I can't find another windshield crank like mine so I asked a friend if he could 3D print me one. He just sent the proof, and then said he didn't think I'd be happy with it.
A couple of weeks ago I asked Stovebolt how to restore my steering wheel, and I just had a thought: If my friend could 3D print a new knob, is it possible to use JB Weld and sandpaper to strengthen the crank itself? It's mainly going to be cosmetic, to maintain authenticity, but I will use it some... Has anyone successfully restored their plastic/resign windshield crank?
Brownell's gunsmithing supply (Montezuma Iowa) sells a rifle stock bedding product called "Acra-Glass Gel". It's a very high strength epoxy that is reinforced with finely chopped glass fibers. The stuff is as tough as woodpecker lips, and it can be carved and shaped with a Dremel tool or hand-held scrapers. They also sell a dye pack that would allow you to do a pretty close color match. I've used it on several occasions to either reinforce a damaged gun stock, or even mold some pretty intricately shaped small parts. With a little plaster of Paris and some ingenuity, you could cast an exact duplicate of the part with the stuff. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
Jerry, Thank you so much! I've never heard of it before so I'll definitely look into it.
1946 Chevy Getting started on Bruno Follow the story in the DITY Gallery You can't buy happiness but you can buy a truck ... and that's pretty much the same thing.
I buy it by the pound, but they have smaller quantities available. There's also a multi-colored dye pack available for tinting the stuff to just about any color you choose. It will also mix with atomized stainless steel powder (Brownell's Steel-Bed) to make a compound many times stronger than J-B Weld.
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
You say you can't find another windshield crank like mine. Is this for a 1946 truck? The old Chevy truck vendors like Jim Carter have nice reproductions of this item at a reasonable price.
Thank you, Lightholder. 'Bruno' is an old farm truck from Kansas. I'm not repainting it, and I even bought a baggie of original clutch head screws from a gentleman who held on to them after his restoration (so I wouldn't have to use new, shiny silver ones). If worse comes to worst I'll get new, but it's so unique that I'd like to keep it. Most old ones I've found are metal, and mine isn't. I was told that these were only on trucks meant for WWII, due to the metal shortage, but I've never found a way to fact check that. Makes sense to me, though.
1946 Chevy Getting started on Bruno Follow the story in the DITY Gallery You can't buy happiness but you can buy a truck ... and that's pretty much the same thing.
