vacuum wipers

[kelnic]

my fc is still running the vacuum wiper which i want to keep original. the wipers are working ok but the wiper arm does not do a full stroke across the windscreen{approx 2/3 stroke across } i have noticed there is wear in the joints of the centre oscilating arm that connects to the linkages behind the motor.is there rubber bushes that connect to the side linkages? if so can i still buy these?                              thanks scott

[Glenn 'Stinky' Stankevicius]

Ken might have more details, but as I understand the rubber bush is not available and the later FB/EK plastic bush is a better option anyway, if you can get them.
I used a plastic bush that I got from Rare Spares that is part of a ford door bush, it is basically a bush with a shoulder, then I got a plastic washer for the other side, all works well.

[paddyfc58]

How long do you run your wipers for? even though mine are'nt vacuum they still take a while to warm up, they go from starting at 2/3 to almost going off the screen after a few minutes .

[kelnic]

i repaired the worn rubber bushes by replacing them with rubber wire grommets which has taken away all the wear movement in the linkage/bush, and i also stripped the vacuum motor,cleaned and reassembled with rubber grease and now the wipers are going alot quicker then before but they still are not covering a full stroke.the wiper blades will be just above the bottom of the windscreen at horizontal and will only wipe to about 4" past the vertical position.still having another 4" until the tip of the wiper blade will touch the side of the window seal. is it possible that the cam pivot is on backwards that the linkages connect to? has somebody got a picture of the correct layout of this setup showing how this is? or do they get better if i run them for longer as paddyfc58 suggested?                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        cheers scott

[mcl1959]

They don't get better as they run, try moving the wiper arm by hand. If you can move it up and down more than 1 inch, there are worn parts. I would recommend EK nylon bushes in the arm ends, but also check the shaft end as there is often a lot of wear there as well.

Ken