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If it's any help, I did this remove/reinstall on my '82 245. I was on the trail of rust streaks and could tell that the gaskets were all split with age. Pulled the rack and found that all the mount screws were in good shape and solidly mounted to the roof surface. There were traces of rust around each of the screws/mounts where they were cut into the sheet metal of the roof. I reduced the rust with a dremel tool and sanding disk then primed and painted the spots. Luckily, all the rust was superficial and lay withing the border of the rubber seals which rest between the rack and the roof. The gaskets were all shot, but one or two were in good enough shape to use as a pattern to make new gaskets. I cut the new gaskets using my pattern and an X-acto knife from the thin rubber membrane used in covering flat roofs, obtained from a roofing supply house in the smallest quantity they've ever sold. I also put a layer of silicone sealer between the new gaskets and the roof, as I do not like the idea of rust falling in from above. In the end, it looked like a pretty good fix.
Hope this helps!
Steve.
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