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Replacing Front Windshield

J

jonward786

Member
Over the past few weeks as many of you know, Cali has gotten an inordinate amount of rain, and weather.com tells me there is more coming. I knew my windshield was leaking a little bit cause i would see a couple drops here and there on my floor mats. Little did i know, it was running off to the sides of the mat so i could not see the real damage, the carpet underneath the mats was SOAKED. took 2+ rolls of paper towels to get it somewhat dry.

Needless to say i need to get this windshield done quickly. Any tips or advice for the job from those of you who have done it? how do i remove the chrome trim around the border of the window? i was told that in addition to the rubber seal (68 coupe) i will need to use 3M's bedding & glazing compound.

any other tips would be greatly appreciated. thanks

-jon
 
You can buy a trim tool at BlottoZone or PepBoyz for ~$8 or use a small screwdriver wrapped in tape instead. I don't really remember what I used to take the trim off. :rofl

I haven't installed one of these windshields yet, but I have taken out a couple factory ones. I think I've heard 3 tubes of Bedding & Glazing would be enough and I believe it, the factory gooped the heck out of them.

Put some compound in the channel in the rubber seal itself and when the winshield is installed, fill up the empty space covered by the chrome trim, before you install the trim. Also, add some extra to all of the corners...most of the leaks I've seen were at the corners, and this seems to be how Ford wanted it back in 1966, from the originals I saw. (?)

I'm sure someone else with more experience with old-type windshields will come along and add some tips, I'm used to dealing with urethane glued glass myself.

Edit: damn, craig#2, you type faster than I do! Excellent question!
 
i spent 22 yrs installing auto glass & i would run a couple tests before tearing into anything. first, take a hose & run some water on the cowl & firewall taking care not to get any on the windshield. if everything is dry after doing this for a while, move up to the windshield. i would recommend removing the inside metal trim that fits between the dash pad & w/s. if water is entering thru the glas or rubber gasket, you will see it with the trim removed. if the w/s needs a redo, purchase one of the trim removal tools instead of using a screwdriver, thats a good way to damage the outer trim & break the glass. once the trim is removed, if you are replacing the gasket, cut the old one off with a razor blade & you stand less chance of breaking the glass. after you install the glass w/ new gasket, use the bedding compound & as others mentioned, fill the gap around the outside & also run some between the glass & gasket. get some latex gloves & after the bedding compound is put between the gasket & body, take a gloved finger & smooth out the sealer while forcing it down deep into the space. snap the outer trim on before cleanup, as the trim will squeeze out some of the excess sealer. best thing to use for cleanup is kerosene as it won't hurt your paint like the adhesive solvents could.
 
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