The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Vacuum wiper question

On my 49 3600
When I turn the wipers on they go about 1/2 way and stop. With some help. When I shut them off the arms immediately return to the park position
Is that a sign the motor needs to be rebuilt?

Or should I disconnect the linkage and see what it does?

https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/12561/2.html

Most attempts to revive a vacuum wiper motor with various chemicals work for I time then fails again. Whatever liquid you force into the wiper motor is sucked back into your engine so be careful what you use.

The leather or leather-like material of the paddle that fits the contour of the housing ages and becomes stiff. The material needs to be somewhat flexible and is coated with a type of grease. The paddle must seal well in order to provide maximum torque to move the wipers. There is an art to rebuilding the paddle. The original repair kits are hard to find and many restoration businesses make their own parts. They do not sell kits.

Either the linkage is binding up (stopping the motor from doing a full sweep), or the motor needs to be rebuilt. Shutting the wipers off and the arms going to park is normal.
First check the linkage under the dash, then disconnect it from the motor and see what the motor does.

The answer to all your windshield wiper problems: RainX

Thanks guys
Guess it time for me to get my large butt under the dash

Otto rainx is another options 😂

Believe me, I use it on all my cars, even the ones that have working wipers!

Vacuum wipers are so crappy, even when functioning properly I don't bother using them.

Have to agree with Otto..
I rarely drive my 50' in the pouring rain but Rain-X works great...or wax your windshield...
My wipers work but they really don't wipe it.
They are the original vacuum wipers.
-T

I had mine rebuilt by Fricken Ficken Wiper Service two years ago and they work awesome, even under light load. Here s a link [Link]

I kept vacuum wipers just for the cool factor and to say I made them work. I took the motor apart and doused it all with ATF and a penetrating oil and ran a long vacuum line from under hood to bench with wiper motor. It started working but the switching valve was still sticky. A little more fiddling and oil and she came back around and they have been working for a few years now no problems. They dont wipe much of anything but they do “operate”.

**They don't wipe much of anything but they do “operate”.**

The wiper motor must have a good paddle seal inside. Leaking vacuum causes reduced torque which causes the wipers to stop moving. It's like worn piston rings in an engine causing blow-by and reduced horsepower.

The weakness of good working vacuum motors is when the engine is under load and not producing enough vacuum. It's really not a fault of the wiper motor but a loss of vacuum. That's why Trico made the Electro-Vac.

Phak1, you have a typo. The business is called Ficken Wiper Service. www.rebuildingtricowipers.com

Thanks, corrected original post.

Fricken? - Ficken? - a Freudian slip?

Ficken Wiper Service 132 Calvert Avenue West Babylon, NY 11704
631-587-3332 -- They are the best.

plane fixer Mine do that same way,have cheated my way home in a shower by turning on and off as I go. Might give the unit some hydraulic jack oil,it really helped my vacuum brake booster. I tested it on a wheel cylinder cup,did not hurt the rubber. If the wiper has a leather sail in there it might like some lube. Got another unit in my pile,might try that oil on it to see if it will help. Been hot and humid for weeks really slows you up from doing much.

Im thinking that many years ago, somebody at Fickin wiper service told me: If you lubricate it at all, use a small amount of glycerin. As I said that is from memory and was a long time ago. Plus, I don't really know what glycerin is, nor where to buy it.

Glycerin mixes with water.

Ed

Many moons ago Ficken sold Trico repair kits until they ran low. I suspect they make their own parts now. Here is a copy of the repair instructions.
You apply wheel bearing grease to the paddle.
Injecting brake fluid, anti-freeze, 3-in-1 oil, Marvel Mystery oil, snake oil, coconut oil, pine oil, motor oil, moonshine or LOX simply makes the old bearing grease softer for a time.
Oils eventually dry out and so does grease (not silicon, but...you don't want that sucked back into your engine).
The seal material (leather in some cases) of the paddle can harden or crack.
The smart thing to do is send your wiper motor to Ficken and let them do an overhaul.

mike burns Glycerin is used in high quality gauges,like in the oilfield,to protect them from the shock of erratic pressure changes. It is kind of thick like syrup,the gauge has a rubber port where you pour in glycerin is also a relief port .I think you can buy it at the drug store.

Glycerin is the same as glycerol.

I rarely use my wipers since I don't drive the truck in the rain very often but after I wash the truck, I take off for a quick drying drive and have noticed that the wiper arms move much easier on a deceleration as compared to an acceleration. Maybe this is normal on a vacuum running setup.

" . . . the wiper arms move much easier on a deceleration as compared to an acceleration. Maybe this is normal on a vacuum running setup."

That is correct - almost no vacuum to the wipers when accelerating; and, rapid wiper-action otherwise (when decelerating or at idle).

When you need wipers in a rainstorm at higher speeds, you learn the gas-pedal up-down dance-step.

As I dimly recall, there was a vacuum-canister option/accessory to help to avoid/minimize this.

RainX. Just sayin'.

cmayna As a child i recall how the wipers would throb on deceleration especially down hill,the neighbors commented that you always knew when my Dad went by cause in about 5 minutes the rocks would start coming down !

May this topic RIP.

I will keep looking for the Chevrolet vacuum-reserve tank for vacuum-wipers; however, this canister might work?

Here is an old thread on this topic - with link.

Ford F series trucks used a vacuum reservoir through the 70s, 80s and 90s that looks like a coffee can or concentrated orange juice can. I think it was actually made by one of the can companies that supplied them for the food industry.

Anyway, one of those would look right at home under the hood of an AD truck. It's primitive enough that you'd think it was 70 years old.

Hit a junkyard and pull one from a wrecked F-150.

They come in two sizes as well, 1 qt and half gallon.

You can even buy them new for only $15.

https://www.fordpartsgiant.com/oem-1995-ford-f_150-vapor_canister.html

I have doubts if a vacuum reservoir can would work on long trips at highway speeds. Those cans are likely for providing a buffer for fluctuations in vacuum delivery rather than providing a reserve of vacuum.
I would like to hear from someone who has used a reservoir on a 216 or 235 and have evidence that the can solved their wiper woes on extended highway speeds.

Electro-Vac worked but they were expensive.
A few years later cars and trucks had electric wipers.
Sales of Electro-Vac dropped off.

Rube Goldberg made a lot of money on those.

Buoymaker's fourth photo is from my truck build and that Electro-Vac works great. It pulls about -11 inches of Hg which is enough to operate the wipers without the engine running. You turn the knob marked "VAC" to on, which lights up and the Electro-Vac motor only runs when the system vacuum drops to near zero.

The ironic thing is that Trico went to the trouble to design this thing when an electric motor mated to the wiper system would have worked better. Of course, that would make it obvious that vacuum windshield motors were obsolete.

Kent

Rube Goldberg (Trico) did and today for those selling used ones on ebay.
https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/1463798.

From a marketing standpoint, replacing a vacuum motor with an electrical one involves a gearbox and possible under dash fitting issues.
For a universal (various car and truck models) solution with minimum installation issues, the Electro-Vac made sense in it's day.
For a strictly original car or truck with vacuum motor wiper, it can be an era-correct device to have today.
If, for example, you have converted from a generator to alternator then it doesn't make much sense to stay with vacuum wipers.

This is so simple-

FICKEN.

I sent mine off to Ficken Wiper service and they came back great. I never new they could go that fast. The blades themselves don't remove that much water however so I also use RainX.

Ficken Wiper Service - excellent company

Ficken Wiper Service
132 Calvert Avenue
West Babylon, NY 11704
631-587-3332

I cut out the middleman and use RainX exclusively. Vacuum wipers that work perfectly do a poor job at clearing water from windshields. Wipers are just decorations on my vehicles, even the newer ones with electric wipers.