T-top weather stripping
Race Director
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 13,258
Likes: 7,847
From: Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia
2025 C3 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2024 C3 of the Year Finalist- Modified
2022 C3 of the Year Finalist - Modified
Cruise-In VIII Veteran
Not at all hard. I went with the Metro brand out of Minnesota. Adjusting the tops just right a little more difficult, but not all that tough.
Melting Slicks
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 2,365
Likes: 428
From: Cape Girardeau Missouri
Replacing the weatherstripping is not difficult.
Adjusting the fit can take some time especially if it has been adjusted previously in an attempt to stop leaks due to worn-out weatherstripping.
Weatherstripping made by CRC (Corvette Rubber Company--sold by many second parties) is generally regarded as the best and a perfect fit but it's not quite as pliable as the original and takes some time to compress. Even if your tops were never readjusted you may find it impossible to install them with the new weatherstrip. In that case you have to loosen the adjustments, leave them installed for a few weeks and then tighten the adjustments.
Some here say that the T-tops are the only place where they use the Chinese-made latex weatherstrip as it extremely pliable and doesn't have to undergo that initial compression phase. The manufacturing process that made the original extremely pliant weatherstripping was extremely nasty and has been banned in every country where there is the least concern for the health of the workers.
Adjusting the fit can take some time especially if it has been adjusted previously in an attempt to stop leaks due to worn-out weatherstripping.
Weatherstripping made by CRC (Corvette Rubber Company--sold by many second parties) is generally regarded as the best and a perfect fit but it's not quite as pliable as the original and takes some time to compress. Even if your tops were never readjusted you may find it impossible to install them with the new weatherstrip. In that case you have to loosen the adjustments, leave them installed for a few weeks and then tighten the adjustments.
Some here say that the T-tops are the only place where they use the Chinese-made latex weatherstrip as it extremely pliable and doesn't have to undergo that initial compression phase. The manufacturing process that made the original extremely pliant weatherstripping was extremely nasty and has been banned in every country where there is the least concern for the health of the workers.
Safety Car
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 3,697
Likes: 833
From: WI
Um, well, I'm going to confuse matters even more by saying the import Latex gaskets are the most supple and closest to OEM. Personally thats what I would put on my vette. I have Metros I never installed, theres a noticeable difference. Call Melrose T-tops and ask them ifor their recomendations and why. They've always given me what I felt was honest information. (Note: I have no affiliation with them other than a happy customer).
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Race Director
Joined: Oct 2019
Posts: 10,735
Likes: 63
From: Deep in the Pisgah National Forest
I just installed a set from Steele Rubber products, made and sold out of Denver, NC. Instead of ordering online, I called them up to make sure that a kit was on the shelf, then drove an hour to buy them and got some good old-fashioned counter service and install advice.
Hardest part is removing the old glue. Steele advise me what solvent to use for that, 3M 08984. The 3M glue to put the new ones one comes with their kit.
They fit perfectly and don't leak.
Hardest part is removing the old glue. Steele advise me what solvent to use for that, 3M 08984. The 3M glue to put the new ones one comes with their kit.
They fit perfectly and don't leak.