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Yeah the OEM ones were soft, which is why I'd use a soft replacelment like silicone or neoprene if I had a choice. I'll probably end up with plain old rubber gaskets, which hopefully will seal properly-- a good fit and those sharp ridges should help.

Once the engine cover and the tail lights are back on with new seals, I'll put a few miles on some very dry and dusty dirt roads, then hose off the rear end, take the lenses back off and see how dusty it is inside. The bulbs were pretty dusty when I took the lenses off the first time, enough to dim them.

Lots of options on McMaster: https://www.mcmaster.com/silicone-rubbe ... er~10amps/

I'll take my sample to a machinist friend and see if he can estimate the shore hardness. Presuming no one else has a good estimate of it yet...

My OEM gasket feels rubber-band soft, so maybe Shore 20A.

Here's my solution: a ring of Tygon tubing. The blue painter's tape is optional, and to aid in installation so it doesn't roll out of place.

Going to remind you all once again. The spanner wrench for the fan works perfectly as a removal tool for the rear lens covers on the original lights.

Mr Chicken, does the tail light still install OK with your tubing gasket? There's not a lot of room between the lens and the surrounding shield.

I hadn't heard the fan spanner fit the lens cover. I'll try this tomorrow (when it's not 110 in the barn).

imacky wrote: ↑Sat Jul 18, 2020 8:28 pm Mr Chicken, does the tail light still install OK with your tubing gasket? There's not a lot of room between the lens and the surrounding shield.

I hadn't heard the fan spanner fit the lens cover. I'll try this tomorrow (when it's not 110 in the barn).

Excellent question! Yes, it fits, but it's squeaky close.

I had to select a particularly thin-walled tygon tubing to make it work. I think it's 1/8in ID, but not sure. Adding the bit of tape around the outside helps it slide in more easily.

I so do not miss the afternoon I battled getting the lenses off the first time. Although I like that spanner wrench idea, I think I'd have had to rotate with a crazy amount of force to break 'em loose, so much so I'd have been afraid of breaking 40yo plastic parts.

Yes, the fan spanner is a perfect fit for the two recesses around the screws on the tail light lens. Considering how hard I had to pull to get the lenses off, it probably wouldn't be any riskier to use the spanner to twist a lens to break the seal if it's stuck. If I had to do it again, I'd try that first.

Here's a pic of the OEM (I think) seal, the dairy one I tried (right OD, wrong width), and the last is what I'm using now, rubber sink strainer gaskets which I got from Lowes. They're part #726060 and are available various places, usually 5 for about $6; search for sink strainer gaskets "726060". I had to modify them a bit since they were too wide: cut out some to clear the two posts which accept the lens screws, and one small hole to clear the small post on the tail light body. This last little post looks like the sort of thing used to locate/fit two mating parts (like lens and body), but there's no matching hole on the lens, so its function is unknown. The OED gasket is a little bigger OD (camera angle exagerates it), but I'm satisfied with what I've got. Rubber is soft enough to seal well (I think)... will take the lenses back off eventually to check for dust incursion.