Windscreen Wiper Blades

[Selgris]

Last year when I took the Stag for its MOT (just for my peace of mind) they hummed and hawed about the windscreen wiper blades which miss parts of the swept area. I showed the garage that they were new and that as OEM parts were probably as good as it gets and so got my MOT. Forward 10 months and my wife and myself have just finished a charity run from JOG to LE in awful weather and the wipers really are rubbish. I don't remember this problem when I first had a Stag in the late 70's.
Does anybody have any advice on how I can get decent wipers to a modern standard; that is to say wipers that actually sweep the whole area that they are supposed to clear of rain? I have tried new blades and arms from two suppliers and still the same problem.

[DJT]

Use RainX. Over 30mph and you don’t need the wipers at all.

I have to agree though, that the OE wiper blades and TEX inserts leave a lot to be desired.

[sujitroy]

+1 on RainX. I use it all the time on my regular cars. I never take the Stag out in the rain. It leaks like a sieve from the 50 year front windscreen rubber

[Lingen]

Have you checked the pressure on the blades from the springs in the arms? Do the arms pivot freely? I use the inserts that you cut to length from my local motor factor, and they wipe the whole area properly. It is important that the blade is held tight at one end, but only loosely supported along its length do it can slide in the clips as it follows the curvature of the glass.
Mike.

[Carl Reading]

The arcs on my wipers don't even overlap. I get 2 independent semi circles cleared with about 3 cm of uncleared screen between them. Is this normal? MOT inspector has never questioned it.
Having said that I rarely take the Stag out if it's raining, but sometimes you do get caught out.

[Lingen]

Carl.
They overlap a bit on mine, so perhaps your wiper boxes are a bit worn, but that won't affect the wiping efficiency. They don't compare too well with modern wipers, but are perfectly adequate and should give you a good clear field of vision in any rain. Mine do, and they are no different from yours. If you stop the wipers halfway across the screen, is the rubber properly against the glass along its full length? If not, then either the blade carrier or the rubber is not right. Try comparing them with another Stag.
Mike.

[jbuckl]

I used to use rain-x but noticed the blades life was much shorter with rain-x.

[RobinLegin]

+1 on RainX. I use it all the time on my regular cars. I never take the Stag out in the rain. It leaks like a sieve from the 50 year front windscreen rubber

I had a leak around the windscreen between the rubber and frame. I cured it with « Captain Tolley’s Creeping Crack Cure » . Most good chandlers will sell it. I also used it on my Alvis. It worked for both my classics.

returning to subject, I use rainex on both classics as well. Great stuff for when the rain comes down hard.

[Ian F]

If your wipers are not overlapping, check that you have got a Stag wiper motor and geared drive! IIRC a 2000/2500 motor will fit, but doesn’t have the same sweep angle, when Faversham Classics replaced my motor en route to/from France, they made sure I ordered the right motor.

[Selgris]

Thanks for the responses. Sadly, I don't think the MOT guys will accept RainX. Putting that aside, nobody has posted that they have cured this problem by doing x, y or z. Perhaps that shows a real need for better products from suppliers of OEM

[022Dave]

Putting that aside, nobody has posted that they have cured this problem by doing x, y or z.

When I bought my Stag many years ago, it came with 'modern' blade units, and they were very poor. John Craddock sold me a new pair of the wire type originals. I agree with Mike (Lingen) that one end of the carrier clasps needs to clamp the blade section, but the others should allow free movement to follow the contours of the 'screen. I use Halfords cheapo cut-to-size refills, and they work much better than the 'modern' replacements.
As with most things on the Stag, we tend to compare it with our daily driver car, but forget that technology has moved on during the past 50 years! The blades on my newish Volvo are huge, and are probably very aerodynamic, so unsurprising that they work better.

Dave

[jbuckl]

The soctfl funded arms were well made. Albeit to 1960’s state of the art wiper engineering.
The wiper system on a merc w124 model from the 1980s was a huge leap forward....taking a team to engineer & develop. Triumph didn’t have that & nor do any of our suppliers.
Have to admit though, I don’t know where to get good refills for the stag speed blades either.

[barkerwilliams]

I use these on Stag and TR6 (no connection)

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2x-28-Silicone-Wiper-Refills-Windscreen-Multi-Colours-Fits-most-cars-8mm-wide/360638508096?epid=1664264853&hash=item53f7baec40:m:mjw6pUrZ-CrixE0PQG4F-Pw:rk:1:pf:0

Silicone blade needs cutting to length, wipes really well and does not rot, and really low cost.

Alan

[davidf]

I used Halfords R03 refills in 2003 - I have owned Stags since 1983, and that was the first time that my windscreen wipers have worked properly, and they are still working!