Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

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BamaE24

Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by BamaE24 »

Haha never woulda thought of that Bert. Definitely going to store that bit of info to use.
Will it "swell" the rubber back out some too? Or just condition it?
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sansouci
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by sansouci »

BamaE24 wrote:Would anyone by chance have some dimensions of the housing to body gasket? Like the different widths and lengths of it on certain areas and the thickness of the material? I've got a wild idea to inquire some companies that make custom gaskets, to see if they could make them and what it'll take/cost to do it [-o<
If possible, it would most likely be something with a minimum order quantity, but if it's cost effective, I think it would be worthwhile to have a run on 'em for future gasket stock.
Typically in this situation, it is the mold and set up charge that is the killer. Do you think it might be possible to track down the OEM vendor to BMW for these parts? BMW probably has an exclusive on the use of the molds, but you never know?
--Ken
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84 E24 633Csi Auto, Bronzit/PearlBeige 6997510
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francoid

Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by francoid »

Typically in this situation, it is the mold and set up charge that is the killer. Do you think it might be possible to track down the OEM vendor to BMW for these parts? BMW probably has an exclusive on the use of the molds, but you never know?
--Ken
Assuming molds have not been destroyed, that would be a good way to go... Which we could find out. And not just for this one, for all gaskets on the car.

On a related point, is there a way to glue small tears in rubber gaskets? I have a couple small ones here and there that would definitely benefit from that.

Thanks
guido
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by guido »

BMW factory are now saying (as of yesterday 12.09.2016) to expect delivery in May/June 2017.
i.e. they have no clue/plan to make them or the company that used to make them is no longer around or moulds have been lost etc etc. pick your excuse.

Has anyone had any luck finding a company able to make these up?
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by guido »

Well I've made one or two enquiries.
Reproducing moulds is going to be too expensive, some have given ball park figures of up to £40k ($52k) for the moulds alone - so that option in out as far as I can see.
The second option is to print using 3D printers, they would require CAD designs first to be able to manipulate the design which may cost up to £300 to setup.
Then the printing which would be done using a 'rubber type' material, they buy this in at approx. £2,500 per unit but this could make up a number of seals, although quantity would only be known once printing had begun.

If this is something that more people are interested in I will start a poll/new thread to gauge interest?
These are perishable parts that eventually all of us will need to replace at some point right?
BamaE24

Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by BamaE24 »

I'm definitely interested. I had planned to make inquiries also about having gaskets made. Looks like it's gonna be expensive eh? Put me on the list of people who can commit to helping get some gaskets made if we manage to find somewhere to do it :D
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by guido »

I'll start a new thread..

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=27646
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by bpoliakoff »

Another way to soften and swell rubber is to use "oil of wintergreen" an old school potion for soothing sore muscles. I am not sure if any residue will hurt paint. I don't think it will, but try some on an old panel. Back in the day we used to use it to both clean and soften the tires on slot cars.
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Dmckim
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by Dmckim »

Having the same issue on my friends 4/1983 build. I was thinking of lubing them up as Bert suggested and maybe a small bead of bathroom caulk? Just enough to make sure that it seals up against the body. If it had to come back out, I would think the caulk would still be pliable enough for removal of the gasket.

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bobbybimmer
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by bobbybimmer »

Hey everyone!
Info here is great, thought I'd chime in and let you know I have an order for a pair of support bezel gaskets with getbmwparts and they have an ETA of December 11th and notified me that these (and a couple other items) we're on order from Germany. Fingers crossed, every body! [-o<
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by Da_Hose »

Hey folks,

These things have not been around for years, so following Bobby's lead, I just placed an order for both gaskets (63-21-1-630-465, 63-21-1-360-466). We'll see if I get confirmation they are in stock, or back ordered.

Jose
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by bpoliakoff »

The lens gaskets themselves are just round rubber. Screen window splines work great available at any hardware store for about $5 or as i said any round ruber of about 1/8" or so. Flannged nuts that hold the tailight frames to the body are available at Ace Hardware IIRC.
81 Euro 635 M90 with motronic. Currently under a complete nut and bolt restoration. Pictures at
flickr.com/photos/bertsphotos.
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by Da_Hose »

For the lens, I found some flat, 1/8" thick closed cell insulation at Home Depot. It sells by the roll, so I cut some of it into 1/8" wide strips. It worked great!

Jose
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sansouci
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by sansouci »

I just watched an interesting video on youtube where a fellow used a Cricut to make gaskets for his chain saw.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hejUzvfGuY8

I would image given the profile, you would have to make this out of several layers of thin neoprene (such as a mouse pad) and glue up with wetsuit cement from your local dive shop. Once you have the pattern on the computer layout program, cutting multiples is no problem.
Sansouci
84 E24 633Csi Auto, Bronzit/PearlBeige 6997510
93 E32 740il M60 Auto, Alpenweis/Ultramarine
60 528i M30 5-speed Green/Beige (crushed)
71 240Z 4-speed White/Blue (rusty & sold)
65 396 Chevelle 4-speed, Marina Blue/Black (stolen)
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by Da_Hose »

Well folks, I got an email today saying the gaskets are on unknown backorder, and they sent full refund.

Looks like we are still searching for unobtainium.

Jose
1987 M6 - My dream car
87Shark
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by 87Shark »

Did Bobby get his? Just curious. Also, Bobby, What side of town are you on in Phoenix? Post a pic of your car? Not a lot of us in the AZ on the board it seems :-k
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Re: Tail Light Woes (Not another one...)

Post by bpoliakoff »

Scottsdale
81 Euro 635 M90 with motronic. Currently under a complete nut and bolt restoration. Pictures at
flickr.com/photos/bertsphotos.
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