'30-31 Model A rain gutters

rodnut1 · May 27, 2011

Just some info on the gutter replacement on my '30 coupe. I purchased a set of gutters from member Rob Paul to replace the rotted junk on my car. Rob's gutters are a good start for this job, and I made a few mods that others might be interested in.

The gutters come broken up with the proper profile/shape, and the tails are curved down per original. However, the gutters are straight from end to end. Included instructions mention installing by trimming to length, then welding to the body by starting at one end and forcing the gutter to follow the body curve as you go. I didn't really like this idea, as it puts a lot of stress into the gutter/body panel attachment.

To eliminate this situation, I pre-fit the gutters by bending the body curve into them first. This was done by placing 2 wood blocks about 2 feet apart on my work bench, then placing the gutter 'outer face down' on the blocks. The gutters are very stiff in this plane, and it takes a good amount of force to move them. I did this by placing my palms on the gutter, and using my weight to push the gutter down. One other thing I did was narrow the wide upper 90 degree top lip from end to end about 1/8" using aircraft snips, then filing the cut edge clean. This looked much better, more like original, and it made bending in the body curve a bit easier.

It took a lot of 'push, check, push' to get them right, but they came out very well, and now they fit the body perfectly. When doing this, they also tended to curve in the up-down direction as well, so keep checking their fit into the body relief and 'straighten' as required. It took me a couple of hours to get them right, but it was well worth the effort for ease in final installation.

My body panels are off the car, so my attachment method will be to use a panel bonding adhesive and clamp them in place. I've read some posts here about how using bonding adhesives in place of welding is eaqual to murdering your mother, but I feel this method is an excellent way to do this particular job. Not only does it make a permanent repair (if done corrctly!), but it also fully seals the space between the body and gutter, preventing any further corrosion from occuring. Plus after removing my old gutters, stripping the rust and cleaning and sanding, my panels were pretty thin in this area from years of corrosion, so welding was not going to work very well anyway. From previous positive experience with bonding new lower dog leg panels into the trunk of my old '65 Plymouth, I know this bonding method will definately be the answer for this job.

The adhesives come in several types, most all in a cartridge that runs about $35 and requires a special $50 to $300 application gun. I found Evercoat makes panel adhesive cartridges that fit standard caulking guns. The material I chose to use is their part number 100813 Medium Set Bonding Adhesive. A bit pricy at $45, but much less than the other adhesives with the special gun. And it's epoxy based, which I prefer.

Even if you weld them in place, pre-fitting these gutters by bending to fit the body curve will save you a lot of hassle in the end, and you won't have to worry about them popping loose like a watch spring if a weak weld or two happen to let go from the built-in stress.

coopsdaddy · May 27, 2011

Good info,i have a set i have not installed yet,very nice looking for the money,some guy in texas wanted stupid money for his that are no better,(thanks rob)
post some pics of work and the snips you used,i need a good pair,thanks

ajaxsenior · Jun 30, 2017

I agree, a very nice part, with the rear bend included, unlike what is available from the usual parts catalog sales folks. to get the large radius required I used the edge of a wood work bench, which I applied pressure on the two ends while sliding the gutter back and forth. When I needed a bit more in a given area, I shorten my hand holds up and then applied harder pressure to get the proper curvature. The toughest part was the rear end with the already bent section. This area of the coupe the the drip rail sits has a a curve to it too, but with so little extra length it was tough to bend, and I did not want to use any cheater length for fear of hurting the outer face surface? However with a good heavy gloves I was able to use my method and get it close, which when I install, using welding it on through the holes left from removal of the original spot welds. I was able to clamp the rear of the rail in place and then use the length and some clamps to get the whole drip rail to lay in nicely while is attached with weld. All looks great and resolved a major issue with my coupe which had been left laying on this side and has extensive rust damage to the original gutter and the sheet metal around it. Now all in this area is nice and solid and matches the other side quite well!