1968 pontiac firebird felser flush mount glass metalworks

Fesler flush mount glass in a 1968 Firebird

06 Jul 2017

Featured, Pontiac, Pro Touring

Flush mounted glass is a great way to give your classic car a sleek and modern look, but it does come with a fair amount of work. You need to factor in that classic cars were never designed for flush glass, so the factory openings will need to be reworked to accommodate for the new glass. Factory glass was accented with trim pieces that hid components like window clips, and seals…these components will no longer apply, so you will need to “build” the car around the glass. Let’s take a look at how the crew at MetalWorks Classic Auto Restoration tackled installing Fesler’s new flush glass in their 1968 Firebird build.

1968 pontiac firebird felser flush mount glass metalworks — Our 1968 Pontiac Firebird build featuring Fesler flush mounted glass. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 1. Notice the gap at the bottom of the A pillar and the fender, this gap is normally hidden by the windshield trim. Since we will not be using the trim, it is necessary to extend the A pillar to fill this gap. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 2. Freshly extended A pillar. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 3-4 With the rear window set in place, you can see that we are tight on the corners, and loose on the edges. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon. MetalWorks — 5-9 To fill the gaps along the sides of the rear window we fabricated a filler piece and welded it into place

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon. MetalWorks — 10-14 We had the opposite situation at the corners of the rear window, so we pie cut the metal to create a larger gap

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 15-21 We had to get creative when it came to the cowl as the lower windshield trim would no longer be present to hold the top edge of the cowl in place. The lower screws could still be used on the cowl, so with those in place we aligned the cowl to the hood and fenders, then, drilled through the cowl and into the body. We then enlarged those holes and filled them with grommets on the body, and welded elevator bolts in place on the underside of the cowl. Nuts were then used to set the height of the cowl. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 22 With the body now painted we are measuring out a number of points around the windshield to install rubber blocks to shim the windshield to proper height. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 23 We marked the depth of the window channel at each location. We then measured the thickness of the glass and subtracted it from the depth of the channel. The result gave us the necessary thickness for each of the rubber bumpers. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 24 After determining the thickness of each rubber spacer and trimming them, we then glued the spacers into place

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 25 Our new Fesler windshield. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 26 Applying Urethane pinch weld primer to body. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 27 A generous amount of primer was applied to the body. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 28 Taping off the windshield before applying the Urethane weld primer. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 30 Applying Urethane window weld in a “tee pee” shape (we custom cut the application tip. MetalWorks

31 Don’t be shy when applying the window weld. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 32 We also added a cosmetic dam so nothing would ooze out and show. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 33. We installed some temporary blocks at the base of the windshield in case the glass wanted to sag . MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 34 Setting the windshield into place. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 35 We applied tape to the glass to help hold it in place. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 36 Tapping the glass also helped out in a couple of spots that wanted to lift, and it helps keep everything level. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 37 We added some temporary rubber stoppers at the base of the windshield to keep the glass from sliding down. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 38 Tape was kept in place until the Urethane finished setting. MetalWorks

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon

1968 pontiac firebird fesler flush mount glass metalworks Oregon — 39-40 And here is the finished product, as we mentioned it’s a good amount of work, but totally worth the effort if you want that modern, clean look. MetalWorks

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