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1960 Series 2 door seal replace
I need to replace the rubber on all three of the doors of my 1960 Series 2, 88 with safari top. Original rubber replacement looks like a ton of $$$$$. I don't need the original rubber but am looking for something economical that will work fine. I hear of people using defender seals but having to cut of some sort of metal off of the door. If anyone can post some pics so I can see what they mean or make recommendations it would be much appreciated.
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1960 Series II 88 -
Defender seals will fit without cutting or grinding. You will have to work them and they will need relief where the windscreen meets the bulkhead. Honestly the old seals pretty much suck. The Defender bulb type seals are way better. -
Do they attached the same way and are they roughly the same shape? Do I put the original metal strip inside of it and rivet it like the original one?1960 Series II 88Comment
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Defender seals are modern-type seals with the metal webbing integrated/extruded with the rubber seal. So there's no need for re-using anything from the old strips. They just clip on to the door frame "lip." Here's an excellent tutorial from Ian on his "Mud4Fun" blog.
A word of advice, however, (and this is just my opinion)...
There are two main manufacturers of these seals (as well as many Series bits) Britpart and AllMakes. The quality from each supplier is very much part-dependent. As a general rule of thumb, however, I've found the rubber bits from AllMakes to be much better in quality, flexibility and fit.
The problem is... retailers don't always tell you which supplier they provide. My suggestion is to check this out and, for both Defender-style door seals and series-style vent seals... make sure you get AllMakes. You're likely to save yourself a world of grief.Comment
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You'll also find that you will need to squeeze the seals onto the lip after installing. This is particularly critical on 5 door rear doors at the dogleg. The edging gets opened up so much to get over the lip that it won't stay on unless you squeeze it back to shape.
Also note that the defender seals have no "dip" in them for the door striker.Comment
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Another option is to use a stick-on type seal. I used these to make door seals for a Lightweight and they worked great:
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Back in the mid 1980's I replaced all my door seals with genuine LR Series seals and consider that effort to be a waste of money. Wind and water still came through. All the seals seemed to do was quiet door rattles. About 15 years later I ripped them out and replaced them with Defender seals from Allmakes. MUCH MUCH better. The seals are still on there today and still in very good condition. With the doors properly adjusted they keep water and wind out.
I ended up cutting the lip off for my install because the seals went in a lot easier. When you present the seals to the door opening you will see which flange is in the way. Some squeeze the seal to force it to fit. I chose not to. If you do decide to grind off the lip be sure to mask laces where hit grinder chips might hit. They can do a number on interior bits of you do not protect them.-
Teriann Wakeman_________
Flagstaff, AZ.
1960 Land Rover Dormobile, owned since 1978
My Land Rover web site
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Thanks Teriann. I appreciate the advice. I think I will try it without the cutting first and see how it goes. If I begin to pull my hair out I will trim up the flange.1960 Series II 88Comment
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Of course! It goes without saying. Thanks again to all for the advice.1960 Series II 88Comment
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