Removing Window Clips

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Hi,

I'm going to be replacing the window clips on my 1967 Globetrotter with corning jalousie windows. I gave one of the old, rusted ones that are on a pretty good tug, and it didn't budge.

Anyone have any advice on how to get the clips off?


Thanks,

Jeff

[Protagonist]

Standard solution for any rusted moving parts.

1 - Spray with WD-40.
2 - Go have a beer. Or two.
3 - Come back and try again once the WD-40 has had time to work its magic.

[ALUMINUMINUM]

Jeff,

I only have experience removing fourteen of them. Others may have more experience and better suggestions, but this is what I've observed...


Some of mine had been siliconed in place which made me wonder if that was the factory install. Others were simply held in place by the original friction of the clip, so maybe the silicone was used refasten the originals, of which two on mine were indeed a little loose.


The spring steel of some of the un-siliconed clips had oxidized and swelled to create a death-grip bond. I started with a household rust dissolver like “Iron Out”to eat away the bond. Don't use a rust “reformer”. Be super gentle and patient. It could take a week to loosen with continuous application of solvents. If it feels like the bond has broken, then lube with 'D-40, and wiggle away.


If they're siliconed on, I know of nothing at a consumers level of availability that actually dissolves silicone. The “removers” simply attempt to break the bond. Soak them often and patiently, wiggle them gently, maybe cut the bond with a hardware store violin string.


Be careful, I met a guy that was on his second replacement window because he had broken the first installing the new clips that came with it. I think the original Corning is .10” and the replacement is .125”. clips come in different sizes and quality.


Don't leave windows open on windy days, and when they're open be sure they're either open just a little or over your head, as they're real head/face gougers.
.
BTW, congratulations on being able to spell jalousie. I don't know anyone who can, including me. Pretty sure the architectural nomenclature of your window would be “awning”. Don't know what AS calls them.


You have a great trailer, Wm

[Feedforward]

I have removed 4 of 14 clips using WD-40 and a see-saw motion on the clip. If the clip gives within a few seconds of me working on it, then I keep at it. If it doesn't, more WD-40 and some more time. Fortunately, I don't see any silicon so far.

Thanks both for your help. I still cannot believe how the steel clips have become fixed to the glass like this, but as long as I have a process, I can make it work.


Jeff

[Feedforward]

Oh yeah, thanks too, William for the advice on keeping those windows partially open at most. I have a 12 year old, 5'10" son who is at the height of physical awkwardness, and I'm sure he would be a prime target for jalousie head.

As far as spelling it correctly, well, that was just pure luck. I just put some letters together that seemed to sound right, and posted it .

Jeff

[John&Vicki]

Originally Posted by Protagonist

Standard solution for any rusted moving parts.

1 - Spray with WD-40.
2 - Go have a beer. Or two.
3 - Come back and try again once the WD-40 has had time to work its magic.

WD-40 is good, but SiliKroil Penetrating Solvent is near miraculous. You encounter a lot of frozen nuts and bolts when restoring old cars and Kroil has been my goto solution (sorry, unintentional pun) for a long time. It even smells good.

Poppy

[Feedforward]

So, I managed to get all the old clips off without shattering any of the original windows. Ordered new window clips the supplier indicated were specific to the 3/32"corning glass, but when I went to install them, they were too large and just slid right off. Contacted the supplier who told me that these were definitely the right clips, and that I needed to use silicon to make them stick to the glass? Whaaa? Just looking at these clips next to the ones I removed it's obvious the new ones are about 1/32" too wide. I tried squeezing them with pliers, which made a nice fit. But found as soon as the windows were tightened down the pressure put on the clips stretched them back to the original gap and they fell off as soon as I opened the windows! Not to be deterred, I bought some thin waterpump gasket material , cut some small rectangles out of it and inserted this on the outside edge of each clip, which reduced the width of the gap in the clip enough to make a good snug fit in the windows. Hopefully the waterproof gasket material will hold up over time. Kind of disappointing that the supplier is selling these clips when its obvious when compared to the originals that they are simply too large.

[youngpeck]

Originally Posted by Birdmaestro

WD-40 is good, but SiliKroil Penetrating Solvent is near miraculous. You encounter a lot of frozen nuts and bolts when restoring old cars and Kroil has been my goto solution (sorry, unintentional pun) for a long time. It even smells good.

Poppy

I'll second that! This stuff works much better than WD-40. I've used it restoring old, rusted printing presses, and on old cars. Here is the web site of the company, Kano Laboratories:
Penetrating-Lubricating Oils

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by Birdmaestro

WD-40 is good, but SiliKroil Penetrating Solvent is near miraculous.

Is this something carried by a major auto or home repair franchise (Home Depot, Pep Boys, etc.) where I can walk in and buy some, or do I have to mail-order it?

[youngpeck]

I've never seen Kroil in stores. If you order from Kano Labs (Penetrating-Lubricating Oils) they always have a "risk-free trial offer." You can also order it through Amazon. Kano Labs markets its products primarily to industry, which I suppose is why you don't see it in retail outlets. They have a variety of lubricants, rust-removers and -inhibitors, and industrial cleaning products.

[Feedforward]

Thought we were discussing vintage window clips on this thread??

[BIGED52]

Originally Posted by Feedforward

Thought we were discussing vintage window clips on this thread??

What I did to avoid silicone was to mark the glass with a grease pencil where the clip was supposed to be and then placed reinforced double sided tape on the glass. Then slightly spread the clip and located it between the grease marks and fully onto the glass to the depth of the clip. After mounted then just trim the tape from the glass. Then I cleaned off the grease pencil marks. I also used a small (small) amount of Acryl-R around the edges of the clip to keep water from getting in between the glass and the clips. Ed

[John&Vicki]

Originally Posted by Feedforward

Thought we were discussing vintage window clips on this thread??

As my grandpa, who used to wander around a bit in his conversations, especially after a few too many PBRs, liked to say: "Sharp folks enjoy digressin'."

Poppy

[Feedforward]

Now it's referred to as "hijacking a thread". Times have changed Poppy!

[Protagonist]

BIGED52 got the thread back on track (Thanks for that!), if only we can leave it that way and not go off at a tangent about going off at a tangent!

[Feedforward]

What could be more interesting than window clips ;-)

[Feedforward]

After replacing all the window clips, weatherstripping on the windows, vents and front door, it rained heavily for an hour or more and there are NO LEAKS! Before this I had paper towels in the window frames and buckets beneath the vents to catch all the water. Progress is often measured in small steps, but I'll celebrate this as a major victory!

[BIGED52]

Make sure you keep checking the interior floor for random puddling as some leaks can traverse distances and show up in a different spot than the original spot you noticed before. Just a heads up! Ed

[ALANSD]

thanks for the tips as I am just about to try and remove a few of the now 5.99 each pieces of metal. You would think we could bend our own. Maybe a 3d printed version?