Re: 1959 Lake N' Sea Restoration
It was rainy and cold today, and I was a little limited in time, so I decided to work on a 'side project'... My old windshield is cracked and crazed beyond repar... There is a big crack right in the middle of it, and the aluminum frame is bent up badly, and has a lot of holes drilled in it from a Bimini top that used to be on the boat. It needs to be replaced, so I am going to have to make one-
The tape is holding it all together where it's broken, so I can get measurements and dimensions from it...
I traced the profile of the top and bottom of the windshield. The top will be used to bend a new aluminum piece.
I also laid it down and traced a pattern to cut the new plexiglass from.
Then, I bent the aluminum channel for the top of the windshield. I had to anneal it so it was soft, then bent the curves into it using a form that I cut from MDF. I filled the area between the 'u' channel with strips of cardboard to keep it from collapsing as I formed it. It turned out pretty decent.
Then, I cut a template for the plexiglass out of thick matt board to check the fit-
Looks like it'll be a pretty good fit. I'll probably use Lexan rather than acrylic, for some added strength.
It'll be a LONG time before I need a windshield... But it was a good thing to tinker with in my spare time today....
-Andrew