Door window frame chromium trim removal

Time to start removing some of the chrome trim. With this stuff, I have to be very careful - these are parts that would be very tough to find replacements for without forgoing a decent retirement later on down the road. :/

Each piece of trim surrounding the door windows is held on with seven small screws, in various spots around the trim piece. Once those are removed, it's a matter of loosening the two ends of the single piece, which meet in the middle of the top part of the window frame.

The service manual text on removing these pieces mentions taking a small screwdriver to bend the two tabs up (see below). I spent fifteen, twenty minutes trying to wiggle a tiny flathead screwdriver in between those tabs and the door frame, with zero success.

And then, by sheer luck, I happened to bump one side of the trim, from the outside - and it moved laterally. Light bulb time! Maybe I can just pull the ends out horizontally instead of trying to get those tabs bent back up... and it worked like a champ. I'm finding more moments like that with this project - attempt Removal Process X for a good while, and then stumble upon Removal Process Y which takes a fraction of the time. Fortunately in the cases with the doors, I struggle for a while with one, figure the easy way, and then the three remaining doors proceed quickly.

One piece of trim down, three to go. The rest come out easily. All are now safely stored in my basement.