How to remove door seal/rubber without damage (for reuse)

[Geopaj]

Hello,

Long time lurker but 1st time poster so please be kind. I've tried searching but haven't been able to find an answer (surprisingly!).

My driver's door has a small amount of rust (what I hope is just surface rust) on the bottom of the inner door arroyos the seal. To address it I need to remove the door seal.

Given the good condition of the door seal and the issues I've heard about with repo ones, I want to reuse the door seal but can work out how to remove I without destroying the seal - the seal's 'pins' seem to be stuck fast in the door and even a gentle tap on the pin from inside the door will not dislodge them (only seems to bend the plastic pin).

Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks in advance

ps I should add, it is a HQ ute.

[Absinth]

If the pins are plastic then your rubbers are repro rubbers, the originals had bent wire pins. Wrap some electrical tape around a flat blade screwdriver (if you don't want to scratch paint), slide it between the rubber and the door to get under the pin flange and gently lever the pin out.

[hxbunny]

As what Absinth said, if they're not budging try a small flat screwdriver on each side of the pin.

Cheers

[b-rock-05]

I actually used a pair of small long nose pliers a slide them around the pin and ease them out,also put tape on the pliers to avoid scratching the paint.

[Innuendo]

Spend up and save issue's.

See: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Trim-and-...-/401051657482

trim_and_seal_tools.jpg

[Big Rob]

Innuendo's cool little tool set is a must-have if you plan on doing this a lot, but whatever you use, if you don't want to damage anything you need to use a lot of masking tape.
I've used all the above methods and they all work (and sometimes none of them do!). The wire originals are best removed with long nose pliers but I've used wide paint scrapers and all sorts of screwdrivers and flat objects.
Just take your time and you should be ok.

[Geopaj]

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the advice.

I have a trim remove set like suggested by Innuendo but didn't want to just start levering things without understanding the correct removal technique (& potentially damage the door seal).

I was also interested to hear that the door seal is not original- while they are in good condition, they look 'old' so that was a surprise.

[Absinth]

I was also interested to hear that the door seal is not original- while they are in good condition, they look 'old' so that was a surprise.

Repro rubbers have been around for over 20 years so they can even look worn out.

[gregbark]

The original door seals were made with a wire carrier frame. The technology was old and time consuming and the rubber often crumbled after many years. Bridgestone/ GMH changed to an extruded product with plastic clips over 25 years ago.A spray of Rare Spares RM6 may help bring your seal back to looking good. If you are worried about it looking good then purchasing a new seal is the second option.

[Innuendo]

You can possible remove the rubber and leave the clip insert behind also. The "T" tabs aren't that long and moving the rubber one way should allow you to get one side out and then back the other to do the same. After the rubber is removed you can use pliers to remove the clips. Before replacing into the rubber. Gives you a chance to really clean and soft n the rubbers also.