Installment #5:
This month we update the budget, install Lexan windows, finish the wiring and install some fuel system parts

Words and photos by Jok Nicholson
5/7/03

We left off last month getting some suspension pieces installed and since then I have got the car back from the body shop and started putting it back together. Things like headlight doors, interior door panels, door handles, new dzus fasteners, etc. We spent about a week getting this done. Next up were the windows.

I had cut and installed Lexan windows on my trusty old '68 Dart several years ago so I already knew what I DID NOT want to do. I had already decided these windows would be 3/16" Lexan. I called a local plastic distributor, Regal Plastics, and asked if they could get me 3/16 mar-resistant Lexan. Their answer was "How much do you need, we stock it".

This is how the Lexan MR10 arrives. Protective covering on both sides and a crystal clear product under the protective covering.

That was easier than I thought it would be. I talked to the guy at Regal Plastics and we decided on MR10 Lexan. It has a very scratch resistant surface and can be cleaned with spray-on Lexan cleaner and a soft cotton rag for best results. The main thing I learned about Lexan is if the window is very dusty, rinse it off with water before trying to scrub the dust off with a rag. Just use common sense; it is still a plastic product, not glass.

Making the pattern for your windows is the most stressful thing about Lexan windows. If it is too small it is an expensive OOPS! I used the old Plexiglas windows as a starting point and traced them about 1-inch bigger all around on some pretty stiff white poster board from Wal-Mart. I used these templates and kept trimming them until I was satisfied with how they fit the openings.

Next up was the actual cutting. I used an inexpensive variable speed saber saw and a fine tooth metal cutting blade. I learned the last time that a coarse blade will cut faster but the edge ends up all chipped up and takes a lot of finishing work with a hand file to look good. I also put three layers of gray Racer's Tape on the bottom of the saber saw so it would not scratch through the protective covering that comes on the Lexan and scratch it. Take your time as accuracy counts and will save you hours of finishing the edges with a hand file.

This is the variable speed saber saw I used. Nothing special just put a few layers of tape on the metal bottom plate and a metal cutting blade with about 24 teeth per inch and start cutting...very carefully.

This is the AuVeCo weather stripping I chose. It is 1/2-inch thick and 1/2-inch wide and one side had adhesive on it. Worked great and is readily available at auto body supply stores.

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