Cabin glass replacement 1976 F-32.

[2barkingdogs]

I have a 1976 F-32. The boat was stored outside shrunk rapped for four years in Michigan winters when I found her. About half of the cabin windows have cracked; I think it was the weight of the snow.

Does anyone have advice re: replacement glass type, tips on removal and replacement of both fixed forward windows and sliders.

[Stripermann2]

Just did them...again!

They come out fairly easy. The glass has plastic sliders on top and on the bottom. You need to slide these off the glass and out of the frame. Then you can lift the glass upwards so the bottom of the glass can be tilted out and removed. No big deal. If you have screens, remove the screen channel, upper or lower, doesn't matter which one, first. Reverse order for installing. Won't take long...

Take a Sharpy Marker and mark all the glass as to where they go, then take them to a glass shop and have them make new ones, using the old glass a templates. I had 3 slider glass made for about 160.00.

From what I understand, tinted glass is not as tempered as clear glass and is more susceptible to cracking if you choose to use it.

Hope this helps.

[Mac32]

Replacing all of them this spring, only issue is a few cracked slider extrusions.

Does anyone have a connection or cross reference for replacing these??? need a solution since glass is out and some are un usable......I would also like black, but I know beggars cant be choosers but I am a boat owner, so I have to ask the impossible.......

I have emailed beacon numerous times with no reply, but I am not confident they have any left because it is posted on their web that the stock of these was depleted.

[duchess]

there are no more h channel sliders left . Marine tech had the molds for it but they are now unusable and they have no more h channel stock you will have to mend what you have

[Stripermann2]

I may have a solution for the window slides.

A few years back, I think on another Trojan forum, I posted that I had a fix.

I researched high and low for plastic H channels to use on my windows for the first go-round of replacement of my windows. I eventually found the missing original plastic sliders on my boat, in a hidden place...sound familiar?

Anyway, I found a direct and identical replacement for the slides. But, they are aluminum. I ordered the channel from the manufacturer, thinking I would cut and use them before I found my missing sliders.

They should work with no problems. They are a polished aluminum with smooth guides and will slide with no problem, you will need to keep the window tracks clean and lightly lubricated, from time to time as you would normally do anyway.

If interested, let me know and I will provide info I have. I also have the original aluminum ordered and in it's shipping tube. I think 10' of it?

[Mac32]

Yep, Im interested

I was actually looking down this rout myself. Aluminum will work great, I can get teflon adhesive backed tape for the slider groove, and adhesive backed brush material for the rattle, and I was going to have the pieces powder coated black to match window frames.

The only missing piece is I have not found the aluminum extrusion yet. So any info would be appreciated.

Thanks
Fred

[Stripermann2]

Okay, I will look and report back.