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Fri May 02, 2025 4:45 pm

I have a set of left and right NOS German safari frame to body seals in original cosmoline. I bought them a long time ago and began using them in September 2024. First drizzle happened later in the autumn and they leaked. Was just one of those things found with ancient rubber and pressure applied to them. Gamble taken, lesson learned. The reason I'm writing is the OG seals have seen less than 100 miles of use. However each seal has rips. I'm about to trash them, but wonder if they're useful to anyone for any purpose in ways I cannot imagine?

Thu May 08, 2025 7:22 pm

I have a question to anyone who has done a rear safari in a singlecab. How do you mount the latch plates. I can’t really bring myself to drill that bottom lip. It seems that there must be a better way? Do you weld or adhesive them in place?

Edit: I am going to attempt to use a structural adhesive, likely an acrylic. Methyl Methacrylate type. Still looking into options. I will update on how it goes. As for the hinge screws and side plates I drilled at 2.0mm followed up with a 3.3mm, tapped for 4.0mm. Screws thread through the body metal. I am using m4x12 countersunk ss machine screws with lock washers and nuts to lock them in. Strip caulk on hinge screws. May use a bit of friction tape on the hinge as well. Same strip caulk will go around the body seal. Getting the glass in is pretty tough but doable. Slowly bedding the window in now. That barndoor style rear window profile makes the lower frame half pretty tight going on…..

Sun May 11, 2025 5:35 pm

Well that was fun getting that glass in! The 12mm screws for the hinge are way too long. Could probably get by with 8 or 10mm. I think 10’s on the slider plates could work as well. Tapping the body for the hinge screws worked out well. Placed some friction tape on the hinge, pushed the machine screws through the tape. Then a dab of strip caulk on each of the threads. The friction tape held all the screws on the hinge nicely while I held up the window to get the screws started. I still need to mount the latch plates. I’m thinking of getting a stud plate that I can glue on with adhesive, then it will be possible to have some adjustment in the latch plates themselves.

Thu Jun 12, 2025 10:39 am

I'm trying to assemble my Creative Engineering safaris. I have the aluminium version, bought them in 2018. I also bought nice 5mm laminated glass for them.

The problem I've run into is I can't get the glass and inner seal into the frame - it's just way too tight. I tried with the glass that came with them and it goes together easily - because the CE glass is less than 4mm thick, but the tempered glass seems so thin and frail.

Is there a thinner seal available? I've seem references to using butyl tape, but it's not clear from the context if that was to use instead of a seal, or to shim the seal.

Thu Jun 12, 2025 6:07 pm

Check out a video by TheWagen on YouTube. He mentions Butty Bits Safari window seals. A seal that is supposed to be better than all the others. I have not personally used it or seen it.

Just re-read your post. Are you only asking about the glass to frame seal? I forget if he mentions that one or just the frame to body seal.

Apparently the Butty Bits seal is only frame to body.
https://www.buttysbits.com/product/bb-021-safari-seals-enough-seals-to-do-both-front-windows/

Thu Jun 12, 2025 7:12 pm

This afternoon I tried using a WCM popout frame-to-glass seal. It takes some effort to get it stretched over the glass, but when you do, it's nice and tight, with no wrinkles in the corners. However, when I was sliding the frames on, I tore the seal, which meant I needed to take it all apart again. One half of the frame came off fairly easily, but it took almost 2 hours to persuade the other half to release - a lot of rubber/glass/paint stiction. I didn't take any pix though.

Here's a pic of how sloppy of a fit the CE glass/seal/frame is

I went ahead and installed the one window with the thin glass for now, as I want to do a quick test drive around the block.

Thu Jun 12, 2025 7:55 pm

swharris wrote: Check out a video by TheWagen on YouTube. He mentions Butty Bits Safari window seals. A seal that is supposed to be better than all the others. I have not personally used it or seen it.

Once I saw this video [a few months ago] I bought those seals. Noticeable positive difference. Looking forward to next winter to learn whether the bus heats up as well as it did before safaris. Meanwhile, in springtime I noticed less draft, better heating. No rain/water testing yet; having issues with glass to frame seal - following Thom's progress.

Thu Jun 12, 2025 8:51 pm

stevo wrote: swharris wrote: Check out a video by TheWagen on YouTube. He mentions Butty Bits Safari window seals. A seal that is supposed to be better than all the others. I have not personally used it or seen it.

Once I saw this video [a few months ago] I bought those seals. Noticeable positive difference. Looking forward to next winter to learn whether the bus heats up as well as it did before safaris. Meanwhile, in springtime I noticed less draft, better heating. No rain/water testing yet; having issues with glass to frame seal - following Thom's progress.

Knowing how tenuous parts supply is over the long term, I think I should grab some too for my two sets of unrestored/uninstalled originals waiting around. Now does anyone have some original dash clips and latches I could buy. LOL

Fri Jun 13, 2025 9:05 am

swharris wrote: Knowing how tenuous parts supply is over the long term

Yup - buying opportunistically has saved my ass many times, and just as many times I've needed a part I bought previously, only to find it's either NLA or been downgraded to a shitty Chinese repro.

Fri Jun 13, 2025 7:01 pm

thom wrote: swharris wrote: Knowing how tenuous parts supply is over the long term

Yup - buying opportunistically has saved my ass many times, and just as many times I've needed a part I bought previously, only to find it's either NLA or been downgraded to a shitty Chinese repro.

Exactly. Hey, great to see your name. I’m sure you never left, but I don’t come this way too often. If I never said it back in the day, a big thank you to you and your pioneering VintageBus site! I was part of the mailing list way back and your site was very helpful. No one else was doing anything like that then. You still in the Sacto area? 911 and rusty RHD moved on I assume. Funny how clean that bus would seem now days. Haha.

Anyway, nice build going on currently. Is there a thread on it?

Sun Jun 15, 2025 7:56 pm

Ok, I think I found a good combination: Creative Engineering frames, Stacy's glass, Wolfsburg West inner seal, and probably the outer seal mentioned above - haven't received it yet.

It was a PITA to get these together, and I think my big mistake was trying to use dish soap as a lubricant instead of running down to the hardware store and getting some silicone. The inner seal bunched up in a few spots, which I think wouldn't have happened with better lube.

I tried both a WCM popout inner seal and the WW safari inner seal. While the popout seal is difficult to get stretched on the glass, once you do, the curvature in the corners is absolutely perfect. The WW safari seal is a lot longer, so it fits sloppily over the glass - it needs to be a few inches shorter. However, the WW seal is a .5mm thinner, and for this operation, you need all the help you can get. In addition, I filed small "chamfers" on the insides of the mating edges of the frames, so they're less likely to catch the seal. If there was some way to take 3 or 4 inches out of the seal and glue it back together, it would be perfect.

I should really take this one back apart and re-assemble with better lube and a new seal, but I'm going to get the other one assembled first and see how I feel.

The popout seal on the glass

Tue Jun 17, 2025 6:44 am

Last night I bought some silicone spray, and then re-assembled the driver's side safari window. I found that the trick with the silicone is you just just have to douse it - I was trying to be conservative, clean and tidy and it just wasn't working. My house smells like a robot orgy now.

With the silicone spray, the frames slid together a lot easier. I still had it bunching up at the joint, which could be alleviated if the seals were shorter - there's too much slack in them.

The CE glass compared to Stacey's glass.

Tue Jun 17, 2025 7:27 am

swharris wrote: thom wrote: swharris wrote: Knowing how tenuous parts supply is over the long term

Yup - buying opportunistically has saved my ass many times, and just as many times I've needed a part I bought previously, only to find it's either NLA or been downgraded to a shitty Chinese repro.

Exactly. Hey, great to see your name. I’m sure you never left, but I don’t come this way too often. If I never said it back in the day, a big thank you to you and your pioneering VintageBus site! I was part of the mailing list way back and your site was very helpful. No one else was doing anything like that then. You still in the Sacto area? 911 and rusty RHD moved on I assume. Funny how clean that bus would seem now days. Haha.

Anyway, nice build going on currently. Is there a thread on it?

I definitely am glad to see Thom posting here as well. I remember back in the VintageBus days when Thom posted his bill. I think it was about $750 for the month. That was shocking. Picked up a set of those seals as well. Looking forward to seeing how well they fit.

Tue Jun 17, 2025 8:00 am

thom wrote: If there was some way to take 3 or 4 inches out of the seal and glue it back together, it would be perfect.

Would black CA and some quickset work to cut apart and reglue? Maybe a short length of steel wrapped with wax paper to keep it aligned?

I've found that bagging up the corners and stretching out the straights helps too.

These can be hard.

Tue Jun 17, 2025 12:56 pm

My safaris were installed at a shop widely recognized for their restoration trailer-queen work. WW inner seals were cut then glued again. One glass was original Sekurit, and the other was Brazilian. Original German frames. Photos show the seals puckered in three corners. Uncertain what was used for silicone, etc.

At the time picking up the bus I was told much of the problem had to do with the Brazilian glass [although puckering happened on both pieces]. Just so there was no issue next time I purchased two pieces of safari glass from Stacey. Broke the bank but I wanted tightness. Returned to the shop that did the work with brand new glass and WCM pop out seals, latter were not used. Upon return I found puckering, and one of the new safari glasses installed with a crack. Saving money for the next step.

Tue Jun 17, 2025 2:38 pm

Both windows are installed, and I haven't decided if I'll try to fix the wrinkles on the passenger-side. For one: how in the hell do you get the windows back apart?

Tue Jun 17, 2025 2:51 pm

campingbox wrote: thom wrote: If there was some way to take 3 or 4 inches out of the seal and glue it back together, it would be perfect.

Would black CA and some quickset work to cut apart and reglue? Maybe a short length of steel wrapped with wax paper to keep it aligned?

I've found that bagging up the corners and stretching out the straights helps too.

These can be hard.

I had this same problem where the corners were sticking out. The only problem with cutting the seal by 3-4 inches is the seal will shrink with time.

I haven't done it yet as I am looking for a set of NOS seals, but I was advised to use the vent window seal on the corners of the glass and then put the frame to glass seal on afterwards. This will push out the corners so they wont bunch up.

Or you could do the Richie trick which is take an X-Acto knife and cut where it is bunching. Push it in as good as you can and then use crazy glue to glue down where the cut is.

Thu Jun 19, 2025 6:52 pm

Here's an idea I had to attach the sliders to the windows - I used a stainless steel binding post bolt. $8 for 20 of them on Amazon.

Fri Jun 20, 2025 9:55 am

thom wrote: Here's an idea I had to attach the sliders to the windows - I used a stainless steel binding post bolt. $8 for 20 of them on Amazon.

Never heard of a "binding post bolt"?

Fri Jun 20, 2025 10:19 am

swharris wrote: thom wrote: Here's an idea I had to attach the sliders to the windows - I used a stainless steel binding post bolt. $8 for 20 of them on Amazon.

Never heard of a "binding post bolt"?

Also called "sex bolts" :wink:

https://www.fastenal.com/product/Fasteners/Screws/Binding%20Post%20Screw%20Sets?categoryId=600052#