Respecting the guys in the glass trade....

I have a 56 Dodge hardtop....i bought a new windsheild and rubber mouldings from a vendor here on the board over a year ago and i had been trying to find someone to install them for me...everyone i talked to either backed out of the job when they saw the car...or gave me a really high price...with the words i cant guarantee i wont break your new windsheild....some glass places told me they wouldnt even mess with the car because it had stainless trim around the windsheild and they were afraid of bending it...
Well i got tired of waiting and broke out my factory manual and started reading....after a few minutes i thought this cant be this difficult....i re-read the part of how to do the windsheild again..put the book down grabbed some tools and went outside...that was the easy part...after taking my time and getting all of the stainless off without bending it...or snapping it in half...the rock hard rubber gasket was the next hurdle..
After making a blood sacrifice to the hot rod gods...(i still dont know how that screw driver slipped)..i got the old windsheild out and started to clean up the years of dirt that were in the groove...I then proceeded to try and put the new rubber gasket in the car...i couldnt get it by myself...called my oldest daughter out to help...that really didnt work...so i started calling some of my friends....Damn they can dissapper fast when they are needed...tried different ways of wrestling with the winsheild to no avail....
I finally called one of my greybeard friends and he started laughing at me when i told him what i was trying to do....and what i had done.....and i told him nothing was working....his words were i'll be there in a couple of minutes....he shows up...and in a matter of minutes the windsheild is in the car...I couldnt beleive it...the same rubber that was fighting me...got all mooshy in his hands and just flowed into place....the windsheild....it looked like it jumped into the rubber all by itself....i had fought this thing all day before i called him...and he made it look so easy...tomorrow he is going to show me how to install the trim without messing it up...I have a new found respect for the guys who wrestled with the glass in the cars of yesteryears...and the funny part...he didnt even have to make a blood sacrifice....

 

Believe me, he did make the blood sacrifice, many years ago. It has long lasting power

 

As a glassman myself, I'm glad to hear someone understands. And believe me, it's not getting any easier.