inner fender and firewall gasket?

[Denee007]

Hi! Though I'm still aways away from painting my engine compartment, what ties the inner fender to the firewall? 1) Is there a seal or gasket that goes between the two? and how to keep mud/dirt/dust from splashing up over the frame into the engine commpartment?
dne' ; )

[1955 Eddie]

They sell a foam seal for it. Search for it at this site.

www.classicparts.com


(1955-59) Inner Fender Seals
Item Number: 37-727
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[mr48chev]

It's not a seal seal though it's more of an anti squeak pad. Remember these trucks were built to work and haul and a little mud and dirt in the engine compartment wasn't an all together bad thing then.

Actually unless you are in the habit of splashing through mud holes they stay pretty clean. You still have to clean them on a regular basis like any other rig you would open the hood and play show and tell with.

[OrrieG]

Factory one was stapled to the inner fender, aftermarket are slotted to fit around the end. Regular weather stipping adhesive (yellow snot looking stuff) holds it in place.

[mknittle]

use 3M super weather strip adhesive and let it get tacky.Other brands aren't as good. I use it for upholstery and have had good luck with it.

[_Ogre]

like orrieg said, but they make yellow snot in black too
the gasket is sold by many vendors. lmc has it here as part #12 along with the main fender to cab gasket and a few others.
you would need to remove the inner fender (first you remove fender) and glue it on, use tape to hold it while the glue dries.

steve posted a good shot of the gasket and tape to hold it on while you install the inner fender



and you can see it in my engine bay on both sides.

[Denee007]

I appreciate the info ya'll! My inner fenders are not coming off, so can I squeeze the gasket/seal into place? Thanks for the pictures! Gosh, your work is wonderful! sigh!

[_Ogre]

you could squeeze it in but gluing it to stay would be a beotch
you might be better off using something like door weather stripping and 3m double sided tape (1/4'' wide) to stick it on the inner fender

[Russell Ashley]

You might be able to take a scraper or something and pry the inner fender out a little where it's too close and work it in. The original was stapled on. When I replaced mine I used a sharp scribe and pushed it through the rubber and through the original staple holes. I used copper coated welding wire and formed it into staples and pushed them through the holes and folded it over like the originals. It wasn't much trouble and works fine, and it's a lot less messy than weatherstrip adhesive. It might be a little difficult to reach both sides since you can't get your inner fenders out but having the engine out will help.

You are doing some great work on the truck. Keep us posted.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Originally Posted by Russell Ashley

.... and pushed it through...the original staple holes.

I guess I've never looked that close but I didn't know there WERE staple holes!

Russell, From that photo it looks like you sprayed on a texture of some kind. What did you use and is it as glossy as it appears in that photo?

[Rude Dude]

Did you use .023 mig wire or tig wire? Copper coated threw me for a loop?

Originally Posted by Russell Ashley

You might be able to take a scraper or something and pry the inner fender out a little where it's too close and work it in. The original was stapled on. When I replaced mine I used a sharp scribe and pushed it through the rubber and through the original staple holes. I used copper coated welding wire and formed it into staples and pushed them through the holes and folded it over like the originals. It wasn't much trouble and works fine, and it's a lot less messy than weatherstrip adhesive. It might be a little difficult to reach both sides since you can't get your inner fenders out but having the engine out will help.

You are doing some great work on the truck. Keep us posted.

[Russell Ashley]

Originally Posted by Rude Dude

Did you use .023 mig wire or tig wire? Copper coated threw me for a loop?

It's .023 because that's what I had in my mig welder but .035 would work just as well I think. I read somewhere that mig wire has a copper coating to keep it from rusting so that's what I was referring to. It definitely has a copper color.

[Denee007]

Well Gosh~ guess I'll mess with it when the time comes~ you know at one time, I was thinking to use some pipe insulation from the hardware store! lol ; )
Thank you all!
dne'

[_Ogre]

Originally Posted by Denee007

Well Gosh~ guess I'll mess with it when the time comes~ you know at one time, I was thinking to use some pipe insulation from the hardware store! lol ; )
Thank you all!
dne'

denee, you might try 3/8 black hose, split down the side
maybe work a little black rtv in spots

[Russell Ashley]

I sprayed the outside with Dupli-Color brand paintable undercoating. After it sat up for a few days I sprayed both sides with gloss black Rustoleum. I liked the look so I did the same on the insides of all of my fenders and the bottoms of the bed steps.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Originally Posted by Russell Ashley

I sprayed the outside with Dupli-Color brand paintable undercoating. After it sat up for a few days I sprayed both sides with gloss black Rustoleum. I liked the look so I did the same on the insides of all of my fenders and the bottoms of the bed steps.

"Great minds think alike" Ha Ha! I had already decided to use a rattle can spray on texture in my wheel wells and I'd wondered if the gloss black would hold up long? I finally decided, "What the hell? I'm not gonna drive it in tough conditions anyway".

Just curious: what finish will you use on your frame? My truck will be a "weekend Home Depot-runs driver" but i want to be proud of everything i do on it so I plan to thoroughly wire wheel, degrease and paint tje frame with Rustoleum gloss black too. I've wondered about adding a bit of automotive hardener to it but my main reason for using Rusto is so it can easily and cheaply be touched up if it needs it.
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[Russell Ashley]

Originally Posted by Dan in Pasadena

"Great minds think alike" Ha Ha! I had already decided to use a rattle can spray on texture in my wheel wells and I'd wondered if the gloss black would hold up long? I finally decided, "What the hell? I'm not gonna drive it in tough conditions anyway".

Just curious: what finish will you use on your frame? My truck will be a "weekend Home Depot-runs driver" but i want to be proud of everything i do on it so I plan to thoroughly wire wheel, degrease and paint tje frame with Rustoleum gloss black too. I've wondered about adding a bit of automotive hardener to it but my main reason for using Rusto is so it can easily and cheaply be touched up if it needs it.
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My truck will be used for some light hauling too so I'm not even thinking of making it into a show toy. I haven't bought any POR-15 or any other expensive paint for it other than a couple of quarts of enamel that I had matched to the interior and exterior so I could touch up where I had welded in patch panels. My frame and anything else that's black on my truck is Rustoleum. One exception: The engine block is black but that's engine paint from Pep Boys. I never tried adding hardener to Rustoleum so can't say what that might do, but I don't think you need it as Rusto is tough just like it comes.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Originally Posted by Russell Ashley

My truck will be used for some light hauling too so I'm not even thinking of making it into a show toy. I haven't bought any POR-15 or any other expensive paint for it other than a couple of quarts of enamel that I had matched to the interior and exterior so I could touch up where I had welded in patch panels. My frame and anything else that's black on my truck is Rustoleum. One exception: The engine block is black but that's engine paint from Pep Boys. I never tried adding hardener to Rustoleum so can't say what that might do, but I don't think you need it as Rusto is tough just like it comes.

Russ, Thanks.
I DID buy a quart of KBS rust preventative thatI intend to use inside the cab as my roof underside is borderline crusty rust. I didn't buy the whole "prep kit" they sell though. So I intend to sand off the rust, treat it with Ospho, and a final wipe down with acetone, let dry well and slather that crap on.; Hopefully it'll stop the rust in its tracks. While I was online I also bought a little pint can of KBS' engine paint in Chevy orange but I haven't used it yet. I probably should have and just used rattle can orange.

Unrelated to the truck, I bought some Rustoleum hammertone gray to use on a structural steel frame I put in my garage. That stuff ROCKS! I did NOTHING to prep the steel, just wiped off dust (it already had some kinda paint on it). I rolled it on with a 3" foam roller.
I re-coated per the label in 5 or 7 days, whatever it said. That stuff is rock hard and has a very very nice appearance in my opinion. Hides a wealth of sins. I've even considered using it on my frame in black or silver.