Under windshield repair?

[RASTAVAN]

okay! i finally got around to replacing the hacked and bondo filled under windshield panel and am replacing it with the klassicfab panel. got problems though, i thought these things were a perfect fit? the pillars dont quite fit right. when i clamp the drip rail the front of the pillar next to the windshield doesnt line up. i had to straighten the sides out and rebend them to some what fit. any advice on how to get this straight? do i have to measure the width of the windshield? or am i overthinking it?

[Joey]

I had the same problem. I cut the drip rail off and trimmed it to fit.

Once you get the doors back on you'll also notice the body line is off on the drivers side...

_________________
Joey

‘60 Kombi - '74 Bus - '79 Panel - '65 Beetle

[MrVWGuy]

my alignment wasn't perfect either, so I slit it & tweaked it. Only cut off what you need to from the original rusted metal. Don't use the entire panel, save as much of your original as you can.

_________________
'63 Bus (camper of unknown origin)
'62 Beetle
'68 Kombi
'76 Westfalia camper, the wife's

[skills@eurocarsplus]

LEAVE THE OE BODY LINE!!! if you don't the issues above will rear their ugly heads!

hold your cut back by about 1/4 of an inch from the bubble. any time you do panel replacement, try to always leave the original body lines in tact, it will save you from problems later (like goofy door gaps etc)
_________________

[RASTAVAN]

thanks guys for the advice, slow and steady, measure once, cut twice and its still too short. oops, other way around.

anyway.... yes, trying to keep the bodylines straight and lined up. you cant really tell from the photos, but the front had bondo and rust all the way to the bodyline, so cutting down to it was a necessity. i just wish that someone would make a body part that actually fits the way they say they will. i cant afford to have it done professionally, im a broke surfer and ive always done my own work whether it be surfboard repair, building and painting a custom motorcycle, or putting airplanes together so tackling this shouldnt be too tuff, just frustrating as i want to get my bus back on the road. ive ck'd all the threads on this topic and not too many of them show the klassicfab repair. oh well. more picts as i go!

[Joey]

[RASTAVAN]

does the rear lip need to match up with the front lip of the panel? im about a 1/4 inch off.

[skills@eurocarsplus]

when you speak of the lip, do you mean where it was spot welded in the channel?

yes, it does need to match. the inner support can be about 1/16th taller than the outter.
_________________