Hi All,
Made good progress on my Grandson's 56 but ran into a snag. I'm attempting to install the one piece side glass and still have many questions on how to install it. First , the instructions says to drill out one of the mirror weldnuts with a 9/16" or 5/8" drill bit. Which one and if drilled from the outside, I'll probably need a fender washer. Secondly, they say to drill a 1/4" hole, 3-1/2" down by 1-1/2" horizontally. The photo is not clear as to where to take the measurement from. Anyone? And thirdly, the channel that mounts to the angle bracket has a slight dog leg on one end. Does it mount up or down against the angle bracket? Lastly, I understand that the glass has a bow in it. I assume that the convex side faces out. Correct me if I'm wrong. I'm hoping that someone has done this before and will chime in. Thanks in advance!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/94728834@N08/

 

I did mine about 6 years ago so not much help.If you got them from midfiffty give them a call,they are very helpful.

 

I did call them and got several different answers. I'll try and figure it out. Thanks

 

Well guys and gals, I finally figured out a few things by carefully looking at all the parts. First, the old glass at the rear is slightly curved downward so there is a front and rear. Secondly, the outer weldnut of the mirror is the one that must be drilled out so as not to interfere with the U-channel. Next, the U-channel with the dog-leg goes up and rests on a ledge just behind the weldnut I drilled out. I found center on the channel felt which I marked and the center of the glass at the top edge. Align the two and tape it on both sides of the center mark so it doesn't move while you slowly shape both sides around the glass, while taping it down as you go. So far, everything is a go for the next step which I'll do this evening. I'm waiting on the upper and back channel brackets to come in before going much farther. If anyone plans on doing this conversion, you just have to take your time. It also helps to be a machinist, as I slotted most of the brackets for unlimited adjustments. I plan on taking pictures as I go for others to benifit from.

 

Thanks for the info on the one piece glass kit. Who did you get it from? I am beginning to prepare for a two inch chop and am leaning toward a 1 piece window rather than all the trimming etc required to keep the vent window

Gary

 

Sounds like you have things under control. When you say that "the old glass at the rear is slightly curved downward so there is a front and rear" I assume that you are referring to the radius of the corners rather than the actual "flatness" of the glass. The corners do have a different radius, however slight, which will make a big difference if not installed properly. I have seen a couple of sets of instructions, none of which I would consider to be sufficient for anyone who doesn't already have an intuitive feel for how all the parts go together. The last set that I bought had an issue with the width of the front channel...the window felt would not fit into it. My truck has power windows as well as the 1-piece glass, I ended up doing a couple of mods before I got everything working the way I wanted. It was worth the ffort though, getting rid of the vent window really cleans up the appearance of the door/cab.

 

Gary, sorry for the delay in answer to your question. I purchased the whole kit from Mid-Fifties. I'm sort of putting together some photos and write-up as I go along. I'm still waiting on the lock side upper & back channel bracket to come in. I also slotted the front channel bracket holes on my milling machine to insure sufficient adjustment. I will document all this with pictures for all to see. The instructions have a lot to be desired so I'm hoping I can make it easier for those who are contemplating on doing this mod.
CharlieLed, if you stand the glass up as if installed, measure from top to bottom in the front and also in the rear, and you will find that the front should be taller by 1/16" to 3/32". When mid-fifties told me there was a slight curvature in the glass, I thought she ment the glass was bowed. My bad. Hope I answered all the questions so far.

 

Well, I got the Lock Side Upper and Back Channels in, so I installed them and they fit fine. Glued in the Glass Felt Channel and attached it to the front channel and L-shaped bracket to support the front. All went well until I got to the Extended Lower Lift Runners. The Nylon Window Glass Rollers must be installed before attaching the lift channels to the window glass. Well the rollers don't even come close to fitting. I compared it to the stock ones and they are way off. I looked in the catalog and don't see a special roller to fit the extended lower lift runners. After reading the caption, it says one can use the original lift runners if the tempered glass is used. Well, I did that and all is well exept that I now have two extended lift channels I can't use and are worthless because they don't fit- must be made in China. I'll call Mid-Fifties to see what the problem is.

 

Same problem I had...Sy will take care of it for you.

 

I'm glad I wasn't the only one. I miked the slot twice to make sure I wasn't having a brain F..t. I can sleep now. Thanks CharlieLed.

 

The L-Shaped brackets that hold the channels are too small, take a clamshell house molding or piece of similar sized wood, place it in the door tracks and slide down to see exactly where the channels will have to sit.

I taped the wood in place, then measured a bracket and where to drill the hole to hold it at the bottom, hard to explain.

The nut behind the mirror is a PITA to get out, I drilled it in the center then hammered it out with a large screwdriver, it has to be removed, that's where the top of the new channel will sit.

Tape the door opening where the glass goes in as not to scratch it, test fit it and mark how it goes in the next time with the new track on the bottom that the roller fits into.

Do not install the bracket on the glass in the center, the roller will come out of it as it goes up or, was it down, can't remember, it has to be almost to the end of the glass to work correctly, can't remember which side.

Also, do not install the anti-rattle kit across the door where the glass comes up until everything is finished and working.

As others have stated the glass is flat, but taller on one side, so place it in the door and push up to make sure you have it fitting correctly before installing the bottom tracks with the rubber, it's a real PITA to remove them if it's wrong, been there done that a few times when I did all this.

Hope this helps.


You have the channels that go by the door latch side, correct?, they aren't part of the kit that I had.
Got mine from Blue Oval.

 

Thanks for the input Rich56. I finally got everything figured out. The mirror nut wasn't hard to get out if a 5/8" drill bit is used. The problem lies with the big hole left after drilling. To solve this, I made some hat bushings to accept a 5/16" countersunk screw. As I stated before, the only problem I ran in to was with the extended lift channel which the glass rollers don't fit. Plan to call MF about it. I also had a little problem with the lower felt wipes. By slotting the L-bracket on my mill, alignment is not as critical with the added adjustments. Pays to be a machinist.

 

Well, I'm still waiting for an answer from MF on the extended lower lift runner. I was told I would get an answer on Thursday, but here it is on Monday and still nothing. Very frustrating! I may go ahead and use my old runners as I'm sure they would work. Has anyone else have this problem??

 

I have a little OT question on these window kits.How does the prices compare to restoring the original rubber pieces with vent windows etc.Also if I decide to go with power windows is this kit easier to install with a solid window or original style pieces.
Thanks Dave

 

I like the headliner!!! Very nice!!!