original gasket in my 74.

The factory one doesn't fit that well either.

Can confirm that's normal, I'm on number 12 currently.

It probably fit better 50 years ago

I really didn't pay much attention to the OEM rubber windshield (or rear window for that matter) gasket fit back in the day, but I can tell you they sealed a lot better then the current replacements. Fit wasn't a concern back then, but dry was.

But just for the record, anything that has been available for the 50s era Dodge truck glass over the last 20 years has sucked. I'm probably going to pull this last one out of my 49, and add a wider steel lip and have the glass bonded in. It won't be original looking, but it will be sealed.

Found some more information in this thread here. Confirms what most are writing here with a few extra tidbits of information thrown in the mix: https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/forums/1st-gen-ram-all-topics-93/windshield-leak-h-ll-332258/

Post #30 in that thread is the way I have always done rubber gaskets, clean everything, put the goop in the pinch weld channel of the rubber, install the rubber, install the glass, more goop in the glass channel, install lock strip. A body, b body, and truck.

Very messy, clean up with thinner or gas, or wait for it to set up, and scrape it off the glass.

A helper is nice, but usually its just me.

I have been told that is not the proper way to do it, use a rope, etc, but just me and some plastic tools or make them from old broom handles, shape the ends on the grinder.

I have never roped one in, but I have watched done.