After 11+ years of building my Model "T" I was ready to drive it. It was complete enough to finally get it on the road. I was going to enjoy it windshield or not. There was always plans of putting a windshield on it, but, that became secondary once the fun of driving it began. The cost of putting a windshied on it is around $400 Dollars. That is about the price of a bargain kit with NO glass plus shipping & tax. I figured the money would come about eventually. Well, after two seasons of driving without a windshield, I realize it has become a necessity. The wind blast makes it almost impossible to talk with a passenger even at around town speeds. Long road trips become an endurance event because the wind beats you up after many miles. The last straw was rinding in fellow HAMBer's "floored's" T. Floored's T was so much more quieter inside and way more comfortable. That got me off my duff to get one finally done for mine. I cannot sneeze $400 Bucks into existance. So, I had to find a cheap way of getting the job done. Here is how I did mine... Hopefully sharing how I did it will help another HAMBer do one for his "T". MORE TO COME.....
I, for one, would love to see how you go about doing this, 'cause I've yet to draw a really good looking $100 bill...
Next step was putting on the posts. These should be fitted prior to body work & paint. MORE TO COME.....
The material for the frame began as Oak Stair Treads. These are common items available at any Home Depot or lumber yard. Oak is especially strong plus it is straight grained and has little if any knots. One side of the stair tread is rounded. This is the side I used. That shape is similar to the tubing around a real "T" windshield. I used a table saw to cut it to 1 1/4 inch wide. Fellow HAMBer "floored" is a flooring contractor (just like the name implies). Floored had a bunch of this stock piled in preparation for a woodie project some time in the future. He let me take the inch and a quarter off the side because the round edge was something he would have to get rid of anyway. FREE WOOD! That is in my price range! Thanks Floored!
Once the stair treads were ripped to 1 1/4" they resembled a "tombstone" shape on the end view. The outside dimensions I needed for the frame was 39" X 20". According to the catalogs, that is the normal size for "T" windshields. I guess some rodder that was really tall could make the frame taller for extra protection from the wind. Thats a benefit of building your own. I'm just a middle size guy so the stock 20" height was fine for me. I cut the length about an inch longer than I needed. The overlap you see in the pics was intentional. This way, later in the build I can cut them off to match perfectly. I was afraid that just butting the pieces together like a picture frame would not have the strength I wanted. This method makes a better contact where glue and hardware will keep the pieces together. It is begining to take shape. Next will be a trip to a local glass shop. MORE TO COME...
The trip to the glass shop was educational. I walked in to the front counter and requested Safety Glass for a windshield. The Guy informed me that "Safety Glass" was a generic term and didn't really apply to automotive applications. The Guy took time to talk with me and I learned that only two kinds of glass have automotive uses; Tempered & Laminate. TEMPERED - This kind of glass is used for side windows and wing/vents. When broken it shatters into small popcorn size shards that are not really sharp enough to cut a person. LAMINATE - This is windshield glass. I learned that it is actually layers of glass somewhat like plywood is made. Between the layers is plastic resin the holds it together. The plastic makes a tough barrier to prevent someone from flying thru it with a frontal impact. It will get a big "spiderweb" like crack but still stay together. The Guy said any windshields that have a convex/concave shape or bend cannot be done at a regular glass shop. The Model "T" windshield was completely flat so it could be done there. I gave him the needed dimensions and it was ready to pick-up the next day. Total cost $43 Dollars. The glass was 1/4 inch thick. Now I know how much of a slot I will have to cut in the wooden frame. MORE TO COME....
Butch27, I confess I had some questions about that at first too. Come to find out that the laminate glass is heavy weight and very rigid. After working with it some I have come to believe that the frame is more to fasten it on to the car rather that give it structural strength. My way worked for me... I admit it may not be everyone's choice. Some cars, the new VW Beetle comes to mind, acually use the windshield for structural strength. I think some of the old Nash's are the same way.
I discovered that the oak frame was a smidge too wide for my posts. The thought of cutting each of the four sides thinner seemed like a big hassle. I decided to only thin it out in places that I needed to. I put my flap disc sander wheel into my bench press. I thinned and re-shaped the individual pieces as needed. I traced around the post with a pencil onto the wood at the places where it needed to be thinned. I would carefully remove only a little at a time. After a few repeats it fit perfectly. MORE TO COME...
The glass is home now and ready to be put into the frame. Initially, I thought I would make the groove in the wood frame by use of the table saw. A couple of passes with the rip fence would be more than wide enough for the thickness of the glass. I am blessed with great neighbors. Mr. Kenny from down the street stopped in to see what I was doing. Rather than use the table saw as previously said, Mr. Kenny fixed me up with a router table. This tool was super easy to use and did an excellent job. It came with a 1/4" router tip... The perfect width of my glass! One quick easy zip on each side and the glass was in! This is what a finished side looks like before the glass is installed. Look closely.... You can see the glass in the frame at this point. MORE TO COME...
I was happy with how it looked so far. Next step was using some screws to hold the corners of the frame together. An old candle was used to put some wax on the threads of the screws. Even with a pilot hole oak can be tuff to put screws into. These screws will go in & out a couple of times before the job is finished. MORE TO COME...
heres a T windshield frame on ebay for $15........http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...ies&_fvi=1&item=110373878235&_rdc=1&viewitem=
One way to "harden" the wood would be to pour boiling water on it, let it dry, then sand smooth. Repeat several times and you'll have the grain closed even further, allowing the wood to hold up much better, it being resistant to further moisture. This is the way I treat my wooden handled tools. I accidentally left a shovel out in the yard, laying in the grass all winter, and except for being a little grayer, it shows no cracks in the wood. Just a little something, for what it's worth
Now that the screws are in place, its time to cut off the excess wood off the frame. Next, using the flap disc sanding wheel in the hand drill, the corners are re-shaped to match the round outer edge. Heres what it looked like once re-shaped. This is the flip side with the screw in place. The screw had to be removed while the sanding was being done. Everything matches up well after the sanding is completed. MORE TO COME...
Wouldn't the wood have more give? In a roadster there's no protection anyways, I'd rather be smacked with a piece of wood over a piece of steel, at least with that thin of a piece of wood it'd have more "give" by my way of thinking. The glass, being laminate, will take care of itself, meaning it's not going anywhere anyhow... I should probably clarify, I'd rather NOT be smacked with either, but if inevitable, I would choose the wood!
The assembled windshield is put onto the Jalopy for a test fit. Looks like a windshield to me. I will like it better when I have it painted black to match the rest of the car. Like always, I couldn't wait to drive it & try it out. What a huge difference in riding comfort. There is a nice quiet envelope of still air now eventhough the "T" is still wide open. The windshield was just sitting in place at this point... no fasteners or anything other than gravity holding it in place. Even at 50 MPH +, it was solid with only a little wiggle. I'm sure fastening it down with some hardware will take the wiggle out of it. This re-assures me it is plenty strong too. I'll complete this thread in the next week or two. I have to paint it and add the mounting hardware yet before it's all done. MORE TO COME...
ELECTRODUDE, Thanks for the hardening tip. I haven't done anything to finish the wood surface at the moment. I may give that a try before painting it. THANKS!
None of us are engineers (thank goodness). I see your point, but between work hardening the wood and keeping it oiled, the wood will keep its structural rigidity longer than the steel.
The comments about weather weakening the wood are valid. My old Jalopy spends 95% of its life in the garage. Only driven on the occasional sunny day in stead of every day. That kind of useage shouldn't tax the integrity of the wood. I'm confident I'll be okay with it.
2$Bill... I think you need to look at a few old shots of T buckets, when you run that much glass you need to run windsheild support rods these run from about an inch and a half down on the wood frame and go to your headlight stand to keep that glass from being blown in your face its easy to make use 1/4 inch rod with clevis ends and a bracket under the headlights not a lot of work, to save all the stuff you've done all ready........... I went to a shower door company and had them cut me a shower door frame to fit the T windsheild measurements that I built it was brite dip aluminum looked like chrome and cost a bout 35.00 bucks...........
The mounting of the windshield posts to the body and the frame to posts is very important too. Did you think of using threaded inserts where the frame mounts to the posts? Don't make your inserts or mounting bolts too long or you'll pop the glass edge. Is the frame flat on the cowl when mounted in the posts? Snyder's makes the frame to body seal or you could some door weatherstrip from the hardware store. It is important that there be NO wiggle sideways of the frame in the posts and none fore and aft of the posts in the body.
plywude, Your idea about cutting down a shower door is very unique! I wish I would have thought of that! I plan on adding the support rods just as you suggest. That old demon Money is all that is holding me back. pasadenahotrod, Your input is something I didn't cover in my thread... Yes, the fiberglass body was well reinforced prior to putting on the posts. Threaded inserts were used to attach it there. When I finally attach the oak frame to the posts threaded inserts will be utilized there too. That will likely be the next post when my cowl/frame gasket arrives. I probably should have waited to make this thread once the whole projet was done. I'll add that post in time. Thanks to everyone that has offered advice! I'm still learning too...
While I applauded the do it yourself nature of this thread I think the wood framed windshield is a bad idea. Assuming 70 mph = 2 psi (approximately, depends on a lot of variables) <O</O Assuming windshield size is 48 in. x 30 in. = 1440 sq. in <O</O 1440 sq. in X 2 psi = 2,880 lbs of force! <O</O And none of this accounts for the pressure increase that is realized when something big, like a semi, is heading for you and you pass each other on a narrow two lane road. <O</O Remember the factory windshield mounts assume you are you going to put braces on the windshield frame like Henry did from the factory. And Henry only had to calculate for 35 mph = half the load you are expecting. <O</O The "factory" frame on my '27 Ford RPU is made from round steel tubing fabricated with a notch for the glass channel. Pretty beefy and again, only designed to see about half the loading due to half the speed. <O</O Scares me. Might be OK for cruising around town but at highway speeds but I don't feel that a wood framed windshield is such a good idea. Just looking out for ya.... John<O</O
Don't be ashamed to throw that in the trash and do something better. A little wood screw in the corner? A bolt and nut plate would be a lot better, but your entire idea needs to be re-thought. Its too tall, out of proportion and is WEAK! Think of the forces applied at speed
I'm rooting for you, but I don't forsee this working out. The wood will in all likeleyhood bend and break at the bottom by the windshield mounts. You're going to end up with a lap full of glass. Looks like you are a really good wood worker though! Justin
I think it turned out nice, but I agree with some of the people here that it needs to be rethought out. Support rods would help a lot. If you lived near me I would give you a model t windshield frame.
I agree...you look like a great woodworker...but leave the huge picture frame on the wall and do something that won't end up killing you...and fits the car....a windshield half as tall will still push air up over you and won't try to snap at the brackets...and would look better IMO.
hmmm.. I always place a hidden steel structure in the woodies I build... lol and oak splits pretty easily where the screws are attached dont think it was your best choice of hardwoods that is alot of force hitting that windshield going down the highway... looks good .. but I woodn't want it in front of my face at 65
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