Repair crack on inside layer of glass?

[chipfix]

I just received an email from someone who somehow managed to crack their windshield with their seatbelt? ( aprox. 1").
I am assuming the crack is on the inside layer and am not sure if it is repairable because I would be working against gravity
and I'm not sure if the resin would wick into the crack.Maybe covering it with tape and injecting would work?

Anyway I explained to them that they were to far away for me to drive for a repair that I may not be able to fix but If they
could make there way to me I would be happy to give it a try.

Does anyone here have any experience with cracks on the inside layer?

[ghost rider]

I believe ROLAGS states that the inner layer should not be repaired. But, yes I have tried it and I don't recomend it. They are very difficult to get filled properly.

[Nomad]

I have repaired a number of these, and if you have an injector that works upside down you just do it the same way as an exterior repair. You do have to use a UV light to cure as UV does not go through the laminate. Might be able to reflect some sunlight with a mirror too but this is mostly too much trouble.

As far as the recommendation that these should not be fixed, think of a piece of flat glass installed in a WS. Would it matter which side was facing out? No, because they are both the same. The difficulty lies only in having the correct equipment and the physical room to work. If it's over the dash and you have no room for an injector or drill and the damage will not take resin by capillary action, you will probably be up the creek. Also, place a cloth to catch any drips etc on the dash or seat. One nice thing is that they (the chips or cracks) are usually clean.

[ghost rider]

In the old rubber gasket mounted w/s, yeah, it's about the same inside and out. The new technology puts a little different light on this subject. W/S are subjected to way more stress now that they are used as part of the structural integrity of the vehicle. This extra stress is mostly on the inside layer of glass because it is the layer adhered to the vehicle while the outer layer basically floats on the inner layer on the PVB. I don't believe the outer layer adds as much structural strentgh to the w/s. Thats why the inside layer of glass is thicker than the outside layer on many w/s.

As far as the ROLAGS recommendation. We need to adhere to some kind of standard if we are ever going to be taken seriously as a trade. ROLAGS is the best option I can see right now. If you don't like what you see, lobby to have it changed.

[Nomad]

The glass is bonded together by the PVB, just like plywood, which is much stronger than just one layer would be.

I don't see any problem if someone wishes to use ROLAGS as a standard for doing repairs. But that is up to each individual. One can look at the standards of the 19th century such as Newtonian laws that were challenged by Einstein, because Einstein didn't adhere to the Newtonian standards. In fact going back to Copernicus, if he had not challenged the science of the day we would have believed in a earth centered universe for probably a much longer time. Standards are revised and broken all the time. Things that science said couldn't be done have a long history of being done anyway. The one piece casting of a V8 engine block and the tungsten filament light bulb are but two examples. At one time it was considered impossible to build a radio small enough to fit in a car.

Lobbying to change something implies a political power having the power to use force and coercion to "make" us comply with their "standards". While it hasn't come to this yet in the WSR industry I have seen people that have wanted this to happen. To protect the customer, of course, at the expense of our freedom to serve our clients with new innovations, new products and new techniques that would be stifled by bureaucratic red tape. If anyone thinks inviting the government or anyone else to supervise our industry will eliminate the hacks, just look at the auto service businesses and other auto repair ripoffs not to mention home repairs, and how about Bernie Madoff's long running Ponzi scheme in one of the most regulated businesses in the USA.

I, for one, will continue to push the envelope as far as trying new things, including the very rare cases of breaks on the inside glass.

[chipfix]

Thanks for the response guys and I am siding with Nomad on this one.

I don't see a structural issue if the repair is on the inside or outside layer.
If ROLAGS claims it shouldn't be done that means nothing to me,who exactly are they?
I checked there website and it is down and says check back in a couple weeks. (doesn't say much about there credibility)
I doubt very much that they have the budget or the skills to test these things out scientifically.

It would be great to have a legitimate safety and standards code for windshield repairs but ROLAGS and NWRA look like
nothing more than someones business idea to make $$.

Anyway I never heard back from the potential customer so I never got to try it.

[D2D]

And the only organization that is doing anything to "control how we do business" is doing it with a corrupt agenda.
Kudos to Chipfix and Nomad!!!!!
Freethinkers like me.