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Most common wear points for windshield wipers? 120-130

I need to do something with the windshield wipers on my car; they sweep too far and hit the rubber gasket at the the bottom of the windshield.
The motor is securely bolted down, the adapter pieces that go on the tips of the wiper arm shafts are not slipping, and I can't find any gross slop in the wiper linkage itself.
This is not an issue that can be fixed by remounting the wiper blades at a slightly different angle; the wipers simply sweep too far. The first half dozen sweeps are typically OK, but then the degree of travel increases; as things warm up, I guess.

What should I be looking at?

Thanks
Bill








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    Most common wear points for windshield wipers? 120-130

    I just received some new splined bushings that fit between the wiper arm and the shafts coming out of the gearboxes.

    The new bushings are made out of brass, instead of zinc, and they are not splined on the inner bore that fits over the gearbox shaft.

    I'm guessing that I'm supposed to press the brass piece onto the gearbox shaft, and the splines will be cut into the brass during this process. Am I correct?

    Has anyone done this before? Any suggestions?

    Oh, and the gears on my old wiper assembly were worn out; I guess that's what happens after 500,000+ miles in the rainy Pacific Northwest.

    Bill








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    Most common wear points for windshield wipers? 120-130

    I had this problem years ago. It was wear in the wioer gear box. Got a few more years of use by switching the mating surfaces in the gear box to the unused portion. Final solution was a different car with a less used gear box. Final note make your life simpler....change out the philips head screws that hold the box against the firewall for allen heads eases the PITA of reinstall.
    --
    Patrick, '68 220, '92 Eurovan (work truck) '53 PD4104 (conversion).








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    Most common wear points for windshield wipers? 120-130

    How close to the edge of the screen does the tip of the driver's side blade go at each sweep? Are the arms/blades both the right length? From memory I think that both the arm and the blade are effectively 11"" long. Slop in the splined part of the arm is common as they are rarely renewed. The arms then wave around with very little control of the blade. I've seen 10" bldes fitted and this can allow more angle around towards the driver's side.
    Just changing the rubber insert in the blade may not improve the wiping ability all that much if there is wear in the moving parts of the blade. Some types are worse than others for this.








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      Most common wear points for windshield wipers? 120-130

      My wiper arms are adjustable for both length and angle (Bosch).

      The splined parts are not loose, and wiggling the arms does not not produce any noticeable movement in the linkage. I suspect the slop is in the gearbox.
      I will remove the wiper assembly and inspect it more thoroughly.

      The suggestion of 10" wiper blades is a good one; I'm going to see what is on the car, and fit a shorter blade if appropriate. I'm also building a time-delay wiper controller, so I can extend the life of the wiper mechanism as much as possible.

      Bill








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    Most common wear points for windshield wipers? 120-130

    Bill;

    Wear in the park-switch contact disc and contacts will result in a change in the park position...I just can't see how it can change in the swept angle...I would still suggest a slop somewhere in the linkage...maybe in the gearbox and certainly possibly in the cable-on-cam...I suggest another look...

    See also: http://www.sw-em.com/Windshield%20Wiper%20Systems.htm

    Good Hunting








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    Most common wear points for windshield wipers? 120-130

    Lift the blade back all the way from the windshield and see how much play there is at the pivot point. It may be that the arms themselves are worn and need to be replaced. That little bit of play magnifies out to quite a bit of movement at the end of the blade.








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      Most common wear points for windshield wipers? 120-130

      I have the same problem with my wipers. I tightened up everything on the wiper setup (motor mount bolts were loose), when running it hits the rubber gasket, but stops exactly where it should be above the gasket.

      Pretty much just accepted that's the way it was. I'll check out the wiper arms themselves.

      Paul







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