fseva Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 Guys, I am working on an AMT 64 Mercury, and I noticed that the windshield as a "crack" at the top, that is very visible. This is not a scratch that could be polished out - the rough feel of the crack that you might expect from looking at it, is just not present. I know that this would be a longshot, but has anyone ever had the opportunity to work on such a thing?
1930fordpickup Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 It could be a stress crack . You will need new glass or, you could spray a transparent blue tint over the very top like a sun visor. Very popular to do back when cars came without tinted windows.
Can-Con Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 Just like on a real 1/1 windshield, the only way to fix it is to replace it.
Snake45 Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 Cracked clear plastic cannot be fixed--at least not invisibly.
mike 51 Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 (edited) That's *very* easy to fix... you simply replace it. Edited June 22, 2015 by mike 51
Mike Kucaba Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 Long shot without seeing the damage is to dip it in Future.
Snake45 Posted June 22, 2015 Posted June 22, 2015 Long shot without seeing the damage is to dip it in Future. That will have no effect whatsoever on a crack inside the plastic.
fseva Posted June 23, 2015 Author Posted June 23, 2015 It could be a stress crack . You will need new glass or, you could spray a transparent blue tint over the very top like a sun visor. Very popular to do back when cars came without tinted windows. And that's exactly where the crack is! I take it any clear blue would do... like Tamiya clear in the bottle? Long shot without seeing the damage is to dip it in Future. I might give that a shot! Thanks!
fseva Posted June 26, 2015 Author Posted June 26, 2015 I tried to find my bottle of Future, but it's lost. So, I used Tamiya Clear Blue with a bit of alcohol to thin it and airbrushed it on my cracked part (a bar across the top - as recommended). It looks pretty good... but it remains to be seen whether it will completely hide the crack or not. Probably won't know for sure until I get the kit done.
Krazy Rick Posted June 26, 2015 Posted June 26, 2015 (edited) I tried to find my bottle of Future, but it's lost. So, I used Tamiya Clear Blue with a bit of alcohol to thin it and airbrushed it on my cracked part (a bar across the top - as recommended). It looks pretty good... but it remains to be seen whether it will completely hide the crack or not. Probably won't know for sure until I get the kit done. Best thing to do is to have a new windshield vacuformed, or get another from Modelhaus, they have for a Comet & a Parklane - $4 front & rear Edited June 26, 2015 by Krazy Rick
fseva Posted June 26, 2015 Author Posted June 26, 2015 Best thing to do is to have a new windshield vacuformed, or get another from Modelhaus, they have for a Comet & a Parklane - $4 front & rear I didn't know that there is a vacuforming service... who exactly does this? I'm not sure if the comet or parklane would work, and I really don't want to have to wait 4-12 weeks, but I thank you for the suggestion!
1930fordpickup Posted June 27, 2015 Posted June 27, 2015 Frank you can look for glass to replace this one if the blue does not hide it. If you get one stress crack more may show up later. Try to find one on here or Ebay.
Snake45 Posted June 27, 2015 Posted June 27, 2015 Also, depending on where the crack is and what it looks like, and how you're building the model, you might get away with just leaving it alone. I drove a 1:1 '69 Camaro with a cracked windshield for a couple years, till I got a fix-it ticket from a mean little cop I beat in a street race without breaking a single traffic law, but that's another story....
fseva Posted June 27, 2015 Author Posted June 27, 2015 Also, depending on where the crack is and what it looks like, and how you're building the model, you might get away with just leaving it alone. I drove a 1:1 '69 Camaro with a cracked windshield for a couple years, till I got a fix-it ticket from a mean little cop I beat in a street race without breaking a single traffic law, but that's another story.... Well, the crack starts at the top and travels down below the point where a tint would stop. So, while the tint did help hide it, it's not completely invisible. I have some Future on the way, and will do a dip to see if that will plug the crack...
Snake45 Posted June 27, 2015 Posted June 27, 2015 Well, the crack starts at the top and travels down below the point where a tint would stop. So, while the tint did help hide it, it's not completely invisible. I have some Future on the way, and will do a dip to see if that will plug the crack... I'll save you some trouble. It won't help hide the crack in any way. You can either replace the windshield with Modelhaus vac-glass, or just make your own from thin clear plastic. It's not as hard as you might think--fortunately it's just a simple curve, not a compound, which would HAVE to be vacformed.
MrObsessive Posted June 27, 2015 Posted June 27, 2015 As a big believer in Future and what it can do, I'll echo the sentiments of others here and tell you that Future will NOT hide cracks! Slight scratches yes, but not full on cracks. As Snake said, making your own windshield is not difficult, and if you click here (scroll down a bit), I have a mini tutorial on how I made the glass for a '63 Chrysler Turbine Car. Some patience is what's really needed, but it can be done.
Can-Con Posted June 27, 2015 Posted June 27, 2015 Just a thought, the windshield from a '63 or '64 Ford should also work in that merc. They'd be the same part in the real cars.
fseva Posted June 28, 2015 Author Posted June 28, 2015 I'll save you some trouble. It won't help hide the crack in any way. You can either replace the windshield with Modelhaus vac-glass, or just make your own from thin clear plastic. It's not as hard as you might think--fortunately it's just a simple curve, not a compound, which would HAVE to be vacformed. Well, first of all, I removed the Tamiya Clear Blue and did a do-over... brought it a little lower, and now it's completely covering the crack. OK - I'll save the Future for some other... future... need! In regard to the glass, it curves around and forms the vent windows - is that a compound curve? I suppose it could be made into separate pieces for the vent windows, and then I'd only have the windshield... sure hope the clear blue does the trick...
mike 51 Posted June 28, 2015 Posted June 28, 2015 NO... Definition of COMPOUND CURVE. : a curve made up of two or more circular arcs of successively shorter or longer radii, joined tangentially without reversal of curvature, and used on some railroad tracks and highways as an easement curve to provide a less abrupt transition from tangent to full curve or vice versa. hope this helps....
fseva Posted June 28, 2015 Author Posted June 28, 2015 Making your own windshield is not difficult, and if you click here (scroll down a bit), I have a mini tutorial on how I made the glass for a '63 Chrysler Turbine Car. I looked at this the other day... Say, how did you get that big gap at the top of the windshield (upper corners)? Or was that before you glued it in place? Just a thought, the windshield from a '63 or '64 Ford should also work in that merc. They'd be the same part in the real cars. Yes, but where is there a 63 or 64 ford when you need one?!
Snake45 Posted June 28, 2015 Posted June 28, 2015 A cylinder has a simple (one plane) curve. A ball has a compound (more than one plane) curve. Most car windshields are simple curves. Yes, the vent windows would be better handled separately. Be thankful you're not trying to make the windshield for something like a '59 Chevy.
MrObsessive Posted June 28, 2015 Posted June 28, 2015 I looked at this the other day... Say, how did you get that big gap at the top of the windshield (upper corners)? Or was that before you glued it in place? Naturally, everything you see on that page was still under construction...........on the finished model there are no gaps.
MrObsessive Posted June 28, 2015 Posted June 28, 2015 Be thankful you're not trying to make the windshield for something like a '59 Chevy. Ha! You got that right! That's one thing that stopped this right in its tracks! I absolutely hate the kit glass as it's way, way too distorted, and cars like this scream out for glass to be as clear as possible. I did since get a vacuform machine, and I was able to mold a fairly reasonable windshield. Need some more practice though as the plastic I used wasn't quite the right type I like. Then there's that rear window to deal with..........................
fseva Posted June 28, 2015 Author Posted June 28, 2015 I absolutely hate the kit glass as it's way, way too distorted, and cars like this scream out for glass to be as clear as possible. I did since get a vacuform machine, and I was able to mold a fairly reasonable windshield. Need some more practice though as the plastic I used wasn't quite the right type I like. Then there's that rear window to deal with.......................... Hey, maybe I should be asking YOU to vacform me a new window for my 64 Marauder!?
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