WIPER BLADEs

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

I have just been to another weekend swap-meet and this time, among much other stuff, I got a whole bunch of brand-new in-the-box BRAVO brand (never heard of them before) 18" wiper refills, part # 252-180, fifty-cents per PAIR, believe it or not.

I just got done installing two pair, outside in the blowing snow.

These seem to be much superior to anything I have used to date, having a much better rubber to backing connection/bond.

I will know how good they are in a few weeks, I guess.

While I had the arms/blades off of both a Ford and a 1st Gen. Dodge, I discovered that they would interchange; in fact, they were exactly alike; which leads me to the question --- is the splined stub standard size on all trucks ??



ANOTHER QUESTION :

I also bought two complete 18" HEAVY DUTY wiper-blade assemblies, the whole thing, not just refills.

These are ANCO brand part # 52-18, $2 each.

These blades in no way resemble the ones on all of our trucks; they look more like something for an R-model Mack, being about four times as wide across the blade backing, and of much heavier/better construction.

The blade to arm connection in no way resembles those on my 1985 F-350.

The blade fits in a channel/saddle and is retained by a threaded machine-screw and ny-lock nut.

Has anyone yet retrofitted a set of these blades onto their truck ??


As soon as I have time, I intend to do just that; either I will re-work the arms on my truck to accept these better blades, or I will seek out a set of arms made for them that will fit my splines.

 

[5.0bronco]

i just go with the bosch wiper blades. they are kinda pricy but they work great and so far seem to last great

 

[NJKen]

Bosch X2. Maybee you did stumble on something good though, you never know As for the arms, you probly just got lucky. I have never had one interchange on anything. Even 2 similar (my 82 and 90) where completly different.
Ken

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

>>> NEED A LITTLE HELP HERE <<<



Well, I have ran into a snag, trying to do something that those little girls at Advance do several times a day for free; I know I have done this before, because I have the old blades to prove it; but, how do I get the blade assembly to come OFF of these factory-issue pin-end arms ??


Installation instructions from several sites say just unlock it with a small screwdriver and it pops right off; but, try as I might, I see nothing to "unlock" and, after exhausting all attempts, I thought I better quit before I broke off the pin.

I can see no release mechanism and plain old force with a screw-driver blade doesn't work.

If all else fails, I will watch one of those parts-store girls install a set for someone and see what her trick is.

 

[02AutoWag]

The pin has a ball on the end. There's a sliding lock that catches the ball so that it won't release.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

The pin has a ball on the end. There's a sliding lock that catches the ball so that it won't release.

So what do I do to release this sliding lock ??

Thanks.

 

[02AutoWag]

So what do I do to release this sliding lock ??

Thanks.

Sorry, just looked at it again. It's not a slider, it's a swinging lock.

The pin on the wiper arm has a ball end as I described.

Take a look at the wiper blade. The plastic mounting piece should swivel. It's a swivel action that engages the ball on the pin. There should be a plastic tab that you pinch which will allow you to swing the plastic away from the pin. The wiper blade will then pull off the pin freely.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

Sorry, just looked at it again. It's not a slider, it's a swinging lock.

The pin on the wiper arm has a ball end as I described.

Take a look at the wiper blade. The plastic mounting piece should swivel. It's a swivel action that engages the ball on the pin. There should be a plastic tab that you pinch which will allow you to swing the plastic away from the pin. The wiper blade will then pull off the pin freely.

I have eight pair of these arms/blades, standard O.E.M. issue for 1985 Ford trucks, and there is absolutely no plastic or otherwise swivel and no tab or clip that I can see.

The ball-ended pin is through the center of the actual blade, right through the coiled center of the blade spring; everything is metal.

I have looked at probably twenty wiper-blade removal instructional sites, and every last one shows a generic plastic swivel that allows one blade to fit a dozen different arm configurations; the blades on these trucks are not aftermarket fit-alls, but specific-designed to snap over the ball-ended pin.

I have been able to pop them off before, as I have several old ones exactly like them that I have kept for emergencies; I just can't seem to figure out just how I went about getting them off.

Thanks.

 

[comotionman]

i think the style blade you are trying to remove is the torsion spring style. can you see a spring on the blade directly on the pin/arm that you are trying to remove the blade from? if so, this spring needs to be unwound to release tension allowing the inside diameter of the coils to expand enough to release it from the pin. you can do this by bending the blade in the middle, you may need to pry it off with a screwdriver at the same time. as they get old the coils tend to corrode and bind together, making them not so easy to expand to remove from the pin. alot of times i end up braking the blades to remove them when this happens, or i will slide on new refills and leave them in place if i am not in the mood to fight them.

 

[88beast]

big f$%&^$# screwdriver
the wiper will be useless but itll work to get it off thats what i do

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

i think the style blade you are trying to remove is the torsion spring style. can you see a spring on the blade directly on the pin/arm that you are trying to remove the blade from? if so, this spring needs to be unwound to release tension allowing the inside diameter of the coils to expand enough to release it from the pin. you can do this by bending the blade in the middle, you may need to pry it off with a screwdriver at the same time. as they get old the coils tend to corrode and bind together, making them not so easy to expand to remove from the pin. alot of times i end up braking the blades to remove them when this happens, or i will slide on new refills and leave them in place if i am not in the mood to fight them.

That is exactly what I have.

After reading your reply and studying over the situation again, I squirted some knocker-loose into the spring and worked the blade joint back and forth numerous times, working the lubricant well into the coils.

I used a small screw-driver and needle-nose pliers to release one end of the spring; this let the blade fall loose from the pin.

With the blade off, I re-attached the spring so it would be ready to snap on again and the blade came through the surgery none the worse for the experience.


Now with the blade off of the pin, I can see what kind of gizmo I am gonna have to fabricate so that I can install the big blades that are meant to be on a big truck.


Thanks everyone for your input; I will update as progress on this project goes along.

Of course, I might just be able to find a set of arms that are meant for the big blades and also fit the splined drive-stubs on my truck.