Third Windshield!

[wetfeetmi]

 Help please... I am on the third new windshield for my Daytona clone.  Local glass company in Three Rivers MI broke the first one (on their tab). They installed a new one, but couldn't get the gasket to center top to bottom (I couldn't get the lower trim on because of spacing....like windshield is positioned 1/8" to low...also there was a gap under the gasket on lower right side). I broke it removing it to correct gasket problem. Do I have a faulty gasket or are they all stubborn. Is an additional sealer required? I bought it new a few  years ago and never installed until now. Glass company says I'm on my own. Any advice would be appreciated. Rick

[Mike DC]

I don't know what to tell you to fix this, but I can tell you what might be relevant to the trouble: 



There are two different thicknesses of glass for the windshields in these cars.  The factory made a thicker one originally, and then in the early 1970s the replacement glass was made a little thinner (the auto industy was getting better-grade safety glass, so it was thinned out a little to drop some weight).

I don't know which one all the replacement glass is, I think it's still the thinner one. 
And there are probably two different gasket requirements, whether they actually make two gaskets these days or not. 

I think at one point, the trouble was the gaskets were still thicker-glass type, and the glass was only being sold thinner.  I'm not sure though. 

The windshields & gasket situation is hard to keep track of. 

[hemi-hampton]

I found out it's very hard to find a glass co. that is competant or capable of doing the older cars. Nowadays they hire kids that only do new cars & the new cars nothing like the old cars, The newer cars dont have this Gaskett or zipper stuff so they are clueless & panick when confronted with this set up. You have to find a knowledgeable old timer. LEON.

[Mike DC]

I've been thinking about putting some effort into redoing the whole windshield mounting area on my street cruiser during its resto.

The factory setup doesn't seem to seal well, I can't get glass shops that know what to do with it, and the modern sealing methods seem easier & cheaper to use.  Even the factory chrome trim mounting method involves areas to trap water and holes drilled in the sheetmetal to help start the rust.  The factory procedure all just seems like a mess every way you stack it. 

I have the urge to just start with the bare unibody metal and the trim-mounting holes welded up, sit down with a repro glass & some good used chrome trim, and just come up with something new to make it all work. 

[JimShine]

AMD is doing the correct thickness glass. But try getting a picture of them. I would buy a tinted one tomorrow if the tint and tint stripe on the top were accurate. But they just put out stock photos of some green Non-Charger B body glass that doesn't even look real.

My windshield is factory and does not leak at all. So there has to be a way of making them watertight. I am really worried about changing mine as I figure it will likely leak.

[mikepmcs]

I can attest to the leak issue.  When I wash my car I never get the hose near the windshield cause it rained inside once.  At least now I know why.

v/r
Mike

[oldgold69]

i used to install auto glass in the 70's.  mopar rubbers get stiff in the corners  and the centers don't get under the lip until the corners are part way down  that's when they crack. so you have to soap the lip  real good  so it fits over the glass over the top  then tap it down gently it will set it self.  try it with your busted glass can't hurt it anymore. as far as sealing they used to use liguid butyl rubber and used to put under the lip all the way around .then zip the gasket shut. what tool did you use to try and install the glass. we used  a chrysler hook and a plastic stick  you have to pull the rubber away from the glass to get the lip to go over the glass  but you have to keep the pressure of the rubber  from pulling on the glass. all these new installer are allowed to do is glue them in. urethane is ok for new cars  it sucks in old cars

[wetfeetmi]

 Thanks for the response...I do not think the glass thickness is my problem. It would seem to me that a thinner glass would go in the gasket a little easier. I think the height of the glass is the bigger issue. The tolerances are too close for such a thick gasket. Maybe if I bake the gasket in the sun first.  The zipper system seems flawed to me too!

[Mike DC]

 

urethane is ok for new cars  it sucks in old cars

Why would it be bad in old cars?  Are you saying that just in the sense that it's non-original? 


I think that's the preferred way to replace the butyl stuff these days.  There's a pretty accepted opinion that it lasts longer than the butyl, etc. 

Look at a 2nd-gen Charger's (non-aero) rear window.  That rear glass looks like an ideal glue-in job very much like a modern windshield.  Maybe it needs a couple of blocks to space it right, but otherwise that looks like a modern "squirt & stick" job aside from the chrome trim. 

[oldgold69]

 i have nothing against eurethane it's a good product .  the thing about eurethane is that .once it is in place there is no changing it.  the gasket thickness has to be perfect. or the chrome does not fit right. then if the glass has to come out it usually gets wrecked.  the reason they used eurethane was to help the cars in roll over tests back in the 70's  and it's been that way till today. butyl will settle down in the pinchweld a little after it's installed . then this helps your chrome settle in place.  i just know how to put glass in the old way.  i've talked to new installers  and understand how it's done. i just in stall what  i  know.

[six-tee-nine]

I mostly use a thick kind of vaseline to put these windows in.
I just put a thick layer on the window frame.

So when you put in the window is helps it slide in place better, it is not agressive for paints (some soap detergents are so be carefull) and when you should have a spot where your gasket does'nt seal 100% the vaseline works as a sealant too.
When your done it's easy to clean up (liquid butyl will be a pain in the a**) and last but not least, its greasy too so it might just help to prevent the window frame from rusting when water gets trapped in between of the gasket and the frame.