The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Windshield Regulator Repair

To all,

I just finished repairing and putting back into service Lucille's Windshield Regulator! I've posted pictures on my Webshots page in the Windshield folder for viewing. Lucille's windshield would not stay open and was always slipping. I once almost crushed my fingers while messing around with the windshield trying to keep it open. Now the mechanism opens and closes the window with ease!

I started by following the Stovebolt Tech Tips under General Body Work/Windshield Crank Rebuild. I did mine just a tad different by skipping over the redrilling operation and instead "clamped" the cleaned up windshield regulator assembly to its original operating position where both gears would be soundly engaged again and then applied this amazing material called "J-B WELD" in the worn area of the pot metal casting where the pin comes through. It worked like a champ!! Hopefully others can get theirs to work again like it was suppose to!!

J-B is some amazing stuff. And congratulations on fixing your own stuff. I remember when you had to improvise because all these repo parts suppliers weren't in business.

In the early 80's a friend had a '46 with a non working regulator. I took it apart and found the gears stripped. I was taking machine shop at junior college so I took it to class. I made a cutting tool in the shape of the gears, then filled the gears with brass and re-cut them. It worked like a champ. And I got a grade for it.

cletis,

Key word..."Improvise"! When you've got one of these old trucks it's quite obvious that NOS could be found somewhere usually at a high cost or it may not be there at all. People must put their thinking cap on to work out a solution. That to me is "The Challenge", and can lead to positive results which makes a person or group feel "really good" about overcoming that problem. Just like how you went about your repair effort!

Its also fantastic that today we have a place to go such as this Stovebolt website to look for solutions from others. Many heads are better than one!!

Now I just have to figure out how to repair my Defroster Blower Motor!

I got lucky with mine, Hard to turn and the crank handle would wobble around when you turned it! WD-40 fixed the hard turning and replacing 1 missing mounting bolt fixed the wobble!

sometimes you just have to think out side the box. way to go. that JB Weld is some great stuff

Are David's photos of the regulator repair on Lucille still available somewhere?

I wrestled the windshield regulator out of my 1940 KC project and found that the biggest issue was the wheel gear shaft had egged out the hole it resides in allowing it to move away from the worm gear.

Thanks,
Nick

Nick, I did a bit of searching and couldn’t find any still active links to Dave’s original JB Weld repair pictures.

Have you looked at the existing Windshield Crank Tech Tip in case that may help you out??!

Thanks, Dan!

I had seen that, but was concerned that I didn't have any way I can think of to ensure that I was drilling out the bushing precisely where it should be.

I was hoping that the photos of David's JB Weld job would give me an idea of what he did to locate the shaft correctly.

I have never worked with JB Weld and I wonder how long the repair has lasted.

That stuff lasts forever.

My brother patched a hole in his Honda Nighthawk engine block in 2011/2012 and it hasn't leaked a drop since.

I've fixed tons of stuff over the years and wouldn't hesitate to use it for something as minor as the window regulator.

Nick, from the sound of Dave's report above, he moved the cross shaft in the worn out hole to where it engaged with worm gear shaft and held it in place with some sort of clamp. You should be able to see the two gears interface to find that correct position and then use something to keep it in place to try and duplicate his repairs. On that thought, I have no idea how he applied the JB Weld. Without something to act as a barrier between the rotating shaft and the material, no idea how the repair worked without the JB Weld hardening in contact with the shaft. It seems some kind of thin barrier between the shaft and housing is necessary to prevent that from happening.

Perhaps some of our other Art Deco truck owners may have more info on that topic???

If you can get the shaft out of the regulator, wrap it with plastic of some sort, put some JB weld in the hole and insert the plastic wrapped shaft in the correct position. The plastic will prevent the JB weld from sticking to the shaft. Probably a fairly thick plastic would be best, like a heavy duty trash bag.

Thanks folks, you are increasing my confidence.

Tomorrow I will try to get back to the project, finish the disassembly and consider the options.

Keep any suggestions coming. The last time I was doing a project like this was...56 years ago!

Thanks,
Nick

Nick, Just in case some pictures might help, do look at the ones found in the Tech Tip mentioned above. IIRC there are 8 different pics that may be helpful. Maybe while you are doing your project you could snap some before - during - after pics and post them so others may be able to try this approach (hint hint)!

Well, since I didn't have the equipment I would have liked to have had to make a close tolerance repair...I decided to go the JB Weld route and figured that if it didn't work, I could try another route.

First I read over Kip Bonds' Tech Tip on rebuilding the unit. ( https://www.stovebolt.com/techtips/windshield%20crank/index.html )

Photo 1 (attached) shows how egged-out the hole holding the main wheel shaft in the regulator housing was.

I drilled out the brass thrust stop that holds the worm gear shaft in place, pulled it out and then pretty easily removed the worm gear shaft from the housing.

Then I placed the housing with the splined end of the main wheel shaft over an existing hole in a piece of wood that would support the housing while I tapped the shaft from the other side.
Photo 2 shows the splined end of the main wheel shaft partly driven out of the housing.

Photo 3 shows that I mixed up some JB Weld "Steel Reinforced Epoxy", put some tape on the underside of the egged-out hole and put the epoxy in from the top.

I let the material cure for about 24 hours inside the house to stay at a reasonable temperature.

Photo 4 shows the JB Weld after using a file to remove the excess material. (It seemed pretty soft...cured perhaps, but it gave little resistance to the file)
I couldn't think of a precise way to centerpunch the location for drilling the hole for the shaft, so I just gave it my best estimate. I have not worked with JB Weld before, so I was very gentle with the centerpunch and with the drill.

Photo 5 The JB Weld epoxy chipped and gave way to the drill very easily. I was disappointed in how sloppy and ragged the hole I drilled was, but I figured that I should go ahead and reassemble the unit to see if/how it functioned.

In the process of putting things back together, I greased the shafts and used a penetrating spray on the part of the unit that connects to the windshield. That part on my unit was not movable at all, but eventually freed up well.
I didn't know what to use to lubricate the flexible spring piece with, so I tried silicone spray. (I didn't want to use something that would collect dust and grit.) The unit now (on the work bench) operates pretty easily.

Both gears are quite worn, but with the shaft being (pretty much) held in position, it seems that there is enough meat there for the unit to function.

This is where it stands now. I had such a difficult time getting the unit out of the truck that I am going to use different hardware putting it back in to make it easier to remove next time - especially if the repair turns out to be temporary!

I am new to this, so if folks have suggestions for how I could have done this better, I am listening! Also, if the "repair" fails, I will let you know!
Nick

As long as you mixed it properly and let it cure, it will be hard a s a rock eventually.

You live in the desert. How often do you think you're going to use the wipers? Unless you move to Seattle and drive your truck every day, it will never wear out in your lifetime.

Otto, That regulator operates his windshield - opening and closing. Not related to wipers.

Nick, Thanks for coming back and providing your pictures and description of the work. Just a question, but perhaps the JB Weld needed more cure time before drilling??? If you need to do it over, maybe add more JB Weld to that outer casting surface area and don't remove it all down to the original casting. That way it could act as an anchor for the material still filling the hole???

Otto, when it does rain around here it does it impressively!

Dan, leaving a bit more material on the surface is a good thought. Since I was eyeballing the location to drill the hole, it seemed to be a good idea to see the shape of the old opening clearly.

BUT! I am hoping that the JB Weld will work well anyway, because there shouldn't be as much sideways loading on that shaft if the components in the system are lubricated properly and move with relative ease. The main wheel and its gear turn on the shaft - the shaft itself doesn't turn. So if the system requires too much effort when cranking to open/close the windshield, that's when damage will be done. (Of course, I am saying this as one who has never had the regulator attached to the windshield and tried to operate it!)

Nick

Ok. My $.02. I've repaired about 10 of them. Typically, the only serious issue is the fact that the steel "axle" has eaten out the cast housing- a serious design flaw.

So I take it completely apart. Yeah, the brass plug is a PIA. Then I clean everything in my glass bead cabinet. Then I polish the cast parts with a wire brush on my grinder. It makes it shine again.

Then reassemble and carefully clamp the "axle" in the housing to give it light tension on the "sector gear".

Now for the magic. Find a plain steel flat washer that has the same inside diameter as the outside diameter of the axle. Clean the washer like surgically clean. Now butter up the housing and the washer with the J&B and clamp the washer carefully to the housing- being careful to keep the J&B from touching the axle!

Now put it down and forget about it for 2 days. Yes, 48 hours. After that, use it. When I install the "tongue" I punch out the rivet, wind in the tongue, and then reinstall the rivet with a suitable punch.

Now your steel axle wears on a steel washer. They are matched and will be happy for many years.

If this seems too involved, send me a PM. I'll add yours to the queue.

Greenie,

I like that idea very much. It makes sense that one could add a bearing surface!

Thanks!

Do people actually use the crank out windshield feature on these old trucks? We had a '46 pickup when I was growing up, and I can probably count on one hand the number of times that windshield was opened up.
It's cool that they do that, but I've never seen that many that were actually opened up that much.

I open mine on the 37 just about every time i get in it.
Give it a little time and the JB will work wonders.

Rich,
I'm just getting started on this project and when I went to turn the handle on the windshield regulator, it wouldn't move. Since the truck needs pretty much everything done on it, the windshield regulator seemed like a bite-sized step to start with. If something is not there, I can ignore its absence...but if something is present and doesn't work, it makes me crazy!

As Dan, Greenie and Achipmunk have suggested, the next time I do something with JB Weld, I will give it more time. (It was hard enough giving it the 24 hours called for on the package, but next time I will know better and go for at least two full days!)

As for use of these, I use them most of the time when driving my ‘37 or ‘46. The feature is especially handy on hot summer days. They’re added assist to the usual 2/40 air conditioning. You know 2 windows down and 40 mph.😄

Does anyone happen to know the dimensions of the 2 gears in the windshield regulator? My regulator appears to be in good condition with the exception of those 2 things, and I'm looking for a way to avoid a complete rebuild, assuming fixing the gears would be included. I saw somewhere mention of having a gunsmith build replacements; has anyone had experience doing that? Thanks.

DJ, I stumbled across this vendor offering a reproduction main regulator crank shaft that lists for 1941-46 Chevy trucks. They also offer a regulator tape sprocket (with drive gear) . The main page doesn't specify what vehicle application, but the pictures page does mention 1936-47 Dodge Truck. A close look at the detail pictures though compared to the disassembled unit in the tech tip (screenshot below) appear to make it look like a dead wringer. Perhaps at least worth a phone call to see if the tape sprocket would work in your application. These aren't low dollar items, but perhaps the cost is less than finding a person capable of reproducing them that must start from scratch??? Would be interested to hear what you find out from them if you do check them out.

Jim Carter ( oldchevytrucks.com ) offers a rebuild service for $194.25. You send in your core and he forwards it to a machine shop for proper rebuild. He also offers new reproduction stainless steel tongues. This is a great alternative for those of us who don't have the skill or patience to rebuild ourselves.

I concur with everyone who enjoys the open windshield when driving down the road on a hot day. Until it rains...

Kent

Could someone describe the part that is supposed to connect the regulator to the windshield?
It looks like a #8 screw could fit into the hole, but I don't have any idea of what the part actually is...or where to find it in the Master Parts Catalog.
(In the attached photo, one can see the shiny slotted head screw that I have dropped into the hole to connect the regulator extender to the windshield until I find the proper part.)

Thanks!

Nick, Perhaps these pictures below may help out in a solution to attach the regulator to your windshield. From what I could find in the various Chevy Master Parts books, the 1929-41 Book calls for a GM# 3654597 Screw - No. 8-32 x 1/2" binding head. For some reason it only lists that for 1936-38 trucks and nothing else specified for 1939-41. The later 1929-54 book shows the same thing, so it's just my guess that the screw is meant to cover the regulator attachment for all years including 1936-46, GM just didn't catch that listing error.

In checking a later parts book, the GM# 3654597 screw gets more description in the hardware listings and a pic detailing what it should look like:

Screw, sheet metal and tapping - binding head: Binding clutch No. 8-32 x 1/2" cad plated (see the pic below with the screw style drawings showing the binding head and end thread style C which is listed for this screw)

It would appear that this screw is supposed to be used without a nut, going through the tape pivot attaching pin and threading into the bracket itself. If the bracket hole is stripped out so the screw won't tighten, you could use a slightly longer No. 8-32 screw and nut or even rivet it in place as several of the vendors that offer rebuild services do. Check out picks of the rebuilt units at Chev's of the 40's and The Filling Station. Hope this info may prove helpful.

Thanks Dan! Very helpful.
Perhaps someday I will figure out how to find things in the Master Parts Catalog!
A simple screw makes sense, but I had assumed that it would be something more specialized!

Nick
Attached are photo's showing the fasteners on a ‘37 and ‘46 Chevy 1/2 ton.
The first photo shows a rivet was used on the ‘37. Note the top end has a round and domed shape.

The 2nd photo shows a fastener I am uncertain is year correct. A short bolt with a nut was used. The bolt head is also round and domed without a slot for a screwdriver. I don’t recall if it was received that way in the parts pile that came with the truck many years ago. Either way, it works just fine as is.

Note too this ‘46 was assembled among the first produced after the war. So it’s possible this regulator might be atypical to later production models?

Sparky,

I appreciate the response and the photos!

I am not too worried about being absolutely correct with regard to what might have been original, so it looks as though I have a few options that won't stand out as incorrect.