Andrew Cleland Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 A few weeks back I asked about options for replacing the drafty, leaky, insecure (and in my case, no longer see-through) two-piece sliding side windows on a 110 Stationwagon with something simpler and cheaper. There weren't any obvious solutions and replacement glasses for the windows are horribly expensive and still leave the problems of drafts, water and thieves. So after some head-scratching I pulled one of the existing windows out, took it apart and came-up with a solution to fit a single sheet of glass into the existing frame. I thought it might help someone else if I documented the procedure, so here it is... You'll need: Existing stationwagon side window assembly A sheet of 4mm (or 5mm for VIN pre-EA344187) toughened glass (see below) 2 of MWC7617 glazing strip (or MUC1484 for 5mm glass) 1 of MUC1005 filler strip 4 of No. 6 * 1/4" countersunk machine screws (see www.modelfixings.co.uk) 2 of 4mm * 9mm pop rivets 24 of 4mm * 12mm pop rivets Also handy: Silicon spray lube No. 4 tap Firstly remove the existing window from the bodywork - it's held-in by 24 rivets, hidden under the filler strip, which just pulls out. Drill out the rivets... and then lever out the window from the body, leaving you with this... The frame is a two-piece unit, held together by plates riveted and screwed into each half... ...although someone has already fiddled with this one (probably when they fitted the horrible perspex windows) and replaced some of the screws with rivets There are also two self-tapping screws holding the central divider in Have out all the screws (and rivets in my case) and you can split the frame apart There's a whole load of gunk and hardware for holding the old windows in - strip it all out, you just want the empty frames, which will leave you with a pile like this for the bin You'll see the frame has two channels, on one side the joining bar is in the rear channel, which is fine, but on the other side the bar is in the front channel, which means it will have to move to make way for the glass Drill out the two rivets holding the "front channel" bar in place and the bar should come free leaving you with this Usefully there are already holes drilled in the other channel, so the two 4mm * 9mm pop rivets can be used to refit the bar, but now in the back channel At this point it's a good moment to run a tap through the screw holes as they tend to get a bit gunky over the years and check that the machine screws fit Next comes the window glass. The first local glass merchants I went to weren't interested in anything to do with vehicle windows, but the second (W. H. Constable, Cambridge) were very helpful. What they needed was a template of the window which they then cut from 4mm glass which was sent off to be toughened. As it happened. cutting the four radiused corners cost more than the glass itself - £8 for the glass, £10 for four corners, £18 (ex. VAT) all in. I used the two halves of the old windows and a ruler to mark the template out on 3mm hardboard which I then cut with a Stanley knife and rounded the corners to shape with sandpaper. A cardboard template would have been fine, but using hardboard meant I could test assemble the frame with the template to make sure my measurements were good. As we plan to spend some time in southern Europe during the summer I got 3m of tinting film (http://www.abodewindowfilms.co.uk) for £9, which was enough to do both side windows and both of the little rear windows. It's a lot easier to apply tinting film to the glass when it's on a table then when it's in the car. Next you need to get one of the MWC7617 glazing strips and ease it around half of the glass. They're longer than needed so you can cut them down to size once they're on the glass - you don't need to be too precise though as the second strip will take up the slack. Now you need to get the larger piece of the frame and liberally spray the outer channel (the one without the joining bars) with silicon spray lube - this helps, a lot, when you slide the glass into the channel, although it's actually a lot easier than it looks! Glazing strip sliding down frame (sorry for fuzzy photos, I was lubricating myself with Freeminer Organic Ale at the time...) Once the glass is almost fully slid home you need to start working the glazing strip into the long side of the channel, again this is easier than you'd think. Start by running your fingers along the glazing strip on the outside of the window, pushing the strip into the frame - you'll only get it half-in, but that's fine. Then do the same on the inside of the glass, then again on the outside, which should push it fully home and finally on the inside again. Each end of the glazing strip should look like this and the corners like this Then get the second pack of glazing strip and feed it down the channel on one side of the frame, butting it tightly against the first bit of glazing strip and round the glass to the other end. Run the strip on the outside of the channel and using a sharp Stanley knife cut it to length, then feed it into the channel, leaving you with this Now lube the other section of the frame, slide it over the glazing strip and repeat the pushing-in process to get the glazing strip fully seated One window I did just went together perfectly, the other needed a little persuasion for the last few millimetres Then just screw in the machine screws to hold the frame together (please ignore the cr*p countersinking, I couldn't find my countersink, so used a 10mm bit - ugly but it works and it's hidden) Temporary 'window' in place and new one ready to go in Twenty-four 4mm * 12mm pop rivets later Then it's just the most frustrating part of the whole job to fit the new MUC1005 filler strip (softening it in hot water and swearing a lot helps) and job's a good 'un Hope this is of use, AndyC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 Excellent job, one for the Tech Archive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prith Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 What a fantastic job. Thanks a ton I must do this on my 110. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
101sean Posted July 4, 2014 Share Posted July 4, 2014 Nice write up, the originals rarely get opened. I still have a shed load of 4 x 12mm rivets if anyone wants to pm me (I had to buy 1000 when I needed 50!), postage plus price of a pint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reb78 Posted July 4, 2014 Share Posted July 4, 2014 Andrew. It's a fair while ago, but you didn't happen to keep the glass template by any chance? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Cleland Posted July 14, 2014 Author Share Posted July 14, 2014 Andrew. It's a fair while ago, but you didn't happen to keep the glass template by any chance? (Lucky I just bought another 110 (sold the one with the window job a couple of years back) so I'm back on LR4x4 to see this)! I don't think I have the template, but I will take a look in the garage on the off-chance that it's survived. It's the sort of thing that might be tucked away somewhere. A. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reb78 Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Haha. I;d seen a flurry of activity from you lately..... welcome back. If you could take a look when you get time, that would be great. I could drop my windows out, but then i cant use it whilst i sort out the glass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazzar Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Nice Job, very neat. Can't beat the Freeminer, either. Good stuff, from a good little company. Have you tried the honey ale? G. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Cleland Posted July 14, 2014 Author Share Posted July 14, 2014 I'd hoped to take a look this evening, but stuck at work (although not working as you can see...), will do tomorrow. Gazzar - yeah, the honey is nice & I'm not normally a fan of honey things. Beer of the moment for me though is Pure Ubu from Purity, very nice pint Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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