Should my wiper arms remain in the air if pulled off window?

[7502]

My car is a '75 model.  Minor question, but I have always wondered if the wiper arms are meant to remain up off the glass when pulled up to their max deflection.  Mine feel like they almost want to stay up off the glass at the full upward position but instead always snap back down to rest on the windshield.  My '63 VW Ghia arms don't stay up either but they don't move that far up off the windshield, my '77 VW Bus arms would stay up as I remember, 70's beetles too. 

 

 

Edited April 21 by 7502
space between pics

[visionaut]

They stay in 2 positions: pressed down on the glass, or standing up at the topmost lift point.

Edited April 21 by visionaut
bad edit

[7502]

Thanks, that's what I assumed but mine have never worked that way. 

['76mintgrün'02]

The passenger side stays up on mine, but not the driver's side.

That works okay, since I can flip one up and hold the other,

while I use the squeegee on the windshield.

[Mike Self]

If your wiper arms don't stay in the "off the windshield" position by themselves, I would suspect either the tensioning spring on the underside of the arm is weak (or broken) or the catch on either the arm or the base is worn to the point it won't catch when the arm is moved off the windshield.   No huge problem, just a little annoying.

 

mike

[JohnS]

MVP does make reproduction wiper arms now.  I haven't tried them, just saying...

 

BODY ELECTRIC

WWW.MVPVINTAGEPARTS.COM

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BODY ELECTRIC

 

[NickVyse]

On 4/22/2024 at 1:25 AM, 7502 said:

Thanks, that's what I assumed but mine have never worked that way. 

 

Mine have always been hit and miss, reckon it's normal

 

[Dudeland]

No. 

 

[visionaut]

If yours ain’t working , take a very close look at the bottom of your wiper arms. (and yes, you do have to take them off to examine the ‘retention’ geometry between the spring hook, and where & how it hooks and the arm pivot movement).

Your wiper arm  could be old and worn, yes, but it could also just need a simple  spring retention adjustment, or it’s sliding parts lubed…

 

When it works, and it stays upright, there’s a noticeable physical ’detent/click’ point about 1” from the full swing up. The detent is actually even more noticeable when you start to move the arm back to the window, and you see/feel the point the strong spring pull happens.

 

The lower spring hook rotates in its lower catch (while the upper spring hook moves in/out in the arm ) and the bottom of the arm ‘surround’ actually slightly pivots a degree or two in relation to it’s innards as it rotates on the lower pin at the top to engage the hold. When lowering, it’s the opposite rotate action the moment that the spring begins to pull down.

 

A dirty/unsmooth interface between those two outer parts of the lower arm attachment surround or a binding pin might also prevent the necessary movement…

 

yeah, I had to check it   😋

['76mintgrün'02]

I took a closer look at mine yesterday, to compare the one that stays up to the other one and noticed that the spring sat deeper in the slot on the 'good one.' 

 

 

 

They stay up when the top and bottom spring attachments over-center the pivot by just a little bit and the driver's side arm didn't quite reach that point on mine.  I figured I could take it apart and make the slot a little deeper, but decided to put a little more bend in the spring instead.

 

 

 

 

While it was off, I noticed that the spring's lower attachment pin was poking out of one side and too far in on the other, so I tapped it back into place; but the pin wasn't long enough to flush out on both sides, so I cut a longer one out of a 3/32" 316L welding rod and used it to push the old one out as I tapped it into place.  The new one is .625" (5/8") long.

 

 

 

 

 

There's a noticeable notch worn into the old pin and I think it's enough to throw off the over-centering geometry.  I noticed that the passenger's side pin had the same issues, so I hammered one in on that side too.  I didn't even need to remove the arm to install it.  Now, both sides stay up like they're supposed to.

 

 

 

Thanks for posting this this thread, Eric.  It inspired me to look closer at mine.  I'll send you a pair of new pins if you'll give me your address.  It'd be fun to see if that alone fixes yours.  (If not, you could try the spring bending trick, or make the spring slot deeper at the base.  I won't be surprised if the pins do the trick.

 

Tom

Edited April 26 by '76mintgrün'02
adding keyboarded-text to phone-loaded photos

[7502]

I played around w/ the wiper arms this morning using some of the suggestions above. Thanks for the help. I re-centered the pins using a punch.  Like Tom, I found that the pins should probably be a little longer since the barely make contact to the wiper arm frame. I also removed the passenger side wiper to clean the spring hook ends removing some old paint and roughness. I attempted to add a slight bend to the longer end of the springs.  

 

They now stay up in the air, but rest on a hair trigger, snapping back with just a slight touch. Good enough, but probably not how they were when new.  I did find it odd that the wiper arms are made in England.

 

 

 

Edited April 27 by 7502
spaces

[jimk]

1 hour ago, 7502 said:

a little longer since the barely make contact to the wiper arm frame

Not wanted to avoid finger tears and towel snags.  Liability is everything.

['76mintgrün'02]

Four more sets of pins completed.

 

Ends rounded over to avoid snagging fingers and guide them into the holes.  

 

Ten thousandths larger than the originals. The holes grow bigger with wear and these help take up that slop.