Technical ok i need help from the metal masters on my 32

My windshield frame does not fit correctly in the opening. This was probably because of the chop that was done years ago. I thought I could take it to Bell Auto Gl*** in Phoenix and the guys there could pull the gl*** out and grind the gl*** and adjust the frame. Simple, right?

Well they said because the frame has a natural curve to it, there is nothing they can do with the frame without throwing it all out of wack.
The opening, after the chop actually is lower in the middle. It is not straight, it actually slopes opposite of the frame as you can see in the pic. Because of this they said the only fix is to fix the opening of the windshield.

So, how do I do this?

Make a series of pie cuts and push it up?

Please help and thanks in advance.

Damn, I can't get the pic to load. So the top of the windshield looks like a frown and the top of the windshield opening looks like a smile.

 

Id post over at metalmeet.com or metalshapers.org for advice or have a chance to find a member of either thats close to u to fix it.

 

Without looking at it up close its hard to tell what the best thing to do is. Can you take a hyd jack and some boards and slowly and carefully work it out? Pie cutting it would be the last resort, as that would be a can of worms. Maybe start in the center and work side to side.

 

Is the body just hanging by the strap above it or is it sitting down
on the frame ?

 

Just lifting it up to align the firewall. I know what you are thinking. Still have the problem with the body sitting on the frame.

 

I recently had a gennie roadster in my shop that had a cowl that was low in the center under the windshield frame. I took it to my body guy and he jacked the cowl up so it followed the windshield shape. He said it didn't take much and now you cannot tell anything was wrong. I ***ume it went down when they reworked the cowl vent area?

 

But the top of the opening is the problem.

 

Is the roof filled ?

 

Unfortunately

 

It appears that from the center to the drivers side it fits?? The p*** side A pillar still too high? Do the door openings measure the same? Door gl*** openings the same on the doors?

 

Yes. Just an illusion from the pic. Everything is the same.

 

do the doors and decklid have good lines and do they open and close ok ?

 

Mostly. The body needs to be shimmed so I can try to fix p***enger cowl.

 

If you do try to jack it, you might want to run a brace across it first, so it doesn't try to pull the a pillars in. Tack in a piece of 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 square tube in the opening at the tangents of the window.

 

^This is what i would do....except I might try not in the center first. Hard to explain, but working inwards, towards the center, sometimes gives more control and allows a gradual altering of the curve. If you bring up the center in the first push, the other pushes near it, might get the center up even more later. Go by feel, and if it looks like it's going wrong, start elsewhere.

The bottom looks perfect? If yes, be careful that unsupported jack won't mess the bottom up. There should still be the behind-dash reinforcement piece to keep it OK

That right upper corner is pretty bad. I'd fix the rest first, then slice/dice that corner skin. Might even cut out just the outer sheetmetal of the corner to reshape/recurve, then weld back in.

Overall, the W/S gap looks too tight to ever open correcty with the original type seals?? Do the best you can, if you want to save making/modifying that W/S frame.

 

I would wait until after you have shimmed the body to get good lines and the doors/deck lid open/close smoothly and then would take another look at it. It might move a little. It is one of
those things that if you are standing next to it maybe could see or find a
solution or way to help it along.

 

For you 32 guys just asking here - are the 32-5 Window windshield openings more straight across at the top than a 32-3 Window ? and are the 32-3 Windows more curved at the top than the 32-5 Window?

 

bolt the body to frame and adjust doors, I would probable fix the cowl as well before starting on the top, remember the bolt at the foot of the cowl is crucial for door alignment. the reasons for aligning the doors first is to make sure what you do to fix the roof doesn't mess with the doors. is the windshield opening the same on each end? is the windshield frame the same on each end? is the windshield opening square, I have seen many roofs that needed pushed to one side or the other. A porto power and blocks of wood are very useful for this. some more pics would help to diagnose better, good luck

 

By the way, I don't consider it a disaster, as far as depth of repairs.

Not too bad for an old chop, beat up over the decades.

 

I would try jacking it up, build a support from the frame. Go slow. If you can't make progress that way, I would make one cut in the center and use a straight edge and jack it up in the center. Good luck.

 

I like the idea mentioned earlier about mounting it to the frame, get the gaps you like and then try working with the roof.

 

hey,

Does this body still have the wooden frame in it, or has it been changed out with steel channel? Do the doors fit, and swing well with good gaps?The gaps around your windshield may only be a small part of a bigger problem

I'd level your frame on the shop floor, adjust the cowl to door shut lines with shims as necessary, and jack the cowl back or foward, as necessary. Only after all of this is in alignment would I consider cutting open the A posts or Header panel or the lower sill area of the windshield opening. I suggest you cut a plywood templet from 3/4 or 1.0 plywood the exact shape and size of the windshield frame, the one that the gl*** actually sits in, and use this as a standard for all your corrections to the opening.

Once you've corrected all the other alignment issues, the templet will tell you if your fit up is dead on the money. Be sure to allow for the gasket when fitting the frame to the opening if this frame is still to open.

Good luck with your project.

" Spending a nation into generational debt is not an act of comp***ion "

 

Thanks guys. I appreciate all of your ideas and input. Never in my life have I met a nicer group of people than here on the HAMB.

 

I would go 180 from these guys. I'd try to bend the windshield frame before I messed with the body. Also, to me it looks like the frame is chppped a little too much, maybe.

I think a guy could set some wood blocks in a press and lightly push the windshield frame into shape. Much easier to replace a $300 windshield frame than fixing a twisted body. And there's no guarantee how the body will react when you push on it. Might move in the wrong place.

At the very worst, I'd heat and bend the windshield frame to fit, then rechrome.

 

I didn't see where you said you measured the windshield frame. Lay it on a piece of thick paper, trace around it and then fold it in half to see if it's a mirror image. If not, maybe an adjustment there first. If it's measurements are right, I would start cutting and re-working the surround to get it to match. This may sound like lots of work, but the top had lots of cuts when it was chopped, sometimes the right solution isn't always the easiest.

 

Go see Frank Borowitz at Premier Frame & Body. He is thee man here in phoenix when it comes to getting Deuce bodies right. He can certainly fix it or give good, no ******** advice if you are planning to do it yourself.

Premier Frame & Body
3029 W Clarendon Ave
Phoenix AZ 85017
602-248-0812

 

First thing that you should do is determine whether the w/s frame has the correct shape or the opening is right. Maybe it is neither. If the w/s frame is tweaked, then correct it and then move on to the body. Like was mentioned check all of your other openings (e.g. doors) before doing anything with the w/s opening. You might have to change (align) some other things too. Cross measure the w/s opening to ensure that it is square, then determine whether opening needs to change. Maybe it is as simple as jacking up the center of the opening.

One thing I wouldn't do though, is start jacking things around until I knew what was wrong.

 

Hey Brady, Every body so far has given good advice, especially those that have mentioned bolting it down to a straight frame and getting the dorr gaps happy before starting. That is where I would go with it personally. Once you have everything where it belongs, then figure out just what it is you have to do to get it correct. There is a good chance the center sunk when the top was filled, could be that the windshield pillar got pushed upward a touch when the right cowl was hit. Have you checked the windshield opening for square? All of these could be the issue, and all require different methods to repair. mike suggestion to talk to Frank would be an excellent one as well.

 

I agree with this advice too-you really need to get the body rigid on the frame-(i'm ***uming your frame is in reasonably square condition) just like if you were putting it on there for the last time. Shimming and adjusting to set the door gaps would be the first thing. You may find whatever is causing this problem is causing other problems elsewhere. get the door gaps set and the cowel issue handled and then re-evaluate. Don't worry about the windshield until you do that. Otherwise you may fix your windshield issue but end up creating even more issues elsewhere.

Once you do that stuff-then do some measuring to determine whether the problem is the windshield frame or the windshield opening on the body.