On Mar 10, 4:06*pm, N8N wrote:
On Mar 10, 3:45*pm, DerbyDad03 wrote:





On Mar 10, 3:28*pm, N8N wrote:

On Mar 8, 2:12*pm, AZ Nomad wrote:

On Mon, 8 Mar 2010 18:47:55 +0000 (UTC), Jules Richardson wrote:
On Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:34:10 -0600, AZ Nomad wrote:
I've heard that a soak in castor oil's good for reviving it, but I don't
know if that's a genuine fix or just a temporary one.

The fix is replace it.
Definitely, if the part exists. For a lot of old vehicles (I'm talking
vintage stuff when I say "old cars", not e.g. 1980's clunkers) that isn't
always the case - but although I've had a few vintage cars pass through
my hands, I've always been able to source spares or had good donor parts
handy, so it's not something I've ever needed to try.

I think you can buy the rubber separately. *Don't know how hard it
would be to make it fit.

**** it. *Take a modern blade and tie wrap it to the old arm. *Maybe a
little duct tape.

I have investigated this for my old Studebaker which uses 12" Trico
blades (shared with pre-63 Corvette) and the only thing that I've
found that will work are the expen$ive repro blades sold for Corvette
enthusiasts. *I would really like to use silicone inserts but the
profile of the "claws" of the blade is different, and attempting to
trim to fit with a razor blade did not work. *Now maybe if I had a jig
to trim them things would be different.

nate- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

"Now maybe if I had a jig to trim them things would be different.
"

When I think of a jig I think of all the one's I've made for various
woodworking and/or metal work projects. The few hours I spend making a
jig saves me countless hours of layout and measuring when performing
the same task over and over again.

I don't know exactly what type of "timming" you have to do, but
couldn't you spend a few hours making a jig that you could then use
forever?

possibly. *the problem is that a) I haven't a clue how to make a jig
to do what I need it to do and b) $20 every couple of years for some
overpriced but "show correct" wiper inserts really aren't the end of
the world.

I *could* just replace the blades with new aftermarket ones and
sidestep the problem, but I like the look of the old, low-profile
polished stainless blades.

I don't have a good profile pic of old and new refills handy, but
they're significantly different, with the new style being much
larger. *If you go to Corvette Central and search for a '62 wiper
blade that's exactly what I'm using on my '55 Studebaker. *(it was
actually used 56-64, but refills are available for those, and they're
also 12" long unlike the original '55 blades which were 11" and are
stashed away for safe keeping if I ever decide to restore the car to
show correctness, which will likely never happen.)

nate- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

"and are stashed away for safe keeping"

I assume they're hermetically sealed in a mayonnaise jar under Funk &
Wagnalls' porch, right?

We wouldn't want them to be all dry rotted when you pull them out...

On Mar 10, 4:34*pm, DerbyDad03 wrote:
On Mar 10, 4:06*pm, N8N wrote:





On Mar 10, 3:45*pm, DerbyDad03 wrote:

On Mar 10, 3:28*pm, N8N wrote:

On Mar 8, 2:12*pm, AZ Nomad wrote:

On Mon, 8 Mar 2010 18:47:55 +0000 (UTC), Jules Richardson wrote:
On Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:34:10 -0600, AZ Nomad wrote:
I've heard that a soak in castor oil's good for reviving it, but I don't
know if that's a genuine fix or just a temporary one.

The fix is replace it.
Definitely, if the part exists. For a lot of old vehicles (I'm talking
vintage stuff when I say "old cars", not e.g. 1980's clunkers) that isn't
always the case - but although I've had a few vintage cars pass through
my hands, I've always been able to source spares or had good donor parts
handy, so it's not something I've ever needed to try.

I think you can buy the rubber separately. *Don't know how hard it
would be to make it fit.

**** it. *Take a modern blade and tie wrap it to the old arm. *Maybe a
little duct tape.

I have investigated this for my old Studebaker which uses 12" Trico
blades (shared with pre-63 Corvette) and the only thing that I've
found that will work are the expen$ive repro blades sold for Corvette
enthusiasts. *I would really like to use silicone inserts but the
profile of the "claws" of the blade is different, and attempting to
trim to fit with a razor blade did not work. *Now maybe if I had a jig
to trim them things would be different.

nate- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

"Now maybe if I had a jig to trim them things would be different.
"

When I think of a jig I think of all the one's I've made for various
woodworking and/or metal work projects. The few hours I spend making a
jig saves me countless hours of layout and measuring when performing
the same task over and over again.

I don't know exactly what type of "timming" you have to do, but
couldn't you spend a few hours making a jig that you could then use
forever?

possibly. *the problem is that a) I haven't a clue how to make a jig
to do what I need it to do and b) $20 every couple of years for some
overpriced but "show correct" wiper inserts really aren't the end of
the world.

I *could* just replace the blades with new aftermarket ones and
sidestep the problem, but I like the look of the old, low-profile
polished stainless blades.

I don't have a good profile pic of old and new refills handy, but
they're significantly different, with the new style being much
larger. *If you go to Corvette Central and search for a '62 wiper
blade that's exactly what I'm using on my '55 Studebaker. *(it was
actually used 56-64, but refills are available for those, and they're
also 12" long unlike the original '55 blades which were 11" and are
stashed away for safe keeping if I ever decide to restore the car to
show correctness, which will likely never happen.)

nate- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

"and are stashed away for safe keeping"

I assume they're hermetically sealed in a mayonnaise jar under Funk &
Wagnalls' porch, right?

We wouldn't want them to be all dry rotted when you pull them out...

um, I think they're in a cardboard box in my garage somewhere.

nate

On Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:52:34 -0800, DerbyDad03 wrote:
We managed to find a piece of wire in the trunk that was barely long
enough to allow the passenger to let the wipers go up and then pull them
back down. By barely long enough, I mean that our hand would have to go
outside the window, into the cold rain, just a little bit to get the
wipers to go up. We spent hours letting the wipers go up, and pulling
them back down, letting them go up and pulling them back down over and
over and over again.

Nice story.

I've lost count of how many times I've done emergency fixes to things "on
the road" using boot laces...

Jules Richardson wrote:
On Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:52:34 -0800, DerbyDad03 wrote:
We managed to find a piece of wire in the trunk that was barely long
enough to allow the passenger to let the wipers go up and then pull
them back down. By barely long enough, I mean that our hand would
have to go outside the window, into the cold rain, just a little bit
to get the wipers to go up. We spent hours letting the wipers go up,
and pulling them back down, letting them go up and pulling them back
down over and over and over again.

Nice story.

I've lost count of how many times I've done emergency fixes to things
"on the road" using boot laces...

Cadets at West Point are told to always carry a bit of string...

On Mar 10, 9:13*pm, "HeyBub" wrote:
Jules Richardson wrote:
On Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:52:34 -0800, DerbyDad03 wrote:
We managed to find a piece of wire in the trunk that was barely long
enough to allow the passenger to let the wipers go up and then pull
them back down. By barely long enough, I mean that our hand would
have to go outside the window, into the cold rain, just a little bit
to get the wipers to go up. We spent hours letting the wipers go up,
and pulling them back down, letting them go up and pulling them back
down over and over and over again.

Nice story.

I've lost count of how many times I've done emergency fixes to things
"on the road" using boot laces...

Cadets at West Point are told to always carry a bit of string...

Is that in case they have to drive a 72 Javelin from Cleveland to NYC
with broken wipers?

On Mar 8, 10:44*pm, Tony wrote:
OK, this is a true story. *Many moons ago my girlfriend was driving when
we hit some really heavy rain. *She had the wipers on slow. *It rained
harder yet. *Still, even though we could hardly see, she left them on
slow. *I couldn't take it anymore and asked why she won't turn the
wipers on high? *And I swear this is true....

she replied, "Then what will I do if it rains even harder?"

Have you ever seen the wipers on high actually improve visibility?

All I've ever seen the high setting do is break the wipers. Threw the
arm right off my old clunker Caddy, and totally thrashed the entire
wiper mechanism on a friend's minivan.

On Mar 11, 12:47*pm, wrote:
On Mar 8, 10:44*pm, Tony wrote:

OK, this is a true story. *Many moons ago my girlfriend was driving when
we hit some really heavy rain. *She had the wipers on slow. *It rained
harder yet. *Still, even though we could hardly see, she left them on
slow. *I couldn't take it anymore and asked why she won't turn the
wipers on high? *And I swear this is true....

she replied, "Then what will I do if it rains even harder?"


Have you ever seen the wipers on high actually improve visibility?

Yes, in torrrential downpours, without a doubt.

Of course, I use Rain-X washer fluid in my van and rarely need my
wipers at speeds above 40 - 50 MPH.

All I've ever seen the high setting do is break the wipers. Threw the
arm right off my old clunker Caddy, and totally thrashed the entire
wiper mechanism on a friend's minivan.

wrote:
On Mar 8, 10:44 pm, Tony wrote:
OK, this is a true story. Many moons ago my girlfriend was driving when
we hit some really heavy rain. She had the wipers on slow. It rained
harder yet. Still, even though we could hardly see, she left them on
slow. I couldn't take it anymore and asked why she won't turn the
wipers on high? And I swear this is true....

she replied, "Then what will I do if it rains even harder?"

Have you ever seen the wipers on high actually improve visibility?

All I've ever seen the high setting do is break the wipers. Threw the
arm right off my old clunker Caddy, and totally thrashed the entire
wiper mechanism on a friend's minivan.

Yes, it has always helped me. On my old work van an inch of ice frozen
hard onto the roof melted and slid down the windshield at a stop sign.
Both wipers were facing down across the hood pointing to the road. I
went to a chevy dealer and took it apart so I could go right in if I
needed anything. Luckily I was able to bend the linkage back to normal
and didn't need any parts.

DerbyDad03 wrote:
On Mar 11, 12:47 pm, wrote:
On Mar 8, 10:44 pm, Tony wrote:

OK, this is a true story. Many moons ago my girlfriend was driving when
we hit some really heavy rain. She had the wipers on slow. It rained
harder yet. Still, even though we could hardly see, she left them on
slow. I couldn't take it anymore and asked why she won't turn the
wipers on high? And I swear this is true....
she replied, "Then what will I do if it rains even harder?"


Have you ever seen the wipers on high actually improve visibility?

Yes, in torrrential downpours, without a doubt.

Of course, I use Rain-X washer fluid in my van and rarely need my
wipers at speeds above 40 - 50 MPH.

I tried Rain-X about 20 years ago and hated it. It made the brand new
wipers leave streaks. I scrubbed it off the windshield but it took some
time, and maybe new wipers to get a clear windshield again.

Then at the time the new hot product was "Trianco" wiper blades. They
were the worst wipers I ever had.

On Mar 11, 2:16*pm, Tony wrote:
DerbyDad03 wrote:
On Mar 11, 12:47 pm, wrote:
On Mar 8, 10:44 pm, Tony wrote:

OK, this is a true story. *Many moons ago my girlfriend was driving when
we hit some really heavy rain. *She had the wipers on slow. *It rained
harder yet. *Still, even though we could hardly see, she left them on
slow. *I couldn't take it anymore and asked why she won't turn the
wipers on high? *And I swear this is true....
she replied, "Then what will I do if it rains even harder?"

Have you ever seen the wipers on high actually improve visibility?

Yes, in torrrential downpours, without a doubt.

Of course, I use Rain-X washer fluid in my van and rarely need my
wipers at speeds above 40 - 50 MPH.

I tried Rain-X about 20 years ago and hated it. *It made the brand new
wipers leave streaks. *I scrubbed it off the windshield but it took some
time, and maybe new wipers to get a clear windshield again.

Then at the time the new hot product was "Trianco" wiper blades. *They
were the worst wipers I ever had.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

As I said, I use the Rain-X washer fluid - not the straight Rain-X
wipe-on product.

The only issue I experience is that on rare occasions, when the street
lights or sun are at the right (wrong?) angle *and* I spray the
windows with the fluid, I get a haze over the windshield for a second
or so. A couple of extra swipes with the wipers clears it right up.

My wife found it a bit disconcerting at first, but once she realized
that it only happens when conditions are "perfect" and that it only
lasts for a second, she decided that the advantage of not using wipers
on the highway outweighed the very rare occurrences of the haze.

On 03/08/2010 12:32 PM, AZ Nomad wrote:
On Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:35:28 GMT, stayin@home. (Way Back Jack) stayin@home wrote:
always want to replace wipers? Is there a really good profit margin,
or do wipers truly need frequent replacement?

Must be something about your locale. I've lived in 7 states in the
northeast and southwest and never had a mechanic offer to work on
anything but his main task and perhaps engine components like
fanbelts, hoses, etc.

Oil change shops are the worst: they want to pad the bill with
anything they can find that they are competant to fix, yet I've never
had one offer to replace wipers.

Maine oil change shops like to sell you new oil plugs. Especially
Waterville Maine. Of course there is something wrong with yours.??

--
LSFT

On Fri, 12 Mar 2010 09:02:41 -0500, LSMFT wrote:

On 03/08/2010 12:32 PM, AZ Nomad wrote:
On Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:35:28 GMT, stayin@home. (Way Back Jack) stayin@home wrote:
always want to replace wipers? Is there a really good profit margin,
or do wipers truly need frequent replacement?

Must be something about your locale. I've lived in 7 states in the
northeast and southwest and never had a mechanic offer to work on
anything but his main task and perhaps engine components like
fanbelts, hoses, etc.

Oil change shops are the worst: they want to pad the bill with
anything they can find that they are competant to fix, yet I've never
had one offer to replace wipers.

Maine oil change shops like to sell you new oil plugs. Especially
Waterville Maine. Of course there is something wrong with yours.??

Yes. They stripped it.