How's it held on? My 39 Chevy had little twist pieces of metal molded into the rubber. Anyone nearby sell them? How much should they cost?
Hold the running board on end. Use a Benz-o-matic or an other torch to lightly warm the underside of the steel. A 3" wide putty knife can be used to separate the rubber from the metal. Careful!! just enough heat to let the rubber release from the metal. It'll make some smoke and stink but it's pretty easy. Get the rubber started at the top and walk it right down with the putty knife until it's all off. Keep the heat moving so you don't warp the metal. Gluing the new mats on can be a PITA. You only get one shot at it with contact cement. Test fit it dry. An extra set of hands is a help.
Should I NOT try it while they're on the car (without heat)? It's an "iffy" survivor, and i'm afraid to open Pandora's Box by unbolting them from the fenders. If they are rotted at the ends, and won't bolt back on.......................
The mat goes over the ends and gets pinched between the running boards and the fenders. If I remember right it extends under the frame too. I can't see it being done successfully on the car but I've learned to never say never.
This is an edgy car that i'm trying to just clean up a little. I'm wondering if i trim the new rubber to just cover what's visible without removing the boards. Ya know, remove the overhang. I don't need perfection, just improvement
Buy a new set, include them with the car. Tell the new owner how easy it is to install!!!...........OLDBEET
I'd wire brush the loose **** off, paint the rusty parts with semi-flat black or some spray on bed liner and ride. I bet it would look better than a cobbed up set of covers. Plan 2B...pressed pleat running board covers held on with snaps.
I'd smooth out the old rubber filling any voids so you have a flat surface then bond the new rubber over the top. Or ...depending on the car I'd leave them as is, i.e. all original car...paint, etc. Pictures ??
Groucho, I was surprised to see your thread as i just did this on my 36. Some of my old rubber was flaked off years ago. I just took a sharp s****er , a small hammer ,and carefully chiseled the old rubber off. After all of the rubber was completely removed i took my sander to the running board and got the metal as clean as i could.most of it was bare metal. I sprayed 3M spray adhesive glue to the running board then applied the new repro running board rubber. Done deal.
Groucho, There is another trick that is an extremely cheap way to go. If you are interested let me know. I'm serious about this and i've done it before a bunch of times. People can't believe the results!
You're getting yourself into a job that will last a couple of days. The original rubber on my coupe had to be chiseled off with a flat head screw driver...inch by inch. After you have all of the rubber off, you will notice a pattern of tiny pin holes that need to be cleaned out. Be sure to clean these out as they will help the new gule and rubber adhere to the running board better. When you go to install the new rubber, have a good friend or two with you. Be sure to follow the directions carefully and be sure to let the glue set up for the correct amount of time. I had two club members and we still had to remove and re-install the rubber a couple of times. Also, be sure the rubber is warm...................but I see you live in Cali so that shouldn't be a problem.
Earlier this year Drake had a sale on covers and while I was ordering, I went ahead and got new boards, because mine were really bad and marginal boards were going for big bucks on ebay. Installing the covers wasn't too bad, it took about three hours between the two boards. Read the directions that come with the covers. They said to scuff the back of the covers with steel wool or sandpaper. I used steel wool, I would now reccommend sandpaper. The contact cement needs more tooth to adhere to the rubber. Its not a difficult job, just time consuming. I went back and used epoxy on the edges and clamped them down to remove the bubbles on the corners. They really turned out great. I had $400 into a new set of boards, I don't think I could ever step up to buy their new vulcanized ones. Dave
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