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I am getting ready to ship my early 30 off to paint shop for final paint. I have doors installed without anything installed in them. No latch, glass or weather stipping. Do the windshield glass frame - should I put it together with glass and let paint shop mask off the glass or let them paint just the frame? Also for the windshield hinge - should that be installed or painted off the car?

My two cents, I would have the glass put in frame before going to paint. I would put rubber around the sides and bottom after paint. Leave the hinge on the frame and let it go to paint. Good luck and Merry Christman and a Happy New Year.

I would do just the opposite and leave the glass out. You are probably going to get a number of opinions on this.

What did they do originally?

As you can see in this factory photo, the windshield frame went through the paint process, minus glass. You can see one behind the Coupe and in front of what looks like an 82B Cab. (from: "The Ford Model A - As Henry Built It" page 77)

Excellent - exactly what I was looking for

What am I missing in the above picture? I can't see a windshield frame. Or is just the text saying the windshield frame was painted at the same time?

The process of installing a windshield is not a simple process. If one has to worry about chipping paint it will make the process harder. There are a couple of oval head screws at each side toward the top. Those screws should be painted.

I for one, plan on having the glass installed as well as the rubber seal and the few screws/nuts. The Model A Ford Paint & Finish Guide says "in some cases, the rubber seal was painted along with the frame. It also says the windshield frame was installed with upholstery.

I would want to have the rubber masked personally.

Hey Neil,

If you look closely, the order in the picture is a Coupe body, hood, windshield frame, followed by a Tudor body, hood, windshield frame, followed by (what could be) an 82B cab, hood, etc. The first windshield frame kind of blends into the shadow of the Tudor body, but you can definitely see the second one sticking out in front of the 82B cab.

Hope that helps!
Mark P.

Mark,
Yes, I downloaded the picture and changed the lighting so I could see the frame. Thanks for the arrows showing where to look. If you have a high resolution version of that picture, please send to my email below.

Will do.

Mark P.

So the frame and body were painted at the same time, but not as a unit.

Hey Chris,

As I understand it... the body, hood, and windshield frames went through the paint booths apart, but at the same time for color accuracy, then assembled as a unit. Is that what you mean?

I'm just glad Ford had photographers walking around the assembly plants for these photos!

Mark P.

Some more input regarding painting - this is per Marco Tahtaras (one of the Judging Standards Committee experts).

The door latch (i.e. the part installed on the edge of the door and which Ford named "door lock") was installed prior to painting. Consequently, the latch (lock) and installation screws were body color. FYI - keyed locks installed on the face of a door (separate from the door handle) was named "security lock" by Ford.

The windshield glass was installed after painting.

I would still want to install the glass prior to painting and spend the time masking.

Neil Wilson wrote:Some more input regarding painting - this is per Marco Tahtaras (one of the Judging Standards Committee experts).

The door latch (i.e. the part installed on the edge of the door and which Ford named "door lock") was installed prior to painting. Consequently, the latch (lock) and installation screws were body color. FYI - keyed locks installed on the face of a door (separate from the door handle) was named "security lock" by Ford.

The windshield glass was installed after painting.

I would still want to install the glass prior to painting and spend the time masking.

Anytime you mask rubber to metal to glass, you invite a crack in the paint at the seam which lets moisture get in and try to lift the paint.

The rubber seal to be masked is the weather seal around the bottom and sides (frame to cab seal). So, there would not be any glass involved. If that seal can be installed without crimping the metal retainer strips, then it would be best to install the seals after painting and just mask off the windshield.

I would want the frame to be ready for final paint before windshield glass installation.

Any thoughts?