A stretched Windshield Frame?

[ramseyt]

When I bought my '66 1A the windshield was not on the car. A new dash pad was in process. I installed it and found that the top of the door quarter window hits the windshield frame. The "A" post was tilted back! Rick M at SS said that the soft top shrinks with age and the windshield frame can become stretched. They offer a Windshield Post Adjusting Nut #WS58 to jack up the windshield at the "A" posts to make the quarter window and windshield frame parallel again. I installed the WS58's and jacked the windshield frame up at the "A" posts for parallel and now the top of the windshield is 3/8" higher than necessary to align with the top of the door quarter window. This leaves an air/water gap above the door window glass with either hard top installed or soft top up! When I first saw the problem I removed the windshield glass and checked the metal frame opening. I found it to be very close to the same dimension as when measured up the middle of the windshield glass + 2x the rubber thickness. I suspected that I may have the wrong windshield frame but mine has 5 mounting studs and the body has the same 5 corresponding holes. Is there another model windshield that has the 5 studs but is the correct dimension for my car? I've seen other windshield frame assemblies listed for sale but they often have 7 studs. If they had 5 studs then they were listed to fit my car. Does someone out there have a set of the correct dimensions so I can get to the bottom of this problem?

Any light shed on this matter would be greatly appreciated.

 

[michael-king]

You could get a 7 stud and remove 2 of them.. as for the frame stretching.. hadn't heard of that, the screens originally had rubber edges at the corners to set them at the right angle and space them up, they were then packed with mastic, over time that dries and the rubber crushes and the screens top edge gets pulled back by the soft top tension and the gap at the top of the windscreen frame and the 1/4 light closes up.

Ricks adjusters work a treat for setting the screen rake angle.

As for 2 different frames.. all the series 3-V Alpine and tiger frames have the same dimensions and windscreens just different amount of mounting studs.. and IIRC they went from 7 to 5.. then back to 7 again.. or the reverse.. i forget which way around, but was cover in the book of Norman.

 

[65beam]

frame

one of your problems could be the dash pad. the current ones being sold need the foam shaved underneath the area where the windshield sets and also in other areas to make them fit. otherwise it throws the angle of the frame off. it may only be a small amount at the body but it's off a lot at the top of the frame. we found this on the last two pads we installed. one was in 2009 and again this time last year. i have one to be installed on the harrington we're restoring now and it has the same problem.

 

[ramseyt]

I forgot to mention I trimmed the dash pad.

one of your problems could be the dash pad. the current ones being sold need the foam shaved underneath the area where the windshield sets and also in other areas to make them fit. otherwise it throws the angle of the frame off. it may only be a small amount at the body but it's off a lot at the top of the frame. we found this on the last two pads we installed. one was in 2009 and again this time last year. i have one to be installed on the harrington we're restoring now and it has the same problem.

I failed to mention that the first thing I did was go back and trim the dash pad back to allow the WS frame to set flat on the body metal. It probably lowered the frame 1/8", (the thickness of the pad in that area), but didn't change the rake angle to prevent hitting the 1/4 window at the top.