My first long crack (nightmare) story

[rowdy13]

My boss has a personal car with a horseshoe type crack that started at the bottom of the windshield, went up about 10 inches, and curved right (towards the driver) for about 6 inches, and curved back down for about 1 inch. I told him that its a damage that needs to be replaced, but he said to go ahead and try it for practice......so I did. My first nightmare, was drilling a hole just ahead of the end of the crack, trying to only go to the laminate. Well, all of the sudden, my drill bit sunk into the hole I was drilling. I gasped, prayed, and looked at the mirror on the other side of the windshield, and saw glass dust on it. I knew then I had drilled all the way through the glass. This would be the first time I almost threw up. Then I got my probe out to make the crack go into the hole I just drilled. Well, the crack did go into the hole, but it also continued for about 1 inch on the other side of the hole. This would be the second time I almost threw up. Then, I filled the hole with pit resin and cured it. I have two crack expanders, and placed them in different positions on the crack, praying that I wouldnt crack the windshield further. Well, I then started slowly putting the crack resin along the crack, nothing happened, so I tightened both crack jacks a little more, and then noticed the resin slowly going into the crack. Everything would go well for about 2 inches, then there would be 1/4 of an inch that the resin would not go into, (see black at an angle), then it would start going into the crack for an inch or two, and then black again. Like Brent said on another thread, where the crack started curving horizontally, I couldnt get resin into that part to save my life. So, when I was finished, I noticed a lot of black specs, and larger , all along the crack. I think I should have had a couple of more crack jacks. Also, it was impossible for me to place the Jack anywhere close to the bottom of the inside of the windshield because of the car dash, so I had to flex where I could reach. I did all this in an underground garage, with dim lighting. One thing I will be getting is a flashlight that I can wear on my head. When I was putting the resin in, and flexing the inside of the vehicle window, I had to hold my flashlight in my mouth. Anywho, when I got through curing, like I said I could see alot of black specs and spaces (air), and was wondering if there's anything I could do to fill in those air spaces? I tried to put the bridge and injector on the specs and small spaces, but the resin would not get in it. I suppose its because I already cured the crack, so I took a razor blade, and tried to score the black area hoping I could get some resin in there using the bridge and injector, but couldnt. Anyone have any tips or advice? After you cure everything, are you pretty much out of luck to try and get resin into the black areas? I hope I am making sense. THEN, on my bottle of crack resin I was using, it has its own little needle like nose, but I forgot, unscrewed the bottle, like the other bottles I use, and poured half the bottle on the windshield. This is when I almost threw up again. Then while using a razor blade to cut some curing tape, I sliced my left ring finger open. After 30 minutes, I finally stopped bleeding. Man it was a challenge that I really enjoyed, but was equally frustrated. The whole process took me about 2 hours. I was drenched in sweat. All help appreciated. Peace, Rowdy

[ProView WR]

Haha Rowdy thanks for the good laugh. No poking fun intended, its just hotter then hades out here and I'm grabbing a bite to eat and got a good laugh at the descriptions you gave and about you almost throwing up. Thanks for the humor.

On a serious, more helpful note,

Chances are the crack jumped past the hole you made because you hadn't quite drilled at the end of it. With the low light you were working in, its VERY difficult to find the complete end of the crack. Its hard enough in the daylight to make sure you terminate the crack correctly. The first few cracks I did I had a hard time getting the crack terminated at the hole I drilled. They seemed to jump past when I made the bullseye, but It was because I didn't find the end of the crack.

I'm not sure what equipment you use so I can't comment on the way to use it correctly, as some are different. A crack of that size is definitely a tough one to start on. Also, didn't you hear the drill bit hit the PVB layer in the middle? Its a pretty distinct sound. Was surprised you made it all the way through the glass. Curing tape is easily cut by just tearing, no need for a razor, so think about that to save some blood.

Keep at it. This all takes time. Its not very often we get a new tech on the forum that actually asks for help and is open and honest when it comes to his repairs and attempts that have gone wrong. You will do just fine if you keep at it.

[GlassStarz]

DUDE you really gotta get some training yer starting to scare me LOL

[CrackMagic]

Well, at least you got that behind you...Sounds similar to my first longcrack experience, not that I'm anywhere near proficient yet. Do you have any practice windshields? I would get my drilling under control before attempting another crack. Hang in...

[rowdy13]

I kept waiting to hear/feel when I hit the laminate, but apparently I missed the hearing and feeling part and went right through. Man, its a sinkin' feelin' when you look at your mirror, and see the glass dust on it! But, I was looking out for the laminate. I need all the help I can get. The curing tape that came with the system I bought, you cant pull it to cut it (it kinda makes a mess if you do). you have to cut it with scissors or razor blade, but do try to miss the fingers. AFter filling the long crack, and after curing, is there a way to get fill in the black spec parts? I guess they are call air pockets? dont know the terminolgy for that.

[Brent Deines]

I too had to chuckle at your colorful description of your nightmare repair, but we all have our stories, so I feel your pain.

I always recommend practicing many cracks on practice glass rather than on a customer's car, even if it is a friend, and only proceed to repair cracks on customer's cars after you are confident that you can do a good job. I think I would have recommended a replacement on that one as well, but like you, I have been talked into doing repairs that I knew I shouldn't be doing on more than one occasion. Often they come out much better than expected, but not always.

I would not recommend drilling to the laminate. I know some people still do that, but I gave it up many, many years ago and I like the end result much better. I drill about 2/3 of the way through the 1st layer of glass (about 2mm), then use the slide hammer to pop a mini bullseye. Measure 2mm from the end of your bur and mark it with a sharpie if that will help you gauge the depth of your hole. The windshield is about 6mm thick, so you would have to go three times that far to go all the way through, so if you stick with 2mm you will never have that problem again.

If you drill your hole about 1/16" past the end of the crack, then pop the mini bullseye the end of the crack will be withing the bullseye eliminating the need to press with your probe, and minimizing the chance of the crack running past the drill hole.

My philosophy is to put as little stress on the crack as possible, so in addition to not flexing the crack with a probe or your fingers, I also rarely use crack expanders. If you do have to use them, one every 6" or so should be more than enough in my opinion. Had I chosen to accept this particular job I probably would have placed the crack expanders at or near the curves where the resin flow is most likely to become restricted.

I do not fill the drill hole or mini bullseye until the rest of the crack has been filled. In most cases the mini bullseye and drill hole will be filled with my thin resin as it reaches the end of the crack, which is then the time that I put my pit filler on the drill hole, cover and cure.

I always keep my surface resin behind the resin in the crack. This way the resin pushes the air out as the resin flows through the crack. If you run the resin along the crack and the surface resin gets ahead of the resin in the crack, air bubbles will often be the result, and they are difficult, or even impossible in some cases to get out. Depending on the age, length, and direction of the crack, it can be a slow tedious process to do it correctly, so many technicians run the surface resin ahead of the resin in the crack. Big mistake in my opinion.

Unless I missed it, you did not say that you used your bridge to inject the resin at the impact point. Unless there is no impact point I always start there so the pressure from your bridge can fill part, most, or even all of the crack. Only when the resin flowing from the bridge stops filling the crack will I begin adding resin to the surface, and again, I then keep it behind the resin in the crack so I can continue using the pressure created from the bridge to keep the flow going. If there is no impact point you can fill from the end you drilled, but you need to be very careful not to put too much pressure on the glass when you mount your injector.

When I do have a crack that I cannot get all the air out of, and that sometimes does happen, I do not go back and drill, probe, or use a blade to try to remove the black specs. Usually flexing draws in more air than it displaces, but if you must flex I recommend running a little extra thin resin along the crack as you cover it with curing film before doing so. That will help keep new air from being introduced into the crack, and so that when you flex the crack open there is resin on the surface waiting to fill the void. Again, I have not had a lot of success with flexing, so I work very hard to get the crack filled properly before moving forward.

When curing the crack I either hold the light, or find a way to attach it without using the suction cups as pressing down on the glass causes it to flex, which as mentioned above can introduce new air into the crack. Long crack lights make curing cracks much easier.

I have an awesome headset with magnifying lenses and a flashlight, but my staff makes fun of me when I wear it around the office. Still, the older I get the less I care about such things.

I have never dumped a bottle of resin on a windshield, but I did once unscrew the top of a bottle of salt and poured the entire contents on my steak during an important business meeting. My associates were kind enough to pretend not to notice, so I said nothing as I scraped off my steak and ate it as if I ate it that way all the time.

I think I may have some safety scissors that I can send you as I don't think you should be allowed to play with sharp objects. Until now I thought this was a pretty safe occupation, but I will now consider putting a first aid kit in every tool box, just in case.

I hope you don't mind, but by being so honest you really opened yourself up for some good natured ribbing. Like I said, most of us have had some really bad days ourselves; I know I have had my share, some of which I don't even care to discuss. I agree with Proview, your honesty is refreshing and will help you to become one of the better repair technicians if you hang in there. Lots of us have struggled with long cracks, and only training and lots of practice will help you to get good at them.

Thanks for sharing your story. With a little luck and lots of practice this will be the worst repair experience you will ever have.

In response to your last post, not all curing film is that way. Unlike some of the other brands, Delta Kits curing film tears quite easily, stretches very little, and lays reasonably flat. We also sell curing strips, which are long strips of the same Mylar that our curing tabs are made from.

Yep, the black spots are air pockets, and they are very difficult to get out.

[rowdy13]

Being honest is the only way (in my opinion) to learn. and I also dont mind at all making fun of myself, or to use myself as a "do not do it this way" poster child. I kinda wish I hadnt tackled this job, just because I lost a little confidence, BUT, I did learn a lot from doing it, and it is my goal to successfully repair a long, long crack. I think I said in an earlier post, that at Las Vegas, I would love to see you guys do your magic on a long , long, long crack. by the way, when is the Las Vegas deal? Is this a show where all the different systems are represented? Of course, if I go, I would expect Brent to rent a huge limo for all of us, and take us to a place to get a big fat steak! I love volunteering you Brent. Better yet, the limo with the hot tub in the back!

[GlasWeldTech]

I normally do not answer posts where one does not fill out their profile to tell the rest of the forum a little about themselves and where they are located. Just common courtesy for us old timers I guess. BUT this was just to funny...

First off when drilling your drill will sound different RIGHT before hitting the space where the laminate is located. If you drill and DO NOT drill deep enough and you try to pop a bullseye MOST times the end of the crack will advance farther. If you drill just right like Brent says you will have a nice small bullseye to work with.

I always flex the end of a crack to see if it has a GHOST end in it. (Longer end that is not visible until flexed). These are rare but I have found a few.

I also hardly ever use crack jacks as if needed I just get inside and flex lightly with my finger and this usually starts resin to flowing again. As I am sliding my injector filling the crack, I go behind myself with crack resin and apply where I have filled and cover with film tabs.

Never lose your cool or get stressed about cracks or breaks gone wild.. Keep your cool and go ahead and make the best out of a bad situation. Remember you have to crawl before you can walk. Know when to walk away and when to repair and you will learn your limits. You will learn something new most every day as you keep going.

I always keep a fresh bag of new tabs that I use for cracks that are clean and readily cut that I do not use daily.Allow for plenty of curing time on cracks also.If you have a small area that did not fill finsh the rest of crack and then go back and drill and pop a mini and fill from there. This will not work if you have many places that didn't fill as it takes away from the finshed repair. I use as little pressure as I can on all repairs. Where injector kisses glass. To tight and break or crack will close up.

Get some training from your equipment supplier and or find someone fairly close that will mentor you and you may have to pay someone to do this. They can show you some tricks they picked up quicker than you can learn them.

[rowdy13]

I wish there was some way for you guys and gals to post video's of your techniques.

[Brent Deines]

I sent you the Delta Kits video did I not? If I'm not mistaken there we go through the crack repair procedure on that video, although I have to admit I have not watched if for awhile, so please correct me if I am mistaken.

In reference to GlasWeldTech's post, flexing "prior" to doing the repair to find the true end of the crack is a good idea, and one I left out of my post.

I don't like sliding bridges as it puts pressure on the glass at the point where the injector touches the glass, which closes the crack a bit, but as you slide along the crack opens back up sucking air from the surface. I know GlasWeldTech and others have success with the sliding bridge method and if it works it works, but my personal experience is that better results can be had without sliding.

In fact, B300 users or anyone using a vacuum cup to attach the injector to the glass for that matter cannot use the sliding method. Delta Kits sells other bridges that can be slid, but we still do not recommend it.

Once again I have to say that if the method you are using is working well for you, I will not try to get you to change, but if you are asking for opinions I have to offer mine as one of the many that you will get here on the windshield repair forum.