TR3A Windshield glass replacement

[foster461]

When my TR3A left Florida it had a small crack in the top of the windshield. By the time it got to MA the crack was from top to bottom and the car will not pass the state inspection until it gets a new windshield.

 

The shipment from Moss arrived today and I have the glass and I think all of the parts and I have just removed the assembly from the car and removed the cracked glass from the frame.

 

I have a few observations/questions..

 

1. When I removed the two big machine screws each side to detach the windshield assembly from the body I was expecting to slide the assembly off brackets attached to the body but instead the machine screws go through the bottom of the stanchion and then through the bracket into the body so with the screws removed there is nothing stopping the whole thing from falling over. I wonder is this because the later cars that were not provisioned for aeroscreens were not designed for frequent windshield removal ?. There are no additional holes in the plate or the body so I dont think it has been messed with.

 

2. When I removed the cracked glass I found a rubber glazing strip around the top and sides of the glass (had to fight to get the glass out of the frame) and a much smaller (less than .5 inch) strip on one side of the glass on the bottom edge. The kit from Moss includes a long glazing seal that is about 1.5 to 2 inches wide and I assume that is essentially wrapped over the edge of the glass before it is shoved/coerced into the frame. Am I correct that the glazing seal is meant to go all the way around the glass and the upper frame and lower frame all seal with the same rubber seal ?

 

3. I am not convinced that the screws that attach the stanchions to the frame are the correct length and one of them is missing. I read a warning that the length is important but I cant find a reference that says which size goes where. Anybody have that detail ?

 

FYI the original windshield cracked because one of the soft top fasteners was too long and it cracked the glass right at that point.

 

Stan

[Colin Fairhurst]

Hi Stan,

I have fitted a new windscreen to a TR2 using the Moss seal that did go all around the glass.

I found that the new glass was not the same shape as the original glass to the extent that eventually I had to purchase a set of wiper blades that are designed for a curved windscreen because the rigid straight blades would only wipe the glass where they touched.

I recommend that you try the fit of the new glass in the frame "dry" without the seal and if necessary bend by hand the frame to fit the glass so that when you fit the glass with the rubber seal there will not be any stresses on the glass.

I also found that there were small gaps in the bottom corners which I sealed with mastic.

Some of the reproduction rubber seals are thicker than the original ones and they can cause all sorts of problems which often end up with the new glass being damaged.

I don'nt know anything about the later windscreen brackets.

Regards, Colin.

[Don Elliott]

Stan - I'll send you photos.

[TR 2100]

Stan,

 

The deletion of the provision for aeroscreens and the change from

dzus fastening with slide to bolt-on were so far apart that I would

not think there was any connection.

 

The seal should be in one piece. I believe different suppliers may

provide slightly different thicknesses of seal. General rule is -

if you can get the windscreen into the frame without too much bother,

then the seal is too thin!!

The windscreen is smaller than the overall size of frame - this can

lead to the windscreen dropping slightly, leaving a small gap at the

top. This is made worse by the hood tending to lift at speed.

 

Personally, I would measure up carefully and lay a couple of strips

of rubber in the bottom section of the frame.

I would also do the same at the top, but for a different reason.

You already know that if the windscreen touches the top fasteners,

the screen will crack. So why not lay some thin rubber strip in the

top of the frame to stop this happening?

 

The stanchion to frame screws - I seem to recall there are two lengths,

this is to accommodate the stanchion being thicker at the bottom.

If you can get the correct screws - great, but even then, the most

important precaution is to check the length of the screw to make sure

it is no longer than it needs to be to locate fully in the tapped plate.

 

AlanR

[stuart]

Stan I will email you full set of instructions tonight.

Stuart.

[angelfj]

Stan I will email you full set of instructions tonight.

Stuart.

 

 

Stan, would you mind sharing those instructions, please?

[stuart]

Stan, would you mind sharing those instructions, please?

 

Frank I will send them to you as well.

Stuart.

[foster461]

Thanks everyone for the great info. I can see that re-assembly of the glass and new top and bottom seals is going to be a lot harder than the dis assembly. The hood fasteners for the top of the windshield came from TRF and they look like the correct length to me, barely protruding into the channel but I will double check and take a dremel to any that look like they will be a problem.

 

I have a new box of band-aids at the ready. I already stabbed myself getting the old top seal out (it was as hard as a rock and I essentially had to chisel it out of the channel)

 

Stan

[EdKing]

The screw lengths are important as a smidgeon too long and they can screw into your new glass and consequently screw your new glass. As I recall the longer screw goes at the bottom and the other two above. Moss sell the right ones

[Dave Larnder]

Hi Stan

I had exactly the same trouble as you with the cracked glass. What I did was to remove the offending Tenax fastener and file a smidgen off the length and left the others alone, The car has since done a 2895 mile round trip to Le Mans with the hood up to keep the sun off of us during the 4 day drive there and back and no trouble with the Tenaxes.

Colin: How come you have a curved screen? my replacement one is still flat as before so no need to bend the frame which sounds a bit iffy to me.

BTW. When I took the old glass out, there was about 5 pieces of square rubber placed equally along the length of the bottom frame to pack up the glass so that there is no gap at the top once the new glass has settled in.

Oh Yes! what a pleasure it is to drive the car with a windscreen you can see through with no old scatches and other blemishes, it's almost like driving without any glass in front of you.

Dave

[BrianC]

I'm not sure about the early TR2s but I thought all the later sidescreen cars had slightly curved glass. Leastways, all three that I have are curved, as was the broken one which I had replaced on my first TR3A. Maybe some current repros are flat and that's a cause for concern as I intend to refurbish a couple once I've had the frames rechromed (finance director permitting

Edited October 30, 2010 by BrianC

[david ferry]

Glasses absolutely shouldn't be flat.

 

David

[Guest ntc]

Glasses absolutely shouldn't be flat.

 

David

 

 

Concur just changed mine not flat

[Don Elliott]

After an incident in 1962 or so, where the bonnet flipped up and back, the impact of the bonnet on the frame flattened the frame. I didn't realise it and put in a new glass. The frame was so flat that the new glass cracked immediately. So I took it out and bent the frame over my knee to get the correct curve so the third glass slid right into the channel and it's been like that ever since. But I've changed the glass two more times since then.

[stuart]

Flat glasses do turn up now and then and my theory is that their are some dodgy repros around and you should always check the shape of the glass to the frame first before fitting. I did have one last year that had a major ripple in it all the way along the bottom, so much so that it touched both edges of the bottom rail in alternate places It wasnt unknown in years gone by to find glasses that had been cut down from Healey ones and I had one a while ago that slightly baffled me when I went to fit a new glass as whoever had fitted the previous one had cut the bottom ends of the top surround down to fit the slightly shorter glass. leaving me with a gap either side of about half an inch when I went to fit the new one.

Stuart

[TR 2100]

Glasses absolutely shouldn't be flat.

 

David

 

I seem to recall that glasses were designed with a 3/4" curve

so that, at speed, they remained slightly curved and remained

in compression.

 

AlanR

[Ashley James]

COH Baines in SE England supply the rubber strip that holds the glass into the frame but doesn't necessarily seal it or go all the way round. Get as much as you can in, but not so much as to make assembly of the frame a problem. If necessary cut it into short lengths and trim it so that is below the chrome edge.

Tiger Seal in a caulking gun is what seals and finishes the job. Use masking tape on the chrome and the glass and put a tidy bead right the way round. A wet finger will smooth off irregularities.

This is how coachbuilders have always done it. Tiger Seal is the secret!

Ash

PS. I haven't done my TR yet but I have the Bentley and Bristol.

[Dave Larnder]

Hi Guys

 

Yes! my glass has a slight curve in it but not enough to make the wipers miss places during the swing, I have standard wiper arms and wipers and they clear the glass entirely when in operation. The big snag at the moment is that I can't get my wipers to work, after I rewired them to a different circuit. I think the problem is in the PARK position, when it gets into that, it can't restart. I found that out when I moved the top cover plate around a bit and when energised the wipers moved slightly until it came into the park position again.

Any ideas anybody please?

Dave

[stuart]

Hi Guys

 

Yes! my glass has a slight curve in it but not enough to make the wipers miss places during the swing, I have standard wiper arms and wipers and they clear the glass entirely when in operation. The big snag at the moment is that I can't get my wipers to work, after I rewired them to a different circuit. I think the problem is in the PARK position, when it gets into that, it can't restart. I found that out when I moved the top cover plate around a bit and when energised the wipers moved slightly until it came into the park position again.

Any ideas anybody please?

Dave

 

Sounds as if you have the wiring wrong. Check that you have the colours (Green and Green and black) the right way round and that the switch wiring is correct.

Stuart.

[Dave Larnder]

Sounds as if you have the wiring wrong. Check that you have the colours (Green and Green and black) the right way round and that the switch wiring is correct.

Stuart.

 

 

Hi Stuart

 

I have the green to terminal 2 (thats the one with the slight cut out in the body) and it is the upper one, and is connected to the new fuse box and relays that I have installed. The green and black to terminal 1 goes to the switch in the dash, with the other side returned to earth. It doesn't make any difference which way round the wires are on the dash switch as it has the same construction as the panel light switch which I had to take to pieces this weekend to fix it as it made no difference whether it was in or out the lights stayed on all the time as long as the car's main lights were turned on. The earth screw on the body of the motor is wired to it's own earth, that I'm told facilitates parking, maybe that's what I must try disconnected to see if it makes it work.

Dave

[Guest ntc]

Nope all wrong the wiper unit is earth triggered with the self park check the the little wire on the top first it may well be hanging on. I will post later to give you the correct way to connect

[Colin Fairhurst]

Hi Stan

I had exactly the same trouble as you with the cracked glass. What I did was to remove the offending Tenax fastener and file a smidgen off the length and left the others alone, The car has since done a 2895 mile round trip to Le Mans with the hood up to keep the sun off of us during the 4 day drive there and back and no trouble with the Tenaxes.

Colin: How come you have a curved screen? my replacement one is still flat as before so no need to bend the frame which sounds a bit iffy to me.

 

 

As I understand it the very early TR2s or may be only the prototypes had flat screens which the works found would crack when they carried out high speed testing. Apparently the wind pressure bent the frame back. The solution was to make the screen curved out about 3/4 inch and fit a little bracket carrying a rubber buffer inside at the centre using the mirror fixings.

The problem that I had with the new glass was/is that it is very very slightly curved from top to bottom as well and the original straight rigid blades will only wipe the centre portion of the glass hence the three part flexible spoon fit blades.

Regards, Colin.

Edited November 1, 2010 by Colin Fairhurst

[foster461]

Thanks to the great advice here and some expert direction from Stuart (who as far as I am concerned is a God) the new glass is in, the windshield is back on the car and I got my inspection sticker allowing me to legally drive the TR3A until next November should I be foolish enough to want to drive it anywhere in its current condition.

 

The glass and seal replacement took a while (around 5 hours) but it was not too bad. I did make a mistake with the way I trimmed the scuttle seal and I will have to do that again once I see how it really should look.

 

Stan