New Windshield Frame

New Windshield Frame/ NEED HELP!!

So...Got a 'new' windshield frame and glass in from jeep glass today. First off I'm not too happy with the condition of the tack welds. It's a pretty sloppy item and it will require a bit of work to be paint worthy. So...Now that I'm off of that let's talk about the trouble I'm having with the windshield hinges.

As it is now, it will require a ton of heat or divine intervention for those 6 bolts to come out of the upper windshield hinges. Any one have any ideas? I've soaked them all down with penetrating lube and i'm gonna bring home a portable torch tommorow from work. Unless I can find some hinges somewhere these have to come out. Anyone who's purchased a windshield frame/glass from jeepglass let me know the quality of yours when you recieved it and what you thought about it.

Mike

 

You're removing upper hinges from a junk frame, right? I use and impact driver for such things. It's a hand-held device, usually with a 3/8" socket driver on the business end. It comes with a variety of tips. You hold the barrel of the driver with one hand, hit it with a BFH with the other. The innards has a helical twist so when you whack the end it imparts a sharp impact torque to the fastener.

There are also two bolts on the upright of the frame that must come out to release the hinge. Maybe you knew that.

I'll predict that the hinge will still not want to come out. If it's a junk frame slit the upright with a dremel cut-off wheel and rap the frame out with a mallet. Don't go gonzo on it, you can bend the hinge and your windshield won't be at the correct angle.

 

Like Chilly said and impact driver is your friend. If the Phillips headed screws on the bottom are rounded out the bolt extractors that you drive on the head of the bolt are great for this also. Available from many sources, got mine from Sears.

 

Craftsman Bolt-Out? Have some, used them a few times, recommended.

 

Those are the ones. Worth every penny imho.

 

Sounds like he got a new setup from these folks www.jeepglass.com and is now trying to install it on his setup. The above advise still applies... just want to be clear.

Good to know on the quality of the frame. Will have to replace mine at some point.

 

I have had heat free a bolt when all else failed, I have never had a propane torch help but I use a acetelene tip and get the head cherry red and for some reason it releases the stuck bolt.

 

Their frame is probably the same as the one I bought from 4WD except they installed the glass for you. Mine wasn't great but I didn't have high hopes. I painted the living snot out of it with several coats of Rustoleum applied with a roller, gooping lots of paint into all of the seams until they sealed shut. My Dad Bondo'ed the spot weld divits on his frame but I wasn't so vain. He also had it sprayed inside with undercoating using a wand. I think it cost more than the frame itself! If not for defroster I'd install a zirc fitting and pump the bastage full of grease! It would not be a bad thing to spray some undercoating in the bottom of the frame where they always rot out.

 

soo.....the windshield frame is wayy off. The hinge on the left side does not even remotely come close to lining up. The plane of it is off as well and the hinge doesn't sit flat. Called Todd at jeepglass and we devised a plan. Seeing as how he doesn't have anymore stock of winshield frames to fit my 72 cj 5, we decided to swap out the frame/glass with that of a 76 and up cj. However, I need to know what all is involved witth the swap from a 68-75 to a 76-up windshield frame. I know the hinges will need to be changed, the wiper linkages, and cowl gasket. But what else? ANy help would be great.

BTW- The moment I emailed jeepglass.com with pics, he called me immediately to resolve the concern as best as possible. Hope this customer service continues.

 

Being contrite but not correctly fixing the problem is marginal customer service if you ask me. I'd return the whole shebang, I think. Do you have the windshield glass? Just buy a frame from someone who you can trust if you need to return it and install it yourself. I can talk you through it if you go that route. I posted for help, got some mixed instructions, eventually figured it out on my own.

Look at it this way: you paid a dear premium from Jeepglass for the convenience of having them do the trouble of installing the glass in the frame. They failed. So what are they really bringing to the table here? Maybe they're solid guys with a good heart but they aren't getting it done for you. If you want a later model windshield that's your business. Are they giving you the different wiper linkage, motor, hinges, defroster ducts, soft top, doors, knobs vs latches, and whatever else is involved in changing to later model windshield frame? I doubt it. I'd send it back if I were you.

What exactly do they charge? Where are you? I just installed glass in a new frame. Took me a long time to figure it out, about 1hr once I found the right way.

Chilly, W. PA

 

Thanks. You know, I did some thinking last night, and I ultimately came to the same conclusion you just did. They did offer me the new cowl gasket, hinges, and bolts. However, he was anxious to get my hinges off my 72, and wanted to know if I could ship them back to him. So I think on Monday what I'm gonna do is send the whole thing back and maybe look for a junkyard frame, or another source for the frame. I am going to thank you for the help in advance cause I will likely need it. I've never had any experience with windshields.

 

the older hinges are hard to find thats why he wants yours. here is a good link for some hard to find parts Windshield

 

Don't let him have your hinges. As said, hard to find. I think I would just return it and find one from someplace else.

 

anyone on here had luck with the frames from 4wd.com? Or quadratec?

 

I bought an Omix-Ada and had to force the hinges to make them line up with the holes. Worked okay but,,,,,,I could not lay the windshield down on the hood. The windshield would bind and I was afraid of breaking something.
I watched eBay and bought three before I found one that I could live with.
On the good side I did wind up with several partial sets of hinges.

 

I installed one from 4WD. I think it was made in Taiwan, contrary to popular opinion that some place in Phillipines is the only source (MD Juan or some such thing). It isn't perfect. Spot welds aren't so great, some seams and folds aren't so crisp, etc, but the glass fit and it installed onto the tub just fine. Honestly can't recall if I folded it down yet. I folded it at least part way down in order to install and remove and it didn't seem to bind. And 4WD will take it back if it's defective but I don't know if they'd refund the shipment.

Just remembered that I had to dremel the bolt holes in the vertical parts of the frame so the holes would line up on one side. Didn't seem like a big thing to me. And one of the weld nuts for the windshield latch fell out but the other two seem to hold well enough.

 

I bought the JC Whitney frame. It came bent - I sent one back and got another. It was bent a little too. I think anything that big and light is going to get bent in shipping - it just had cardboard wrapped 3/4 of the way around. I straightened ithe second one myself and used it to avoid dealing with the return. It was made in Singapore, I think. It had pretty good welds and finish. I drilled the screws out in the old frame to retrieve the hinges.

 

If you need some. I know where you can get the replacement 72-75 upper and lower hinges. I too bought a windshield from the same place. I made it work but too was unimpressed.