Windshield wipers chatter (1969)

[MaximRecoil]

Is this a common problem? I thought I had the problem solved, but I don't. Before, they would always chatter if I turned them on, whether it was raining or not. The other day I fixed a bad ground problem with the wiper motor, and then the wipers glided across the glass smoothly, so I thought it was fixed, but it wasn't raining when I tested them.

Today we had a short rain shower and I tested them while it was raining, and they chattered again. After it stopped raining and the windshield dried, I tried them again, and they worked smooth again. It is bizarre because I'd expect the exact opposite to happen, if anything, because a wet windshield should have less friction with the blades than a dry windshield, which should make them glide even smoother.

The wiper arms are the correct Anco 15B, in good condition, and the blades are brand new Trico Classic (33-150). They always chattered with the old blades I had too, which were Anco something or other that I bought new a few years ago. They also chattered with the arms I had previously, which weren't correct for the car, but they fit and worked.

Is there a solution for this?

Also, what is a good tool for removing these old style wiper arms?

[Cooter]

Replace wipers every 6months. They 'chatter' because they aren't angling and have been 'heat treated' by sitting on that hot glass for years.instead of flipping over and working properly, they tend to just slide.
seeing that you've replaced, the spring tension on bottom of arms needs to be tightened a little.

Nobody seems to think about replacing them until they've completely come apart.

[MaximRecoil]

But they work smoothly when the windshield is dry, which makes no sense to me. As for spring tension, I don't know how to tighten that, but the arms I had before (from a 1980s Jeep Cherokee) had quite a bit more spring tension, enough to nearly flatten the rubber blades against the glass, and they still chattered when raining. In fact, I thought all that excess spring tension was part of the problem, i.e., creating too much friction, but I guess it wasn't.

Here's a video I just took:

http://youtu.be/yc2NBDN5fzM

In the first 15 seconds of the video you can see the wipers working smoothly on the dry windshield, and then in the second half of the video I wet the windshield down. It is hard to actually see the chatter in that low quality video (you can see it easily in person), but you can hear it.

Edit: By the way, with regard to a wiper arm removal tool, I just ordered one of these - link. Everyone says it's the cat's teats, so I'll have to wait and see.

[MaximRecoil]

Fixed!

I just did a Google search for windshield wipers chatter, and all the articles and threads I read kept mentioning that any residue on your windshield, such as from wax, road grime, Rain-X, or whatever, can cause chatter. They also mentioned the stuff Cooter mentioned, but since my blades are new, the spring tension seems fine, and nothing is bent, I figured I'd try cleaning the windshield. I was skeptical, because my windshield already looked clean, and I even washed it at the gas station a few days ago. Plus I've never put anything like wax or Rain-X on it.

So, I went and got the stuff out of the cupboard that I use when I really want something clean: Bar Keeper's Friend powder, which has oxalic acid as the active ingredient, mixed it with water and grabbed a new sponge. I also had to take a flashlight, because I couldn't wait until morning.

I scrubbed the windshield down, not spending a whole lot of time on it because BKF works fast; I went over the entire windshield a few times in a circular scrubbing motion; took a couple of minutes, and then I rinsed it off with water. I turned on the wipers and they worked perfectly, smooth as silk; not a hint of chatter. I dumped some more water on the windshield as the wipers were going and they didn't miss a beat; continued to work perfectly smooth.

I think I'll do this to my Dodge Dakota next. The wipers don't exactly chatter on that, but they aren't perfectly smooth either like my Charger's wipers now are.

I got this car back on the road in the summer of 2011, and the wipers have always chattered. To think; the solution was as simple as truly cleaning the windshield (Windex or the public squeegee at the gas station doesn't count, apparently).

BKF is the greatest thing since cheese in an aerosol can, and it is only $2.  

[MaximRecoil]

Check out my now perfect windshield wipers:

http://youtu.be/4NBqWALAoFQ

And it only took a 2-minute wash with BKF to fix my 3-year-old wiper chatter problem.

[charger Downunder]

Interesting but you need to get your washer squirters working. Looks like i have to clean my daily driver now.

[MaximRecoil]

Interesting but you need to get your washer squirters working. Looks like i have to clean my daily driver now.

Yeah, that would help. This car sat in the Maine woods for 17 years (1994-2011), and there was probably a lot of tree sap residue on the windshield, even though I couldn't see it (like I said, I've cleaned it plenty of times since I got it on the road in 2011 with Windex and the squeegee at the gas station, and it looked fine, but it obviously wasn't really clean). Now that it is truly clean, using the windshield washer from time to time would help keep it that way (or just Windex too, for that matter). The original windshield washer reservoir in my car was all broken to hell, and I haven't gotten around to replacing it yet.

[MaximRecoil]

By the way, this may be common knowledge around here, but the Trico Classic (33-150) is pretty much a dead ringer for the original Trico wiper blades that came on a second-generation (and maybe other generations) Charger from the factory:



On the left is an original, which came with the pair of original Anco 15B wiper arms I bought. There are a few minor differences, mainly in the markings. The originals have ...

PAT. 2752626
2807822

... on one side of the bayonet connector, and ...

3056160
CAN 63

... on the other side.

They also have ...

TRICO
MADE IN USA

... on both ends of the blade. The new Trico Classics don't have any markings at all, at least the private label (NAPA) ones I have don't. Also, there is a bulge on one side of the blade, and it is a little more prominent on the new ones than the originals. The originals were made in the USA of course, while the new ones are made in Mexico.

I wish I had another original; I'd get new refills and use them instead of these new ones, simply because they say "Made in USA" on them, which is a rare thing these days. Unfortunately, the other blade that came with my wiper arms is an Anco of a completely different style, though it is also old and also made in the USA:

[MaximRecoil]

By the way, with regard to a wiper arm removal tool, I just ordered one of these - link. Everyone says it's the cat's teats, so I'll have to wait and see.

This Snap-on A192 gizmo is slick as a smelt:



It removed my windshield wiper arms with ease, including the passenger side one that—when I put it on—went on about 3/4" of the way easily, but I had to hit it with my fist a couple of times to make it go on the rest of the way. I thought that one would be a nightmare to remove, and it would have been if using a screwdriver. This gizmo also makes it easier to put the arms on in the position you want them in.