Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

[Taz33]

Hi All,, newbie here..I have a 1969 Four Winns Safe T Mate..looking for Info on where to get a windshield or how to make one for it..not costly..

 

[JasonJ]

Re: Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

go to www.fiberglassics.com, there are floks who know the deal with making plexi windshields for boats. If it is flat panels, you can go to a glass place and they can hook you up with proper glass or plexi. Good luck...

 

[imported_miked]

Re: Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

Hi Taz, welcome to Iboats. Jason is right about fiberglassics, lots of info there. I've been looking for a windshield for an old boat ('63 Sea King) for quite a while. There are usually a dozen or so at Ebay. There's one there now that may work for you (item # 2483866242). Good luck, Mike

 

[swist]

Re: Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

Do NOT make a windshield out of plain old plexiglass. Yes it's cheap but very soft and will be scratched to s**t in notime. Use a good thickness (3/16) of high-quality polycarbonate (brand name Lexan but there are others). The better ones are almost as scratchproof as glass. It is expensive but for something the size of a boat windshield (unless your boat is the Queen Mary), it won't make that much difference (probably cheaper in the long run - you'd be replacing plexiglass in 2 yrs or less).

 

[farginicehole]

Re: Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

I was under the impression that polycarbonate actually scratches easier than acrylic, unless either of them have an additional scratch-resistant coating added? I know that polycarb is much more impact resistant than acrylic, but always heard that it scratches much more easily.

 

[Blk-n-Blu]

Re: Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

Not sure what size you are looking for,but you might try here:<br /> http://www.greatlakesskipper.com/index.php?id=results_new.php&sub_id=4 <br />The i boats mega mall tab at the top of this page also has links to windshields

 

[swist]

Re: Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

My eyeglasses are polycarb, ten years old, no more scratches than you see on glass, and I abuse the hell out of them (rebuilding engines etc).<br /><br />Did a lexan windshield replacement on a boat - don't have real good data since I sold it just two years later, but it was also in the same condition as glass would be.<br /><br />Having said all this, I am admittedly not a plastics expert, and whether or not there were coatings on these things I dunno, I certainly didn't specify them.

 

[farginicehole]

Re: Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

Well, I guess I can't argue with the facts - I was just going on what I've heard and read elsewhere. I'm a far cry from a plastics expert too! I too was thinking about trying my hand at making a replacement windshield for my '91 Alumacraft 185CS Competitor, and initially was thinking about using polycarb instead of acrylic. Not sure how easy it is to work with (such as forming bends, etc.) compared to acrylic either. Maybe someone else has experience they can share?

 

[flashback]

Re: Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

try this windshields.

 

[Beck]

Re: Looking for windshield..or how to make one..

Taz33,<br /><br />Welcome to the forumn, your gonna love it here.<br /><br />As for your question about windshields for your boat. I'm not sure what kind of boat your trying to put it on. I will explain how I made mine. I hate to say it but I am very cheap sometimes, probable way too often, but thats another story.<br /><br />I mounted a side console in my 14' x-wide all. flat to install steering for a 48 spl I had purchased to replace a blown 25 rude. After using it in the winter well I decided to mount a small windshield.<br /><br />I took all. conduit 1/2" could have used 3/4 also it's just that I already had the 1/2". Anyway I then bent it with electrical tubing benders in the shape of an upside down U the width of my console, mounted same with ss bolts. I then cut a piece of plexiglas aprox. 1/4"-3/8" smaller than the inside of the U. I then mounted it in between the tubing. I actually used some "codex"(a type of flexible plastic used to cover walls) You could also use a piece of all. 1/2"-5/8" wide aprox. 3"-5" long. You bend either around the tubing when the ends meet you bend them together let them come out about an 1 1/2" the plexiglas goes in between the ends, drill a hole thru all three pieces and mount with a small bolt. I used a #10 fine thread ss round head phillips with a fiber nut, a type of lock nut. I have the mounting pieces about 5"-8" apart. I hope this isn't too confusing. The tubing actually acts like a grab rail when standing and cruising, you know looking around the next bend in the bayous. If you have any questions e-mail me Dpb1972@aol.com. I will be glad to explain further. I got the material from scraps pieces at work and had the tubing. The only things I bought were the ss bolts. It was very cheap and actually easy to make. The hardest thing is bending it to fit the width of your console, that took practice and measuring.<br /><br />Beck