Windshield Repair Forum

A subject I've never seen discussed before is this:
The end of a crack line has a point that either curves up to the surface (hence "a riser") or down to the laminate, (a "diver") . Bob Eimer, a long time Novus franchisee in Denver described this to me once and told me there are techniques to "flex" the glass either from outside or inside to change a diver to a riser or vice versa. I don't remember which is the preferred condition but I do remember that this is supposed to control the situation where you drill the end of a crack and when you pop it, the crack will travel on through your bullseye and out the other side, leaving you with the dilemma of just filling that unwanted crack extension or drilling and popping again. I had it happen to me once where after drilling and popping about six times, I finally gave up and just filled the last one. It made me feel really stupid, in fact it looked like a chain of "islands", when I finished. Since then, I dont drill again but just fill it all in and hope it doesnt travel on me. Does anyone care to weigh in on this subject?
Thanx in advance----

garyswsr,

I believe what you are referring to is surfacing the crack. I guess there could be a lot of debate about relieving the stress by stop drilling and anchoring. So I will give you my outlook on this...

I have been trained and am governed by FAA regulations / maintenance manuals that have specific limits for such that require this technique for aircraft. I know we are talking about automotive type situations but a crack and the forces associated with cracks are the same basically. So, I always stop drill to relieve the stress. This does not mean there is not another way, but until there are some sort of test that produce proven statistics showing a more effective and safe method of relieving stress characteristics related to cracks, I will stick with the techniques that I am regulated and governed by the FAA for aviation. If it is safe for flight so to speak the it is safe for driving. I know some will squawk the appearance point but we are or should be concerned with safety first. The small appearance loss in my mind does not out weigh the safety factor and I don't think you would get to many complaints from customers on this either.

If and when there are other proven methods, I would be more receptive to new techniques.

You mentioned you have had the crack jump through your anchors creating the connect the dots effect. Some things to consider... Were you really at the end of the crack or just the end of what you could see? Did your anchor reach the proper depth? Did you cure properly? If all yes, then maybe what you were dealing with was faulty installation or similar where replacement might be the best option.

Well, this is where my mindset is but I am always open to other perspectives so on that note please post them.



Pay it foward,

Brian
www.safeglasstechnologies.com

[email]"info@safeglasstechnologies.com"[/email][/email]

I to the best of my ability try to drill at the end of the crack and if it should spread further so be it, you've relived the crack and the stress and that little extra crack is now repaired and it's not in the stress area of the windshield, the little crack will probally be invisible compared to the hole you just drilled. fill it to the drilled area and finish the repair thats what I do, I have one just like it in my work van and had been there since thanksgiving and has'nt spread any since the repair, it's been in 40 degree weather and up to 90 so far this year.