Cowl Seal

[athawk11]

We don't really have a separate place to talk about good and not so good repro-parts. �I bought a seal...cowl to windshield. �Length wise and prepunched holes are pretty darn good, but from front to back, it looks undersized to me. �It's pretty heavy duty rubber. �(well, it might be rubber) but it's stiff and doesn't seal very well to the cowl.

Has anyone purchased what they consider to be the best, closest to original cowl seal? �If so, where did you get it?

This is just one of the items where an online photo from a vendor doesn't tell you the whole story.

Any and all thoughts are appreciated, as always.

Thanks,

Tim

[Findley]

Hi Tom

I also am looking for the Cowl seal and I know what you mean about the photo not being enough to tell if the seal will make the right fit. I have not purchased one yet, where did you get yours.

Thanks

[bretto]

Curious then, where did you buy and what part # for the seal? �Willysmjeeps has a section like that, that has come in handy for just what you are suggesting.
I bought a seal from Walck's but it will be a few weeks maybe months before I get to put it on. �He has one specific for CJ3a,b M38 and another for for the 2a which other vendors list fits the 3a family also.  He said that one most vendors list for all makes doesnt fit so well on the M38/3a.
Brett

[macrisel]

Funny you brought this up....I just put a new cowl seal on mine and wasn't happy with how it fit.  However, I was putting a new cowl seal on reproduction windshield trying to mate up to a reproduction tub.

The issue that I ran into was the radius of the ends were not matching up to the windshield to tub space.  Make sense?  :-?  I studied it for some time and ended up CAREFULLY bending the windshield arms out/in some.  I also noticed the windshield frame had a little bit of a twist in it and bent that as well.  While not perfect, the windshield frame/cowl seal/tub fit together much better now.  When the windshield is locked down against the tub, it looks very good with only a slight gap on the ends.  I'm hoping over time the seal will conform a little better and mold itself to my parts.

[athawk11]

Well, that's one of my problems. �I got it a couple years ago while in the parts accumulation stage. �I stuck it on the shelf until I was ready for it. �I either got it for Christmas from my wife, (she bought a whole list of stuff from Walcks), or from this Ebay vendor:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/wcfr4/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=&_trksid=p3686

He is one of my favorite Ebay guys. �He has lots of NOS, Take OFF, and Repro stuff. �I bought a whole list of items from him...a couple years ago.

So. It was one of the two guys. �I just can't remember. �Mine has the same seal issue as Macs. �At the sharp radius where the cowl goes from horizontal to vertical, there is a gap. �(I have the original cowl and windshield) �Additionally, when compared to the original seal, from front to back, it's 1/2"ish smaller. �The original had flattened out and was falling apart so I figured this would eventually 'flatten' out a bit, but its not.

Someone has got to be thrilled with their seal....or maybe not. �Is this just one of those items that will never be right?

Tim

[Bob W]

I have heard that the cowl seal from Midwest Military fits good although I have not actually tried one myself.

http://www.midwestmilitary.net/m38p11.html
about 1/3rd of the way down the page

[calvinhunt]

Like mentioned above, I purchased one during the parts acquisition stage of my project. �It didn't cost much. �When I got it it didn't look like much either. �I later purchased a more expensive one from a source I am unable to recall (one of the Jeep sources). �When it came time to reinstall it I ended up using neither of them and determined that my best option was to clean up the 60-year old original. �I, too, am watching this topic closely. If someone does surface with a source of a good-fitting seal that doesn't deteriorate in less than 12 months like most of the other Chinese rubber parts I will purchase one and change mine out. �Till then I'm more pleased with the old one. However, I've seen some original seals that are not in good enough condition to clean up and use again so we are on a real search here.

[macrisel]

Has anyone used the seal from Midwest Military?  $50 might seem a little steep, but does it fit correctly?

[F Bill]

I got one on Ebay from WCR4 and have it loosely installed on my DJ3A....It is an aftermarket stainless windshield, so fit isn't dead on anyhow. I'll take a good look at it when I get home this week and let ya know if it looks like it will have issues or not.

 Rubber parts for our little jeeps are hard to get in any quality, shift boots last a couple of months from most suppliers now.