Roadmaster Projects

Thought I would keep you updated on various projects on the Roadmaster. Today was a weekend of tinting and driving lights.
I found these nice little Hella driving lights in my garage and thought that they would aid the lighting situation quite a bit since the GM mid nineties lights leave something to be desired. They also gave me that feeling of having the hidden cop lights behind the grill! I'm not quite sure what sort of pattern they are. They have the euro H3 bulbs in them which are quite bright (had these on the motorcycle) but the lens pattern looks quite cloudy which I'm guessing means that they are a wide pattern. Might not be the best mounted so far into the grill. We'll see. If they don't work, the wiring will be there to swap something else in.

 

Tinting

On the negative side, I also spent the weekend tinting the windows in the car. This has turned out to be a B%&CH of a job. I remember doing the windows in the 90 Olds and having quite a bit more success. I have done the rear window in this car 4 times which means shrinking the tint each time. Very time consuming. I finally ended up ripping the window out of the car and doing it in my basement. I was going to proceed with this same theory for the rest of the glass until I took the door panels off and realized that the windows are RIVETED into the regulators and my rivet gun doesn't reach inside the door. There were things to be done while the door panels were off anyway as someone has been in most of the doors before and broken quite a few of the tabs that the fasteners mount into. I'll take pictures of this another day. Methylene Chloride is your friend when it comes to this - and the proper pry tool if you take the panels off yourself.
Anyway, after messing with the tinting for two days, I've managed to get most of the glass done. I did the drivers window twice today without success so I need to get more tint tomorrow. The wind has picked up this evening so I can't continue anyway.




Hoods up! Must be broken!

 

Madbiker, you should try this picture resizer. Your pics are great, but they take up so much bandwidth to come down that after 3 times, I still couldn't get them all. Even if you don't resize them, this freebie takes out a lot of camera software code and cuts out over half of the file size:

http://www.stationwagonforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=307

I don't envy you on the Tint job. Major PITA. Looks great though.

All you need now is one of those special traffic light buzzers that the cops have. Flash those driving lights and hit the buzzer and run!

 

Interesting! I already run the pictures through a resizer and resize to what they recommend for a 19 inch monitor (which I'm guessing most people have). I'll resize to a smaller format. Thanks for the tip.

 

this is exactly why i got my tint done on vacation in ft lauderdale. too much of a pita and places down there try to kill each other on price. got my buick tinted for $120

 

$120!!! It cost me that much just for the TINT!! Last time I got a quote on tinting up here in the North it was around $500. Almost worth driving to Florida

 

Wow - nice tinting results madbiker

 

Looks great Jeff!:2_thumbs_up_-_anima. I've been procratonating about doing mine, I bout the tint last year, now I'm not sure where it is

I also like your idea of the extra driving lites behind the grill.

 

tint world on the corner of Yamato rd and Dixie hwy in Boca Raton

 

Glue for the vent windows

After thinking about it today, I decided that I am going to remove the windows and use 5mm bolts to put them back into the regulator. I want to take all the door panels off to fix all of the clips anyway so it's not that big of a deal to take the windows out as well. I just need more tint...although I think I have found a source that is cheaper than the local plastics store. We'll find out tomorrow.
Edit: Forgot about my title - has anyone found an adhesive that will stick to the glass and the hinges on the rear vent windows? One of my vent windows wasn't attached at all and the other one had only one hinge glued in place. I fiddled with 5 minute epoxy and rear view mirror glue but neither proved very effective.

 

What Epoxy did you try (courious, so we know not to use that brand)?

JB weld is cheap, it says it bonds to glass. I've never used it derect on glass but it's doing wonders for a broken hinge on my 83's tail gate window.

 

lookin good MB !!

its amazing...mine doesnt have any wood....so it looks like a Hearse with the windows tinted

 

I used that 5 minute epoxy from Industrial Plastics - or wherever. It was a two part in a syringe. I'm going to experiment with a few things to see what will work.

 

THAT'S THE LOOK I'M GOING FOR! I almost bought a hearse years ago but discovered that they really don't have that many options - I guess the only thing you need is A/C once you're in the back!

I pulled the windows last night. I was thinking about putting on some of the Huper Optik ceramic window tint for the front windows as it doesn't interfere with GPS and Cell signal. I can't buy the ceramic stuff separately - apparently it has to be installed by the tinter.

The wagon looks a little tragic right now.

 

forget the tint..... do you have a sungate windshield? that will bone you with gps, cell, transponders etc.