Topic: looking for photos of coupe w vinyl top drip rails

[William-Fischer]

I'm poetry sure there are pieces missing from my drip rails. The to was caulked at the edges and the appear to be holes for some kind of fasteners on the under side. There is metal trim on three outermost edge.

Can anyone show me what this is supposed to look like? I'm hunting for the pieces but am not 100% clear on what exactly I'm looking for.

[CharlesTurner]

There was an aluminum strip held in with pop rivets, inserted from the underside of the drip rail.  Then the area was caulked over.

[William-Fischer]

So the caulk is correct? it's just so ugly....

[CharlesTurner]

So the caulk is correct? it's just so ugly....

Yes, the caulk is correct.

[racerjmm33]

Would pics of a very early 64.5 coupe help? I have an untouched one that has the pop rivets and caulk in place. Still has the original carpet that ends at the inner rockers, etc..
Will get some close ups of the drip rail tomorrow.

[William-Fischer]

That would be a great help!

[racerjmm33]

Not great pics, car is stashed away, poor lighting...

[sparky65]

Yes, the caulk is correct.

Yep, my 67 had the caulk as well.  Now that you reminded me I need to put it back in.  What kind of caulk did they use, or better yet what should I use now?  I was going to use the stuff I installed the windshield with until I realized that it stays pretty sticky especially when it gets warm. 

[William-Fischer]

Not great pics, car is stashed away, poor lighting
...

That helps tremendously. Is the bar on the underside simply a piece of metal molded to the shape of the rail then painted body color and riveted? Do the rivets go through the edge of the  top with the caulk being applied last? What kind of caulk should be used to reseal this? a

[CharlesTurner]

That helps tremendously. Is the bar on the underside simply a piece of metal molded to the shape of the rail then painted body color and riveted? Do the rivets go through the edge of the  top with the caulk being applied last? What kind of caulk should be used to reseal this? a

There is no bar on the underside.  The vinyl top is installed and then the retainer bar placed in the gully of the drip rail.  The bar goes over the vinyl top material to hold it in place.  Rivets come from underneath to secure the bar in place.  Then a thick layer of silicone sealer is used to cover over the bar since it would look unsightly with rivet ends sticking up through it.  The rivet heads showing underneath were typically touched up with some color.  Although, I don't know if it was paint.  The examples I have seen almost look something like a paint pen or maybe even felt-tip marker.  The color is transparent, just enough to keep the heads from being too noticeable.

[William-Fischer]

This is making sense now.

Does it matter how thick the bar on top is? Wondering if we'd have an easier time fabricating one than locating one. Since the bar is to be covered I'm not concerned with appearance.  Is there a ” correct” sealant for this?

[mgmradio]

From what I have seen on original tops including mine , the rivet heads were painte body color.

[William-Fischer]

How many rivets should there be? My rails have 18 holes on each side but npd shows a complete set as only having 6.

[CharlesTurner]

18 per side does seem like a lot.  Mike might be able to look at his '65 coupe with original top and let you know how many his has.