They do this at glass shops. Preferably one that does windshields to. They use a special diamond tipped blade. Kinda like a router and water. I'm sure you can get it done locally. If not get a bit and practice on some scraps then try yours. :welcome:

 

you can cut windshields ? what ?

i was unaware that such a thing ws even possible.

and i cant fathom how it could be!

i am confused here hmmm

 

you can cut windshields ? what ?

i was unaware that such a thing ws even possible.

and i cant fathom how it could be!

i am confused here hmmm

Links to erudition:

http://www.cadvision.com/blanchas/54pontiac/windshield.html

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=296834&highlight=sandblast+glass

 

They do this at glass shops. Preferably one that does windshields to.

I'll make some more calls.

 

If you don't need to take too much off, you can use an arrising (spelling?) machine. I worked at a glass shop for a few years and used this thing quite a bit. It's basically a large vertical belt sander with water spraying on the back side of the belt to cool the glass. 1/4" would take a while but is doable I think. Never heard of saw blade that would cut glass, but I've drilled holes in glass, so it's possible. To drill a hole we made a dam around where the hole was to be, filled it with water and drilled it in the water.

 

Yeah you could "wet belt" it off. But on the same respect how about modifying the car instead of the glass? That is where I would be going instead of making a bastard window, simply correct the problem with the car instead of the glass.

Brian

 

But on the same respect how about modifying the car instead of the glass? That is where I would be going instead of making a bastard window, simply correct the problem with the car instead of the glass.
Brian

That would make sense if the car were still under construction and the windshield was an OEM piece, but the car has been "finished" for years and the one-piece curved-glass replacement for the two-piece flat-glass OEM windshield is, like most custom-cut glass, slightly asymmetric to begin with.

Bastard frame plus bastard window equals PITA installation.

I would think that sandblasting the window would be easier, but from what I've read, the tolerances of sandblasting are equal to or greater than the amount of glass I need to remove, so sanding looks like the better choice.

Thanks for your advice, guys.

 

If you can't find a local windshield shop that can/will do it for you reasonably, you might also try finding a local stained glass maker or hobbyist. I do stained glass and I have the "router" type water cooled diamond grinder Cape Cod Bob mentioned...and I've used it on automotive glass as well to remove small imperfections. I also have a diamond tipped scroll saw blade for cutting glass...but I've never tried that with laminated or safety glass.

Anyhow, if you happen to know a person or have a friend who does stained glass, they might loan you their machine (they are very portable) at no cost so you could do it right in your shop and test fit it as you grind.

 

I had a piece of safety glass I got off a rehab job, it was a bullitin board cover,
The glass shop that does cars also, cars are a small part of thier biz, cut out my winshield on my marks. They even gave me a marking grease pencil to mark it up at home.
It is a flat windshield and the bottom cut is curved to match the cowl. Edges were smoothed.
Tota cost $25.00 . I had to hound them a little. I also got a rear view mirror cut 3X6 and nice smooth sides, $12.00. :welcome:

 

Cutting flat glass is a lot easier than cutting a curved glass windshield. That said, if you only need an 1/8 or 1/4" off, it's very difficult to do with a glass cutter. Best bet for a curved glass is grinding it off with water cooling.

 

windshield........

HI,i have used a stationary,belt sander with 80 grit sanding belts, to trim the windshields. mask off the part you want to save,VERY GOOD. i always (1 time) used a piece of plywood doorskin, (BOTH SIDES) with only the part i wanted to grind off showing.again,mask off the part you want to save,VERY GOOD,or,i guarantee you will be buying another windshield. i made a plywood upright to lean the windshield against,to insure a flat cut. plan on spending a whole bunch of time on sanding. have fun,let us know how it turned out. :smash: :smash: PS,dont get frustrated,take your time.

 

Would something like this work (diamond hand file)?

http://www.granitecitytool.com/showitem.cfm?itemnum=159&catnum=65&pcatnum=0&mcatnum=92

I like power tools as much as the next guy, but I think in this situation I'd rather spend a lot of time with a hand tool and be able to control the rate of material removal and pressure.

Otherwise, you have to find a way to hold the windshield up to the tool and that seems like a big way to increase the chance of breaking it. Even with a smaller tool that you could bring to the workpiece, if you've never done it before, you're learning on your fragile project piece. Never a good idea.

That's if you want to do it yourself. Outsourcing locally it is probably going to be faster.

Might be prudent, if you haven't already, to locate a definite source for a replacement and get a price. Better to find out now than later as it would put any costs for "experimentation
into perspective.

Also might be worthwhile to pick up a cheap windshield from some other vehicle at the local pick-and-pull and do some practicing.

 

Cutting laminated glass

A belt sander cooled with water works fine go slow and easy
If you have a lot to take off you can score both sides of a laminated glass piece with a lathe steel cutter carbide bit, or a good cutter. then pour lighter fluid on the scored area let it sit and soak (both sides). then you guessed it light it on fire :sweat:
If all goes well ,,, magically the excess will fall off :mwink:
I would practice this on something till you feel comfortable with this procedure :thumbup: Maybe do it out side so you don't burn down the shop
imp: