New Windshield

[gcarter]

I just got the new windshield material (acrylic) today and I'm pretty excited about it.
In the one picture where I pulled the paper back, you can see the color is a very dark gray that you can barely see through. Also notice the grommets I bought almost six years ago from MOP, actually fit! I'll be working on getting this mounted this weekend.

I need some help........does anyone know of a company that produces extruded rubber seals?
I know they exist, at least in the car restoration industry. There are three top rails that require seals to mount the acrylic properly.

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[duckhunter]

Acrylic looks good, the dark color will be sweet.

McMaster-Carr has some different types of extruded rubber seals here: http://www.mcmaster.com/#rubber-seals/=me5izs

Not sure what style you would need.

[Ed Donnelly]

George If you need more grommets let me know.
I bought some from Mop 6 yrs ago too ...Ed

[Conquistador_del_mar]

Very cool George. Did you cut out the windshields or did you send templates to whoever you bought the material from?

[gcarter]

Thanks Bill, but I don't deserve your confidence!
I found an acrylic fabricating company in Orlando, they used the old pieces
as templates to make the new pieces. Not only did I not have to buy any
more material than was needed, but they did a perfect job, including the
mounting holes. The total price was a little over $300.00, and it took a little
over a week.

[roadtrip se]

I need some help........does anyone know of a company that produces extruded rubber seals?
I know they exist, at least in the car restoration industry. There are three top rails that require
seals to mount the acrylic properly.


I took my old seals to a custom glass shop and matched them up to shower door gaskets. The stuff comes in every shape and size. Works like a charm.

[gcarter]

Thanks Todd! I think that's the best idea after a bit of looking!
Actually, my boat didn't have seals as the 'shield was made by Berenzoni of Italy,
and were cemented into the upper frame w/only some thin rubber strips for isolation.
This seems to have been a one year deal and appeared only on the '88 boats.
Newer boats 'shields were made in Florida and had a real gasket.
What set these windshields apart was the upper edge of the sides were curved,
and I think they are a bit more attractive than the straight sides.
But opinions are like *zzholes and everyone has one.
The curved upper rails would have definately been harder to fabricate and
were probably more expensive.


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[Gary S]

If all else fails George you can try here-http://www.sealsdirect.co.uk/shopping.asp?intDepartmentId=4 I ended up here no one in the states had what I needed and I even went to several glass shops.

[duckhunter]

Your boat is looking great. The windshield and brightwork will be nice finishing touches. Can't wait to see it with the dark windshield buttoned up, I think it will be sweet against the red.

[patricke]

George, I took mine into the local auto glass shop and they did a fine job...pics to follow......

[Trueser]

George,
I was able to find something that was real close when I replaced mine on the 22. I had a bunch of extra and I'm not sure where it ended up after my move. I will check and make sure its not at Matts house.

I think I searched for rubber window moldings. Let me see if i can find something.

Are you going to see the water this year?

[joseph m. hahnl]

George, Acrylic ? :confused: shouldn't you be using Polycarbonate.:fire: You need to have impact resistance. Acrylic will just break , and seeing as how your using all straight pieces with out any sharp bends:smash: Polycarbonate is perfect for your application

[gcarter]

George,
I was able to find something that was real close when I replaced mine on the 22. I had a bunch of extra and I'm not sure where it ended up after my move. I will check and make sure its not at Matts house.

I think I searched for rubber window moldings. Let me see if i can find something.

Are you going to see the water this year?

Thanks Mike!
I appreciate your efforts.
You sent me a sample of what you used about 5 years ago, and who knows where it is today.
Yes, I'll be in the water this summer.

[Tidbart]

George, Acrylic ? :confused: shouldn't you be using Polycarbonate.:fire: You need to have impact resistance. Acrylic will just break , and seeing as how your using all straight pieces with out any sharp bends:smash: Polycarbonate is perfect for your application

Acrylic has certain benefits over polycarbonate. Mainly, won't yellow or change color, cheaper, and is more scratch resistant. Poly is more impact resistant, but on a 22, is that really needed? It is just there to deflect wind, not bullets.:biggrin: If you are need the impact resistance in a 22, you have greater problems. :rlol:

B

[gcarter]

Yes, what Bob said.
Also, I doubt I would ditch the acrylic at this point.
Here's a few more pictures.
A couple of things;

The paper is making some assembly difficult because it changes material thicknesses, i.e.; some things just aren't where they should be.
I can't install the front piece until the deck is back on the hull because it covers the compass hole in the top of the dash which is where I hang the deck from when I lift it.
This is a mock-up exercise to prove it all will fit.
I will only be mounting the side pieces now so they can be properly through bolted which is darn near impossible when the deck is on.
I can assemble the rest of the components when the deck is on, but not the sides.
The front top rail needs a bit of massaging to make it fit the corner pieces. It seems there are bits of powder-coating in the wrong places making assembly difficult.


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[roadtrip se]

Acrylic has certain benefits over polycarbonate. Mainly, won't yellow or change color, cheaper, and is more scratch resistant. Poly is more impact resistant, but on a 22, is that really needed? It is just there to deflect wind, not bullets.:biggrin: If you are need the impact resistance in a 22, you have greater problems. :rlol:

B

Just in case someone hits this thread after doing a search for windshield replacements, I would say the acrylic versus poly decision depends on where you do your boating. I chose a polycarbonate replacement application for the impact resistance. No, I haven't had the need to stop bullets, yet. But, we do run in some significant chop at times here on the Great Lakes, and my original acrylic shield, cracked big time, after a rough run on Lake Michigan. For anyone that has had to go through this exercise, you don't want to do it on a regular basis. My install took about 12 hours, keeping in mind I did all of my own templating and install work. So I chose poylcarbonate lexan and it has held up to a lot of abuse over several seasons. Acrylic may be fine for George's conditions, but it wasn't for mine. It's a choice. Your trial install looks great George.

[Conquistador_del_mar]

The windshield will really complete the look of the deck with the dark plex surrounded by the silver against the red - :wink:. I had a tolerance problem on one boat's windshield frame where some of the pieces called for rubber gaskets and other areas I had to silicone in place since the frame was just about the width of the plastic.

[gcarter]

Todd brings up some important information.
My old windshield was acrylic and 25 years old. There were no cracks in the visible area, but a lot of small cracks, corners broken off in the covered areas, cracks in the mounting holes to the edges, and it was a semi-dark bluish purple color.
This boat had been really abused w/a lot of damage in the stringer/engine mount/hull area, so it hadn't been babied and the damage to the 'shield was simply different than Todd's.


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[joseph m. hahnl]

Acrylic has certain benefits over polycarbonate. Mainly, won't yellow or change color, cheaper, and is more scratch resistant. Poly is more impact resistant, but on a 22, is that really needed? It is just there to deflect wind, not bullets.:biggrin: If you are need the impact resistance in a 22, you have greater problems. :rlol:

B



Unless it's a trailer a queen, a 22 sees quite a bit of impact. :drive:

Anyways! doesn't matter at this point. Acrylic has a thickness tolerence of about +/_ 10%

[CHACHI]

George, I really like the way the windshield frame looks with the powder coating looks.

Ken

[patricke]

Heres the job the local auto glass place did...turned our pretty nice, I dont know what kind of gasket this is called that they used but it worked fine for mine. I too, went with the darker acrylic.
7560675607

[Ghost]

Looks great. I really like the curved top of the side panels, btw. Wish there were more of those around.

[biggiefl]

George...why is your rail grayish and not polished? Was that a TR thing, personal choice, or how it looked in 88 with an Italian windshield?

[Tidbart]

George...why is your rail grayish and not polished? Was that a TR thing, personal choice, or how it looked in 88 with an Italian windshield?

Nick,

He powdercoated it.


B

[biggiefl]

I wonder if they get as hot after being coated. I have literally burned my arm on it trying to trim up the engine, etc. No blister but a nice red spot for a couple days.

[gcarter]

Nick, all the deck hardware, except the cleats, are powder-coated something called
"Crushed Silver", which is quite a bit shinier than it looks in photos and has an almost
metal flake quality to it.
Don't know about heat at this point.

[biggiefl]

Keep me posted big guy! Any chance of Ft Myers in 2 weeks?