I purchased new sail panels from legendary interiors for my 70chevelle ss. The material is oversized and needs to be trimmed and folded over the backing panel and glued. Has anyone done this?. What glue should I use? And how much material should I have folded over the back of the panel. And does it get glued to the panel all they way around? or does it get tucked into the rear window molding. any tips would be greatly appriciated. Thank you Bob

I heard someone here say Gorilla Glue.

I am facing the same project and have gotten no answers on the board. I would love to know how to take the old ones off!!

RMX

Gorilla Glue is awesome, but keep in mind that it swells as it dries. I dont know if that matters in your situation, but it wont hurt to know.

Well I took my old ones off. I first took the rear seat out. then removed the rear window deck panel. then took the window cranks off so I could remove the panels behind them. Then the rear window molding has a small piece with a screw in the lower corners. take that off and then you can remove the rear window molding. Now the sail panel will come out. I glued my new panels with contact cement. The sail panels I bought from Legendary auto interiors. The fabric was glued to the cardboard panel, however it had to be wrapped around the back of the panel and glued. I did this today and when I tried installing it in my car I realized it was not as long as the original panel. So Iam not really sure what to do now. It does'nt look like the panel is going to reach the rear window molding. It has to go behind the rear side window and back to the rear window molding. It looks to short to me. Has anybody else had any issues like this. I hope Legendary Auto Interiors has a solution for me.

the material is wraped around the same area the trim goes on(rear window and side trim)

Bob,

I didn't cover my sail panels, I bought them pre-covered. But I can offer you some advice based on my experience with adhesives.

You are going to want to use contact adhesive. The best bond would be with a liquid contact brushed on both surfaces. Porous material like fabric and board require two coats. Apply the first and allow it to dry. Apply the second and allow it to become tacky (does not stick to a clean finger) then press them together. Acid brushes work great for small areas. If you have done it right, you wont be able to pull it back off. Properly dried contact wont stick to anything but other contact coated surfaces.
This will only be good for the back side as it will soak through the fabric.

If you are concerned about the front side, I would recommend a 3M spray contact. Leave the fabric oversized. I would apply a coat to the board, a very light coat to the fabric and then a second coat on the board. Again wait till it becomes tacky (does not stick to a clean finger) and assemble. You might want a second set of hands because when it touches its stuck. Then you could start trimming, cutting darts, wrapping around the edges, etc. Unfortunatly the spray stuff is not going to work as well on the back side so the best results would be had by buying both the liquid and the spray.

I just finished this job (my 4th so far) in a '66 GTO. The material should be wrapped around and secured on the top and bottom of the sail panel. I have always used 3M's yellow super weather strip adhesive which comes in a tube from any auto parts store. I even used this glue to hold the SS bumper pad on my '70 chevelle.

You need to wrap the excess material on the front and back to the same place the molding will pinch over. I use glue here as well. I use the 1-1/2" binder clips to hold the material until it dries. If your back window is already in, you probably cannot use the binder clips and you might have to just glue and then push the molding into place.

Another trick for the sail panels is to buy some wide adhesive back velcro pieces and attach them to the car and panel! This helps the sail panel stay close the headliner and you avoid any gaps or heat forming later.

Hey Bob,I grew up in Parkville,and live in Towson.I own furniture a re-upholstery shop on Harford Rd.Sorry,I don't fool with cars unless I have to.The 3-M adhesive is what you would want to use.There are some other products out there that would be useful in your situation.Let me know if I can help you out...Bob

Hey Bob,I grew up in Parkville,and live in Towson.I own furniture a re-upholstery shop on Harford Rd.Sorry,I don't fool with cars unless I have to.The 3-M adhesive is what you would want to use.There are some other products out there that would be useful in your situation.Let me know if I can help you out...Bob
x2 on the 3M adheasive.

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