47-55.1 Vacuumn wiper replacement?

[JDarby]

I had purchased a 2 speed electric wiper kit off of eBay and then waited to long to test it , passed my return window.
Now that the AC unit is in place I realize the one off eBay will not work for me.

Have any of you tried the units' sold by LMC Trucks?
They look like a direct replacement.

Im not opposed to using RainX and leave the vacuum ones in place!

Thanks for your time!

[nvrdone]

I went with a major well rated electric wiper kit. What a pain to install. First the mounting bracket didnt fit the truck. Then trying to install the switch in the dash, It wouldnt clear the motor. I had to make up a 1/4" spacer to lower the motor so it wouldnt hit the switch. Finally removed the old throttle cable knob and mounted the switch there. Once I got it all installed the wipers only clear about 1/3 rd of the glass. If I set the self park to be parallel with the bottom of the glass the wiper only goes up so it is sitting straight up. Fortunatly where I live we dont need wipers and if we do I just dont drive the truck.
If I were to do it again I think I would use the original vacuum wipers with a seperate vacuum pump to power them.

[vintovka]

Went with electric -- hate it. If i still had the ability and the parts i would have added a aux 12 v vacuum pump and run an original motor off it. Had i been thinking it would be a no brainer to run the pump to the power brake cannister as a reservoir. If anyone likes this idea i have a near new 12 pump from Jegs sitting here cheep. Really miss the sound of the old vacuum wipers as well.

[JDarby]

Thank you guy's this is very helpful!!

[Thadious]

I had designed a 12v system years ago when I did my first build. The information is still there if you want to see what I designed. I found my drawings not that long ago and just picked up a CNC machine to rebuild in the future and have considered making kits again but I would need to source what the materials would cost these days. May be cheaper in the end, but I've heard a fair bit of issues with the other aftermarket setup, not to mention that they are pretty expensive!

https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...version&page=4

[mr48chev]

The Newport engineering unit that isn't exactly inexpensive is considered by most to be the best unit to use. Not a Universal fit but designed as a bolt in for specific vehicles
https://newportwipers.com/product/19...k/#wiper-motor

I've got a Specialty power windows kit for my 48 and most likely will use it as it is already paid for Bought before the Newport Engineering kits showed up and as I am not running a stock dash probably the best option for me although I would not recommend this unit WWK-4754-21 simply because I now believe that the newport kit is a better way to go. My kit is actually one step up from this one. https://www.ebay.com/itm/19563116905...0aAs3YEALw_wcB

[fauXGT]

mr48,
SPW deluxe kit is what I just finished installing, like last week. I had nothing for the existing hardware, and it was on sale 3 years ago, and cheaper than cobbling together a system, and has delay and washer.
The wiper arm gear threads don't like to take new outer chrome nuts, like the instructions say. You do have to retap the nuts to remove abit of chrome plating. Hand bend the tubes. Don't use a tool, being it will make dimples in the tubes. I made a mounting plate for the motor to bolt to the column inner support, placing it way back and an inch away from the cowl vent. The first tube from the motor is 180 deg sweep to drivers arm. I didn't think of the clearance for the drivers defroster diffuser, so I popped off the diffuser mounting bracket, re-welded it back on and cut it at an angle to push the hose port farther to the drivers side. I hoped that I could squeeze the wiper motor behind the fresh air box, but no go. That's where I placed the washer pump, being the factory glass bottle is mounted right there. I found a washer nozzle called a 'Turbo sprayer' on Amazon. Came from China and took 2 weeks, but has a very wide spray pattern. I placed it in the center of the cowl to hit both windows. Kinda discreet. The deluxe switch is a 'D' mount, so I took a factory bakelite knob and side filled it with JB weld. Cut down the switch shaft to get the knob closer to the dash. I hope I won't ever need the wipers, but at least they'll have it all.

[fauXGT]

Oh, and white lithium grease the hell out of the tubes as you push in the gear cable. Test run was very smooth.
And ouch for the newport motor. Add another $200 for linkage.

[mr48chev]

Normally the motor is mounted high on the left kick panel. At least that is how the instructions say to mount it and then run the tube up and over to the drivers side wiper and then run the tube from there to the passenger side and have a length of tube out beyond the passenger side a set amount. I need to buy new tubing when I move mine from the old cab to the new cab.

I'm going to have to contact them and get a new instruction sheet as I bought the kit three moves ago.

[fauXGT]

I put the fuse panel clear to the left, so I didn't have room to put it there. The instructions I had were mainly universal. Just said no tighter than 3" radius bend on tubing. 4" end tube tail with flare on both ends to minimize chatter. Need access to motor door to set sweep. Wiring schematic. And the large square variable speed switch will fit in the stock location. Was on sale at the beginning of covid for around $200. Maybe sold as a universal, so no specific vehicle info. Then, still cheaper than sourcing a 2 speed motor and then linkage. They wanted $150+ just for linkage kit.
Trial and error as we go.

[vintovka]

Just curious if anyone added a 12v vac pump to operate wipers and whether it worked. I

[JDarby]

Couldn't you just tap into your brake booster and source your vaccumn from that point?

[vintovka]

Originally Posted by JDarby

Couldn't you just tap into your brake booster and source your vaccumn from that point?

I thought about that but your still stuck with level of engine vacuum and wipers might draw brake power down. When i thought i needed extra vacuum for the new power brakes i bought one of these from Jegs.

https://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS/555/63016/10002/-1

It had a 22 in/hg shutoff in it. Installed it and had same issue which we found to be just a mis adjusted power brake plunger. Sure someone knows better than me but still think the pump hooked into the brake booster and running the wipers might be worth a try. Sure miss the positive wiper action and the swoosh-swoosh sound. IIRC originals had a auxiliary mechanical vacuum pump on top of the fuel pump.??? If my schiesse electric takes a dump and i can find a vacuum motor will give it a try. Sold all 5 of my motors due to misplaced confidence in a electric. duh!

[dsraven]

use a vacuum canister and check valve seperate from the brake booster. don't mess with your brake booster vacuum. or simply spend the bucks on a vacuum pump and a cannister.

[leegreen]

VW turbo gas engine cars from early 2000s have 12V vacuum pump for brake booster that is relatively compact. Many GM vehicles from 80s and 90s had a small spherical vacuum canister for cruise control.

[vintovka]

Ok has anyone actually done this successfully?

[dsraven]

has anyone thought of using a wiper motor from agricultural, construction or marine equipment? it is a matter of mounting the unit, making a crank that is the same length as the original and adapting the original rods to fit on the new crank or making new adjustable length rods, correct? there are guys here on this forum who have used a rear wiper motor from an S10 but thats is a single speed unit without intermittent operation, correct?

[leegreen]

here is what I did https://photos.app.goo.gl/rX6gucWCKQaUdEje8
(click the thumbnail to see full length)

partly that was a covid project, partly it was me being cheap and thinking I am smarter than I am.
I used the factory arms and the factory crank off a vacuum wiper. The bracket locates the crank in the factory location. The rest should be easy right? just rotate that assembly back and forth the right number of degrees.

It wasn't easy, took many interactions to get it adjusted to get full sweep on both wipers, park in the right place and a non-binding setup.

But it works now and I have 2 speed self parking wipers with intermittent that have been used 2 summers

If you set out to do this my advice is to make ever piece adjustable and then lock it all down once it works properly.

[dsraven]

What did you use for a motor/drive for your setup LG?

[dsraven]

That looks like an engineering feat, nice work.

[leegreen]

That motor is from a 2002 Dodge pickup. It is outwardly identical to a similar vintage Corolla motor I started with that would not park.

This project was during covid lock down and there were not a lot of options available. If I did it over again I'd look hard at using a reciprocating motor from rear of an SUV, I now have one on shelf from a 200x Suzuki Vitari/Chevrolet Tracker that is 2 speeds.
working from a reciprocating power source would probably be easier

Another reason is the travel speed of the blades for my setup is a little high. Not the wipe frequency, which is fully adjustable, but the out and back speed of a single wipe. Most modern wipers seem to travel roughly 90 degrees, our old trucks wipe a wider arc, one motor rotation is one wipe so the wipers move a bit faster over the surface. You can't slow it down unless you make the motor turn slower - PWM maybe an option I'll explore if I ever take it out again. it is not really a problem, I just think they should move slower

here is my documentation on how I wired it:

[dsraven]

always thinking of how to improve something, huh? I got the same problem.