Make your own windshield. Windshield manufacturing. The main mistakes in the manufacture of a windshield with your own hands

Hi all!
I bought myself an Intruder LC, and the owner gave pieces of glass as a gift to him (it was safely gouged during transportation, thrown into a barn and forgotten).

To celebrate, of course, I had no time for him. Yes, and there was something to do: candles, oil, carbs, etc. And of course, I could not help but ride it. And it's cold to go far, it blows me away after 100!
The result was an exacerbation of sinusitis ...
In the intervals between injections, I dug the Internet in search of a piece of glass, exactly the same glass (and the same manufacturer) without fasteners. The result is 180 Baku rubles in the states without delivery! TIN!
There is no such money, and it’s a pity ... But is there a need?! So you have to try to do it yourself.
The Internet did not give anything concrete. It seems like it is possible to bend plexiglass over a stove or over boiling water ... But no specifics.
I blinded the old glass together with adhesive tape and cut out a template from an old rug in the trunk. the required holes.


It remains to bend, but how? Tried building hair dryer, but he dog does not warm up the part evenly. Helped gas infrared burners heating my garage. The main thing is not to overheat the glass. It is desirable to feel the moment on any other piece when the glass is already bending, but not yet melting. It is necessary to work in good gloves, the temperature is still the same! Warmed up, bent, allowed to cool, measured if necessary, repeated.
After about thirty minutes, the glass took the desired shape (when you feel the desired heating temperature, it becomes easier).
Then the removal of the protective film, and assembly. All!




Replacing the glass cost 770 re. You can change it at least every season, but it lends itself perfectly to polishing.

The windshield on a motorcycle is its invariable accessory, which significantly increases comfort when riding at medium speeds. And in terms of aesthetics, with the help of a small windshield, you can give additional personality to your motorcycle.

How to make a motorcycle windshield according to the model

To do windshield on a motorcycle - you will need a piece ( optimum thickness about 4 mm), then draw the future glass on a piece of cardboard and cut out the template. The template should be tried on in advance to your motorcycle. After that - attach the template to the polycarbonate and outline it.

The most responsible operation is cutting, because at this stage chips and breakages are possible. For cutting, it is recommended to use a jigsaw (electric or manual), as well as a special cutter. Next, file the edges with a file, and then with sandpaper, until the edges become even and slightly rounded. Remember that how well the edge is processed depends appearance finished product, so it's better to try to do everything qualitatively. Then - you should give your workpiece a convex shape. To do this, it is better to use a building hair dryer.

If you are unable to do windshield yourself, or you are afraid to spoil the material - do not worry, because experienced specialists who have everything for this will do an excellent job necessary equipment. You just need to come to the store with your measurements and you will receive a finished glass with all the necessary holes.

Tip: it is better to work with polycarbonate on a cold one and how to warm up the place of bending. The material is strong enough and bends hard without bursting, even if it is bent into a tube, and so that there are no chips and scratches, you can cover the glass with a protective silicone film.

Benefits of a polycarbonate windshield over conventional glass

The main mistakes in the manufacture of a windshield with your own hands

Non-professionals often make mistakes in this matter.

The most common:

• Poor cleaning and degreasing of surfaces;
• The use of funds with a long expired shelf life;
• Non-compliance with the temperature regime;
• Degreasing with low-quality composition.

Remember that if you do this yourself, you, due to inexperience, risk spoiling something, scratching the glass or not being able to put it on correctly. Want to get high quality glass from monolithic polycarbonate? You can immediately indicate the size you need when purchasing the material, and everything will be cut out for you as it should.

Conclusion:

This material is in no way inferior to classic glass, and its impact resistance is two hundred times higher than impact resistance. different types glasses. Auto glass made of polycarbonate is much lighter than ordinary glass (16 times), this technological material is also resistant to ultraviolet radiation, thermoplastic and incredibly practical for installation.

Well, just a toad choked me to pay almost 100 dollars for a windshield on Leo + shipping. And I wanted glass. Decided to make my own as a test.

Even at the planning stage, I decided that a matrix was needed, but for the first prototype I decided to try without it, and as a result, all the work was done on my knee and by hand. It is for this reason that it was not possible to achieve absolute smoothness of the glass. At once I will make a reservation - the matrix nevertheless is desirable.

The process is the following:

You will need big piece plexiglass 3 - 4 mm thick. Preferably plexiglass with a double-sided protective film. The dimensions should cover the pattern, taking into account all folds, etc.

Transfer the pattern to the glass (on the protective film - that's what it is desirable for) with a marker.

With an electric jigsaw, carefully cut along the contour. Do not stress the glass or it may crack easily.

With an emery wheel, process the ends along the contour to give them the necessary smooth contours and roundings. This stage is rough, so do not try to process to a shine.

Find two or three round objects that have a curvature close to the original pattern. You will use them to bend glass over them.

Remove protective films from the glass, otherwise they may catch fire.

You will need a pair of thick gloves (natural, not synthetic)

First you need to smooth the edges of the glass and round them. fire up gas stove(or use the Heat Gun). Slowly move the edge of the glass over the fire (about 5 cm). You must bring the edge of the glass to melt, but do not allow the plastic to boil, otherwise internal bubbles will form and the glass will be damaged. It's better to go through a few times than ruin the whole job. As soon as you see that the glass begins to melt, immediately transfer to another area. This way you will process all the edges and they will become smooth and smooth.

Now proceed to the actual bending of the glass. Remember that glass only bends easily in one plane. As soon as you try to give the glass a spherical three-dimensional bulge, it will be much more difficult. To do this, you will need to melt the plastic to the state of chewing gum. In this case, it is best to bend according to a pre-prepared form. Pay special attention to the fact that soft plastic very easy to damage and leave marks on it even with the touch of gloves. In this case, nothing can be corrected.

Bend as much of the surface as you can at once - this will reduce the need for corrections between bends.

Once the basic contour of the curves is done, you should level out the straight sections - use the surface of the table, pressing the heated glass against it (through the fabric so as not to scratch it).

Additional windshield heating can significantly reduce the time it takes to prepare a car for a trip in winter, especially at night, which, unfortunately, prevails in northern latitudes.
Many modern cars are equipped with electrically heated windows already on the conveyor. Also, such glass can be bought and replaced with the usual regular one. But there is another option - to install a heated windshield with your own hands right on the spot, gluing ready-made heating threads fixed on a transparent adhesive tape.

Working heated windshield

Filaments, heated electric shock are usually located at the bottom of the windshield.

The principle of operation of heating is simple - an electric current heating them is applied to the filaments applied to the glass.
Manufactured industrial way heated glasses differ only in the choice of the place of heating - along the contour of the glass, along its area, partially or completely covering it. Threads heated by electric current applied in the area direct view, can distract attention, therefore, preference is usually given to contour heating, which has a more frequent arrangement of threads at the bottom of the glass - where the disabled wiper blades stop.
Commercially available kits for equipping heated glass are also available in various options. Windshield heating filaments are applied to self-adhesive film and have terminals for applying voltage to them.
More "advanced" types of heating are equipped with a control unit with a built-in timer that turns off the power after a specified time interval.

The windshield heating filaments should not be visible and interfere with the view.

Making a windshield heating with your own hands is not difficult, and it is not necessary to remove the glass at all.

Making a windshield heating with your own hands is not difficult, and it is not necessary to remove the glass at all. It is enough to carefully degrease the surface on which the tape will be glued. Hastily “sticky” heating will flake off in places, making it useless. In addition, poor heat dissipation in places where there is no glass contact can lead to filament failure.
Do not glue heating on cold glass, in general - such work is best done in the warm season - it will stick more reliably.

You can do a heated windshield like this:

Heated windshield

If you bought only tapes with heating filaments, do not forget to “embed” a replaceable fuse in the case into the positive power wire.

As you can see, the windshield heating filaments are located in the wiper parking area. Their arrangement will warm up the lines of contact between the working edges of the brushes and the glass, which will prevent the rubber band from tearing off the base if you accidentally touch the wiper switch lever while the car is not warmed up. Sometimes the rain sensor also works out of place - when the "wipers" have not yet thawed out - this happens in the spring at "near zero" air temperature.
It will not be difficult to run the power wires if you pre-determine the points of their connection to the threads, or rather, the locations of these points. In order that extra wires do not offend your aesthetic feelings, hide them under the lining of the front pillars - the latter can be easily removed.
If you bought only tapes with heating filaments, do not forget to “embed” a replaceable fuse in the case into the positive power wire. If there is no information about the power of the threads, first put a 10 amp fuse, if necessary, replacing it later with a 15 amp fuse.
It is also advisable to think over the connection scheme to the standard wiring - the heating powered from the cigarette lighter on many cars will work even when the ignition is off, which is undesirable - it is better to play it safe and do possible job heating only when the ignition is on.

Heated windshield installation

Heated windshield installation

First of all, you need to buy such glass. Original auto glass for many foreign cars is usually expensive, but there are more affordable domestic and Chinese counterparts. And here, when buying, you need to be careful, because low-quality glass - with or without heating - can be made with such defects that you will regret that you started replacing the standard glass.

Signs of a good windshield:

Well, the windshield should remain transparent under any circumstances.

1. It should remain transparent when passing straight lines. sun rays- cloudy glass indicates poor sizing.
2. In the zone of active vision (in the 28-degree viewing sector when looking in the direction of movement) there should be no distortion of the outlines of objects.
3. Heating filaments should not stand out - they are barely noticeable on good glasses.
4. Indirect sign good product is clearly marked and carefully packaged to prevent any possible damage in transit.

Windshield Heating Tapes

When it comes to windshield replacement, it’s better not to save money and trust the experts.

It is better to replace the windshield in a specialized car service - despite the seeming simplicity of work, cutting out old glass, applying primer and sealant, as well as observing the drying rules, not everyone can do it qualitatively. It often happens that after a few months, or even immediately after the replacement, the junction of the glass and the body begins to leak. Yes, and body parts, mercilessly stripped by a string, are covered with rust - especially the front edge of the roof.
A real professional will not even need to clarify whether the glass is heated or not. In addition, it will bring out the wires from the heating so that you do not have to disassemble the “jabot” when connecting.

How to connect a heated windshield

Heated windshield connection

It is better to put the windshield heating switch on the car, with powerful contacts and a reinforced housing.

It is better to connect a heated windshield in the engine compartment - this is where the wires are output, but the “positive” wire will have to be brought out into the cabin - to connect a button or key. Use a car switch, preferably one that has a suitable designation on the case - it will be more convenient to use, and the buttons designed to turn on energy-intensive devices have more powerful contacts and will not melt.

Do-it-yourself heating of "wipers" and windshield washer nozzles

Heated windshield wipers

If it was not possible to buy nozzles specifically for your car, then you can always buy and install universal washer nozzles.

Heated windshield washer jets (including fan nozzles) are available from auto parts and accessory stores. If there are no such ones on sale specifically for your car, then the so-called universal nozzles are produced. There is no difficulty in installing them. The main thing is to carefully wire the wiring so that it does not hang down, but also does not break when the hood is opened. This also applies to connecting the heating - the power wires should not interfere with the operation of the mechanism - the "trapezium of the wipers".
Unfortunately, even heated nozzles cannot prevent the washer from freezing in cold weather - on many cars, the tanks are located, as they say, "outside" - outside the engine compartment. Therefore, some craftsmen equip the tank with heating, installing it at the bottom electric heater also powered by a battery.

Do you need a heated windshield?

Homemade washer nozzle heating

Before you buy a heated windshield, you should finally decide whether you need it.

In general, before you buy a heated windshield or similar "bells and whistles", decide whether you need them at all. Often, excessive enthusiasm for such things either reduces the battery life, or - if they are carelessly installed - to burn out the wiring. Undoubtedly, such devices make life easier for a motorist, but, unfortunately, not everyone has the patience to do everything correctly - to conduct wiring, protect wires from breakage or short circuit, connect a fuse, etc.
As they say - "measure seven times"!

You asked where I bought my windshield.

For the manufacture of moldings, I took an aluminum corner 25x25mm and a U-shaped aluminum profile 12x6mm. All this is available in building material stores, markets, etc. aluminum is not enough soft material so that it can be easily bent to the desired shape, so I annealed it with an acetylene torch. The process itself is pictured below.

Make a flat scan of the shape of the future glass on cardboard and then cut out the future glass from plastic according to the resulting shape. U-profile form over the edge of the windshield. My glass has a 35 degree slope in the center and a 10 degree slope on the sides.

Next, anneal the aluminum corner. It must be heated and allowed to cool slowly. I used an acetylene torch to make this. Light the torch of acetylene only first. It will be an orange flame with large quantity smoke and soot. We put the aluminum profile on some tragus and, with the wave movements of the torch, we abundantly cover the future moldings with soot.

Adjust the torch to a normal flame and heat the aluminum until the soot begins to burn off. Be careful, aluminum melts just above this temperature. Hold the torch nozzle and not too close to the metal. Aluminum should be completely cool and practically free of soot.

Next you need something to bend the aluminum around the mandrel. Wooden mallet, matrix and workbench - this will help you finish the job faster. I made a matrix from a 50x100 bar. To create the shape of the matrix, I used my old moldings.

We press the aluminum corner to the workbench with a matrix. Use washers of the same thickness as the aluminum profile, this will allow it to be pressed against the workbench as tightly as possible.

Using a wooden mallet, we begin to bend the corner in the shape of the matrix. If you cover the mallet with leather, there will be fewer dents and they will not have to be sanded in the future. Do not under any circumstances use metal hammer, you will get nothing but a crumpled piece of aluminum.

After you have bent the first few centimeters of the future molding, secure it with another bar. We install the bar as tightly as possible by pressing the profile to the matrix.

We begin to bend the molding around the matrix, bending the free end of the profile with your hand and gradually tapping it to the matrix with a mallet.

Periodically, you will need to extract the profile from the matrices in order to see how the process is going. The base can be a little wavy, then just straighten it with a flat hammer and continue to shape it into a matrix.

When you have given the corner the desired shape, remove all dents and scratches first with a file, then sandpaper with a grit of 400 and finish sanding with a grit of 600. Next, the molding can be polished with various abrasive pastes.