Disapointing Short Story

[72longbed]

A truck in front of me sent a rock into my windshield over the weekend, so Monday morning I get an authorization from my insurance company to get it fixed for just the glass coverage deductable. I search the Yellow Pages for qualified Auto Glass repair shops and talk to a couple about my truck. One flat out says no. Another says no problem, can have the windshield here for you tomorrow and come on in Wednesday at 10:00am. I make sure to tell them that I have the steel trim ring in the molding, again "no problem". So I get there this morning for my appointment and two employees come out to the parking lot to look at the truck. They are shaking their heads and saying,"No way man, these are a royal pain in the a$$, it takes forever to get that trim right." Needless to say, I didn't want these guys touching my truck. The manager offers to call another local shop that he says "does these all the time". He calls and the guy says he will be down to my house on Saturday to do the job in my driveway. (I made sure to tell him about the trim ring, "no problem", he says.)

Heres my questions: Is it true that the Custom trim is more difficult to install when replacing a front windshield? Is there a tried and true method when dealing with a "trimmed Seal" that works better?

Can maybe someone who has done a few of these with the matal trim involved give me a step-by-step to follow so I can make sure this guy knows what he's doing on Saturday?

Thank you.

72

[72c10step]

I can't help you, but I am having the same problem. No shops want to do it, they say its a pain in the @$$ and they always break the top corners. Mine leaks on the passenger side by the cowl in between the rubber and the windshield. I'll be following this thread too.

[zyggy72]

I had a custom glass shop install my windshield and rear window with the trim and it took no time flat to have both install with no problems. I even got to help with most of the install. The way that the install went was that they installed the glass into the rubber first and then assembled the trim in the rubber and then installed the whole thing just like a window without the trim using the rope method.

[EdB]

It has been a few years since I installed mine. Removed and
reinstalled to repair some rust and paint the frame. Had
a friend help and had no problems. It was kind of messy.
Had a couple of leaks after installed. Ran a bead of the
sealer under the gasket and solved the problem. Had no
problem with the trim.

EdB

[NuBomb]

I did mine with some friends who have experience with these windshields and after mine he said never again. We had a terrible time. We put the windshield in the rubber, then put the chrome trim in the groove and then the fun began. It was impossible to keep the trim in the rubber groove. After hours we finally put the rubber only on the truck, and then the windshield in it. We stuck chips from a paint paddle in the trim groove to seperate it. After over a month driving with wood chips for chrome trime, and on a sunny day, we took the chips out of groove and slid the trim in. I know it wasn't the right way but it is still in today. It does leak and it will have to be fixed. I personally talked to a glass installer locally and he said he has done a ton of them and knows how to do it right. When I finally get my truck painted I will be heading to his shop.

I would check with all the glass shops you can and I'm sure you'll find a guy with enough experience to do the job right.

[1970blazin]

I had my windshield installed in Olympia by Safelite. They are a national chain I think. Frank "Pickmup" who owns Frank's Pick M' Ups Parts here in Olympia worked with Safelite to find the best weatherstripping, and Safelite actually recommended that I get the weatherstrip from Frank and bring it with me. They also gave me a 10% discount because I went to Frank. They offer a lifetime....yes LIFETIME, warranty that it will NOT leak! Frank said they back it up too! It cost me 198.00 and looks great! And yes I had the stainless steel trim ring too. I was real happy and great customer service too. Maybe if you call Safelite they can help you. They also said that it was best if I brought the blazer to them, because the guys who come out to your truck at your house or work are in a rush to make good time to get to the next job so they don't do as good of a job. I appreciated the honesty there too.
Diane

[GM72K10]

Try Alderfer glass, They even installed the glass in the wing windows for me. Telford, lansdale, Quakertown. Granted it was a while back but they're usually pretty courteous. How did you make out with the trailing arms?
GM