The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk vacuum or electric wipers?

Hi friends,
I´m in the point to desire to buy the electric wiper motor or the vacuum wiper motor, and as common to me first ask, tell me what do you think about it?
Thanks guys,
Alfonso

If you plan on driving in rain, electric wipers work much better.

That is, if you plan on seeing something when driving in the rain, electric wipers work much better.

electric

Vacuum wipers are original, kinda cool and relatively easy to keep working as they were designed. The only problem with them is seeing while driving in the rain. If you want the truck stock (and especially if 6 volt) you could go with them, but you need to make sure that you have all the correct parts (like the blades and arms) and that they are working well, (e.g. the vacuum motor itself and including the engine for adequate vacuum to begin with.) To get a swipe or two when needed you will also need to learn to let up on the gas pedal under certain conditions ( like climbing a hill in the rain and getting passed by a semi, YIKES!) If stock is not important to you, electric is the way to go.

If you need a replacement motor go to electric. If the vacuum motor in there is still good & you have a v.8 engine use it.

I like the vacuum set up but I don't drive much in the rain.

When I was 19 I had a 54 Chevy, I live in northern NY just off of lake Ontario, The weather here is so bad, that army trains troops at Fort Drum for winter manuvers, the car had vacum wipers and 6 volt battery , it NEVER let me down the wipers clean the windshield the car would start in -20 degree , in fact that winter my dads new car would not start, I had to drive him to work too, The wipers would stop when you floored it, witch as a DUMB kid I did quite offen, it would do 85 mph, you just had to use your head to keep you windshield clean .
A few years later I got a 1971 Chevelle the "electric" wipers were in my opion a Stupid design in far lighter snow storms than I drove the old 54 in, the wipers would pact show in the middle of the windshield and then stall I'd stop the car and clean them out ,I've had this problem with other modern cars , these are the little thing that make be hate modern cars!
I always ,to me , think it's funny when people modifiy old cars and trucks and say they wanted it to be "Driveable" .I thought that's what I was doing with these old cars and trucks over the years?
Well I hope I have not offened any one, it's just my thoughts , BILL

With Rain-X you seldom need the wipers anyway. That in itself makes it hard to justify the expense of an electric motor.

i agree with cletis, that is if you remember to put it on before it starts raining. i took the ashton to stovebolt headquarters at the beginning of august. on the way home i was going to be following the storm which was going to be 200 miles. just before it was getting ready to pour buckets i was lucky to find a car wash to pull into and applied the rain x. it was raining so hard i would have pulled over with electrics in a modern truck. i waited it out and when it slowed i took to the road. the problem with the ashton is that they swipe too fast. so i am constanly flipping them on and off. my 40 i can control the speed and they're cool to watch. as said before you have to time them when pulling a good hill.

Cletis, While I will preach Rain-X to the top of any mountain, road-grime and bugs do require you to wipe. And as was mentioned, you have to remember to apply it.

If you are using this as a daily driver, go electric, otherwise, the old vacuum wipers kinda give the ol' bolt a certain degree of character. Rain-x is good, under rainy traffic conditions, I still like some good wipers. My .02.

We safely used the vacuum wipers for 6 years in the 60s-70s when the Suburban was our daily driver. No problems (and no RainX).

Had my vacuum wiper motor rebuilt professionally at Ficken's. A one man shop he charges around 50 bucks. I added a dual fuel pump and my wipers are faster than any electrics I have ever seen, my wipers are infinitely variable ratio...ultra slow to ultra fast and of course everywhere in between.

Daily driver only vehicle last 11 years. You want to give your money to a high priced middle man? He's going to take it.

Ficken's website.........

i had my vacuum wipers rebuilt by flicken and they do fine. i also treat all my cars with rain-x and over 40 mph rarely use the wipers. ron

Hello,
I don't mind the vacuum wipers. I'm driving a Volvo 444 build 1953, it has vacuuum wipers. Here in Germany the weather isn't so pretty as in the south of the USA. The vacuum wipers work fine.
Thousends of car drivers in the past had to use a vacuum wiper and I may ask how may died because they used this kind of wipers.
Why should somebody change a running system?
I agree one guy before, he said if you have to change the vacuum motor while it doesn't work anymore, then take a electric
Wolfgang