Converting Pantera door glass to single panel

https://pantera.infopop.cc/top...ntera-project?page=1

Actually, tempered glass can not be cut.

tempered glass is used for the side windows on modern cars. when broken it shatters into hundreds of small pieces which is acceptable for side windows but obviously would cause major issues if a windshield were to shatter into thousands of pieces

safety laminated glass is used for the windshield and safety laminated glass can be cut using the proper technique

finding a correctly curved tempered side window on a modern car will be of no value, as it can not be cut and resized

I understand this modification has been done on a few cars. And you are correct, it will require an expensive, custom made, to your precise template, one piece glass.

Larry

Before asking the question, I would have agreed with Larry's comment regarding the cutting of tempered glass. Usually cutting takes place before the tempering process. However, indications on the internet appear to show that tempered glass can be cut. I will investigate further and report my findings. I was glad to hear that it has been done before, but my budget does have limits.

Thank you,

Tom

Talk to one of the hot rod shops that build cars. They have sources for making custom windows.  It isn't cheap.  

These guys can do it: https://www.amhotrodglass.com/

Did you read KimK's thread? He already has a mold and a glass supplier. I'd start there. 

David,

after viewing AMHRG‘s website, which honestly conveys very little information about what they do, I can find no indication they are cutting tempered glass or any glass for that matter.

several videos of them cutting something that is clear, but no mention it is actual glass or acrylic  

custom …acrylic… “glass” appears to be what they are offering.

do you have any clarification?

Larry

Larry,

I agree; the web site is terrible. I've seen this company on Bitchin' Rides a few times, being credited with the glass for various projects. If I'm not mistaken, they also made the headlamp covers for the Ring Brother's Pantera (although those were probably acrylic).

I just had to see what my Pantera looks like without the small triangular windows. It's easy enough to remove, so I went for it and love the nice clean look. There is a web that sits under the small window which would have to be cut out for a single glass panel. Since the car never sees water, I might just leave it removed for a while and wait for comments and my own analysis of the situation before doing anything drastic.

That would be a cool mod, I would also doubt that there is room in the door...Have you cut one from paper to see it could fit? At least, the door chamber is so much smaller than the window opening, attached is a Goose frame--but getting room for such a big piece of glass (and getting it to roll all the way down), would be a cool mod (but I bigger challenge!)--Lee

I did open up the door to remove the glass for my experiment. It’s tight but the larger panel of glass can slip down between the door skin and window motor. A new glide is needed to handle the front edge of the glass. The existing front glide is held in place by two screws. I’m debating if to use plexiglass. Glass will be pricy to fabricate. If done carefully it’s possible return everything back to stock. For the time being I’m going without glass and adding in new temporary rubber glass guides to fill in the gaps created by missing glass.
it looks great without hurting the car.

The Pantera looks awesome without the small glass section, cleans up the lines and does not interrupt the flow of the door.  Makes the door look longer and sleeker.  I would like to do it to my car.  I would want to leave a small amount in the corner for the mirrors that attached to the existing window.  Could be replaced with metal.  If we can get a group of Pantera owners that would like to do this mod, we could get a discount on a glass mold.  Let me know if you are interested and I can see what I can find out.  Without the small triangular glass installed, it just looks better.  I am in if we can get others.  Can PM me.

I understand that this has been done before. If anybody knows someone that has done it well, we should contact them. If there is nobody we can talk to, some experimentation is required. The main problem I see is the front bottom corner of the glass as the window travels forward as it will/may make contact with the door. Please see my diagram.

@tomkuester - Great illustration of how the window travels.  That is why if you left a small triangular corner for mirrors like the Omni mirrors that Hall  Pantera use to sell, you might not have that problem.  Let's keep this going to see if we have others who would like to do it.  My Pantera interior is completely out, so we could experiment with my car if needed.

Did you ever reach out to Kim K.?

https://pantera.infopop.cc/top...498#1598208419958498

yes, this modification was successfully done by an owner in Finland back in 2017. His forum handle is kimk and here is a link to the thread of his restoration. The link should open on page 5 of the thread.

https://pantera.infopop.cc/topic/new-pantera-project

UPDATE: I see the above link takes you to page 1 instead of page 5. 🤷‍♂️☹️

As can be seen the glass could not fill the entire opening.

Some sheet metal below the OEM vent window needs to be removed to allow an opening for the glass and provide a proper metal profile for the door whiskers to attach to. This photo shows the metal removed in all but the forward section.

The new forward vertical window channel is sourced from the OEM forward vertical window channel.

Not shown in his thread, but a new forward in-the-door metal U channel will need to be installed for the extended glass to ride in.

The top U channel felt channels and the felt door whiskers are issues, but not serious problems.

IIRC, the upper door frame channel for the quarter window gasket is just a continuation of the upper door frame channel for the roll-up window; longer felt channel is readily available.

As shown in one of the photos above, there will be some challenging metal removal in the lower quarter window area.  Some precision removal (Dremel with cut-off wheels?) of excess metal will leave metal that matches the original door metal profile.  Longer felt whiskers are readily available.

His description of the process is far from detailed, but of note was his need to correct U channel contour due to incorrect glass curvature.  

at this point in time a PM to Kim is the logical first step for those interested in this modification, as the biggest stumbling block to the project is the custom glass. At the time of his project Kim said the cost for the two custom glass pieces would be €740 plus shipping costs.

there may be different approaches than Kim’s that would prove satisfactory, but this is clearly a major project with major roadblocks to solve.

so, who is going to send that PM to Kim?

Larry

The glass does not travel forward as much is I implied in my diagram and should clear the window mechanism and motor.  With both pieces of glass out of the car it will not be hard to make a cardboard template to test the theory. It will come down to millimeters for clearance near the front, but I think the front glass corner can be shaved a tiny bit so it won't hit the door front.  The triangular sidelight sits on a narrow shelf which needs to be cut out for a full glass panel to pass through. To return back to stock, that shelf would need to be replaced.

A cheap way out is to leave the existing big window in place and make the triangular window easier to remove. If needed, you can then plug in the small window on the fly.

I hope other will chime in with ideas and concerns.

Tom

I found a three year old post by Tom where there was an exchange between him and Kim. Here is the link:

https://pantera.infopop.cc/topic/window-glas

Tom, curious why you did not follow through on this project back then?

Larry

Yes, I started once before to look into single glass side panels, but because of Covid and economic reasons we closed our office down and had our hands full.

Now I'm retied and have more time for this kind of stuff.

I hope it goes forward as I've removed the side glass and love the look.

So far I see no reason why it can't be reversible, but I'm just getting started.

Tom

It would also be possible (and possibly much easier) to make the triangular stock glass functional. In the '50s and '60s they were called 'wind-wings'- and were for effective cabin ventilation since A/C was not common in those days although available.

Using far cheaper plastic for custom full length side windows as prototypes would be my suggestion.They could easily be made and tinted, too. They would eventually be scratched by the usual 'whiskers' used in side windows, but should last a year or two- long enough to see if its worth it to you for the high cost of custom glass side windows.

For both jobs, I would enlist a really good hotrod car builder. This is not quite the typical home-shop project.