Sticking, creaking, barely-opening center front window...

Why not try cleaning them up with an old tooth brush, toothpaste. If you can get the pins out and clean them too, I'd rub on some paraffin wax, reassemble and get on my way. The paraffin stops the noise and acts as a lubricant. Applying oil products to hinges seems to attract dirt and grime, per your photos.

Aye.
 
Foggy":2n60tt0h said:
Why not try cleaning them up with an old tooth brush, toothpaste. If you can get the pins out and clean them too, I'd rub on some paraffin wax, reassemble and get on my way.
Click to expand...

I have a brand new set of pins I sourced from the manufacturer, so if I remove the old ones, I think I'll go with the new ones upon reassembly. For now, the window not opening (easily) is not really hindering me because I'm in a cool area, but I do want to get it taken care of before heading to warmer climes, and, well, I just like things to all be operational, so I figured I'd check in here, since so many of you have the same window.

Foggy":2n60tt0h said:
Applying oil products to hinges seems to attract dirt and grime, per your photos.
Click to expand...

It certainly does :wink: I probably should have used Teflon in the first place. I don't have much of an excuse (since I really know better) except for being in the middle of about forty other projects at the time and just not thinking straight. I guess the saving grace is that the dirt comes off, and the hinges, while not improving any, also did not get any worse. If/when I lube these (or the new ones) going forward, I'll use the Teflon spray as recommended by Diamond Sea Glaze. I even already have some with me, and so could have used it in the beginning if only I'd thought of it :crook (in fact, maybe I'll try it on the current hinge pins before removing them.

I'll keep the thread updated when there is anything to report, and of course I'm always happy to read the thoughts of fellow Brats. Thanks all.

Sunbeam

PS: I looked up a roll punch - that looks like it would work really well, and better than a dowel because of having a tapered end. Just for the record, this is now the approximately 307th time I've regretted leaving my set of centering punches at home. I even had them in the van, but then decided I was just taking too much along and put them back in the shop :cry
 
Is there any chance you have somebody near your home that could ship your punches to you ?

Bill Kelleher

PS: I looked up a roll punch - that looks like it would work really well, and better than a dowel because of having a tapered end. Just for the record, this is now the approximately 307th time I've regretted leaving my set of centering punches at home. I even had them in the van, but then decided I was just taking too much along and put them back in the shop Cry
 
Just thought I would give a little update. After the "greenhouse" maiden voyage yesterday in 80º temps (side windows wouldn't open either, although I fixed that today by cleaning out the tracks and will lube them with dry Teflon™ after they dry), I decided to work on the window a bit more.

I still don't have a metal punch (not that I won't get one), but just wanted to go a small step further with what I had on hand. So, I used a slightly smaller wooden dowel to pound a bit more, this time with the window open a few inches to its "point of least resistance" as advised by Diamond Sea Glaze. I pounded to the point of overwhelming the dowel (it's fairly small though) and did not budge either pin.

Next I used the recommended dry Teflon spray and tried to lube the pins. If I ignore the creaking and binding the window *will* open all the way, so I gritted my teeth and my buddy sprayed the lube while I worked the window. After about a 100 cycles of lubing/working the window, I could detect no difference in the creaks and binding. Maybe that will change after it sits awhile, but I'm skeptical. On the other hand, it didn't break during that process, so that probably means I can use the window without breaking it.

I am 99.99% sure there is no misalignment or binding problem in the window/frame relationship. All seems to fit as it should. My guess is still that the Delrin type plastic has swelled over time, or just that it's dry but the fit is too close to allow very effective lubing.

So the good thing is that I can use the window now; I just have to mentally grit my teeth because of the horrible creaking noises (which say to me: "Geez, maintain that window would'ja!"). I think the next steps would be one of the following:

1) Get a metal punch so the pounding force is transferred to the pin without just deforming the punch as happens with the wooden dowel.

2) Drill out the current pins with a small enough drill bit so as not to damage the frame, but large enough to leave just a "husk" of the old pin that can then be removed (I did check and the new pins DSG sent me look to be the correct diameter).

But I think I will save that for after Powell, just in case something does go completely awry, since the window is functional now. For now I'll try not to operate the window at 3 a.m. in a quiet anchorage :wink

Sunbeam
 
Back
Top