Window Felt Replacement

CheemsK1500 · Jul 1, 2022

Grit dog said:
Thank you for the explanation. Both windows go up the exact same amount and the motors are new ish and work well. Window just appears to not quite fully contact the felt at the top at the very front.

It's also worth checking the rollers on the regulator and the tracks they ride in on the door shell, they can bind when they get too filthy.

My '84 K1500 had a very sluggish window on the passenger side. I took the regulator out and found that the plastic rollers were frozen solid. I broke them lose with channel locks and sprayed them with some penetrating oil. Once they started moving again, I lubed the tracks in the door shell, and now the Window works great.

You probably already know this, but make sure to tape the glass in the mostly raised position before removing the regulator. One strip of Gorilla tape across the top of the door shell and on the sides of the window typically captures it.

mtbadbob · Jul 3, 2022

CheemsK1500 said:
Maybe you could just take the glass out and get it powder coated.

I could, but it's a bit of a different dimension without the cladding on it, it just looks skinny!

mtbadbob · Jul 3, 2022

Grit dog said:
Thank you for the explanation. Both windows go up the exact same amount and the motors are new ish and work well. Window just appears to not quite fully contact the felt at the top at the very front.

Yeah, I think every window is a bit different. I left mine outside the door frame a bit, just barely tucked into the channel, and when the window shut it pushed it up into the frame more, so I figured it would settle into place where the window tracked. I finally got my wing window seals locked into the hinge side of the window frame but now there is a slight hole right below the hinge & water finds it way in. I HATE aftermarket seals. I had nothing but problems with my Sof Seals on my '84 Monte and they are supposed to be the best out there. They leaked worse than my factory wore out ones did!

idahovette · Jul 3, 2022

The seal question seems to be a real problem for most. Had the w/s replaced in my Nova, the guy screwed up the paint surrounding the glass, so we had to take it to my son's body shop to get the paint repaired. They removed the glass fixed the paint, then reinstalled the w/s with a new gasket. DID NOT fit, gaps between the seal and the opening and not cosmetically correct at all!!! I did some checking on a couple of Nova forums, the answer was "use Steele Rubber". Got a new seal from a little Glass place in Blachy Oregon, the shop had it installed and the fit is great. The seal the glass guys used first was an OER brand. The body shop was NOT the glass installer, they farm it out to a glass only place, BUT we all learned from this experience........and I gotta give credit to my Hagerty Insurance, they covered the cost of everything, no questions asked!!!

Grit dog · Jul 3, 2022

mtbadbob said:
I also had to change my drivers door motor after the new felts. I bought a pair off ebay for like $58 with a 5 year warranty. I haven't done the passenger door yet as I've been trying to locate a wing window that has the black metal cladding on the divider bar as mine is bare, rusted metal. I've looked at about a dozen and only found like 2 in the bone yards.

What do you mean by cladding on the wing window frame. I think they’re all the same?
Mine were rusty on the outside part of the frame. Paint was gone.
I think re-painting them is the preferred method? That’s what I did when I had them apart anyway. I used my black chassis paint and then cleared over the single stage paint before it cured.

mtbadbob · Jul 3, 2022

Grit dog said:
What do you mean by cladding on the wing window frame. I think they’re all the same?
Mine were rusty on the outside part of the frame. Paint was gone.
I think re-painting them is the preferred method? That’s what I did when I had them apart anyway. I used my black chassis paint and then cleared over the single stage paint before it cured.

If you look closely, there is a thin metal cladding both inside & out over the top of the steel. I think it's actually aluminum, maybe plastic??? They are all mostly a bit rusty beneath this thin cladding, and without the cladding they are a bit thinner also.

Grit dog · Jul 3, 2022

mtbadbob said:
If you look closely, there is a thin metal cladding both inside & out over the top of the steel. I think it's actually aluminum, maybe plastic??? They are all mostly a bit rusty beneath this thin cladding, and without the cladding they are a bit thinner also.

Hmm. I believe it’s definitely metal anyways. I’ll look closer. You mean the wide vertical piece on the inside of the window?
That wasn’t rusted on mine and I didn’t take it to bare metal but the outside of the vertical piece is solid steel.
I feel like not rusted out wing windows are plentiful around here. And should be reasonable enough to ship. I don’t personally have any spare parts though.

mtbadbob · Jul 3, 2022

Grit dog said:
Hmm. I believe it’s definitely metal anyways. I’ll look closer. You mean the wide vertical piece on the inside of the window?
That wasn’t rusted on mine and I didn’t take it to bare metal but the outside of the vertical piece is solid steel.
I feel like not rusted out wing windows are plentiful around here. And should be reasonable enough to ship. I don’t personally have any spare parts though.

I'm going to measure mine, but I'm pretty sure the drivers window that is black is wider than the rusty metal one on the passenger side. I could be wrong, but I've examined them pretty close and am sure there is a thin piece of cladding of some sort. It always seems like the passenger side is the one's missing for some reason!

Grit dog · Jul 3, 2022

mtbadbob said:
I'm going to measure mine, but I'm pretty sure the drivers window that is black is wider than the rusty metal one on the passenger side. I could be wrong, but I've examined them pretty close and am sure there is a thin piece of cladding of some sort. It always seems like the passenger side is the one's missing for some reason!

Now I’m curious. Headed out to the shop in a bit and will look.

mtbadbob · Jul 3, 2022

I measured & double checked mine again, there is definitely some type of cladding on there. They measure about 1/32nd different, and I can actually see it on the drivers side that it's slightly loose and I can see the metal behind it where it wraps around toward the window. I'm almost thinking it's plastic??

AaronW · Aug 8, 2022

Hi all:

I'm having the same problem as the original poster. I'd tried silicone spray, and I'm still getting stuck. I'm doing ok on the back of the windows, since I can get a pair of needlenose in there from underneath to pull down while I push from the top. The fronts of the windows, though, no dice. Looks like others might have used dish soap. Any other suggestions?

Aaron

Redfish · Aug 8, 2022

AaronW said:
Hi all:

I'm having the same problem as the original poster. I'd tried silicone spray, and I'm still getting stuck. I'm doing ok on the back of the windows, since I can get a pair of needlenose in there from underneath to pull down while I push from the top. The fronts of the windows, though, no dice. Looks like others might have used dish soap. Any other suggestions?

Aaron

Aaron I just kept fighting mine until it finally went in. I gave up and sat down to think about it several times, went inside and re-watched every Youtube video I could find and still just kept fighting it until it worked.

After I drove it around and things settled in I can get the window to work again with some "help" which is where I was before I started.

AaronW · Aug 8, 2022

Hmm, I was kinda wondering if that's what I'd hear. I've go a v3500, so I've got 4 of them to do. If I come up with any great ideas that make it easier, I'll share.

Aaron

75gmck25 · Aug 8, 2022

I installed new felt and new manual regulators in my ‘75, and it still takes two hands and full arm effort for my wife to roll up the windows. Very disappointing since it’s all new. I also lubed the rollers and other parts, but they seemed to be in decent shape.

I can see some room for adjustment by loosening some of the bolts that hold the mechanism in, but nothing seemed to make it easier to roll up the windows.

Terry Wilkerson · Aug 8, 2022

Try silicone spray. One of the guys suggested it to me on my new seals and it helped alot.

Window Felt Replacement

CheemsK1500

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mtbadbob

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mtbadbob

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idahovette

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Grit dog

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mtbadbob

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Grit dog

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mtbadbob

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Grit dog

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mtbadbob

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AaronW

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Redfish

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