Fixing Small Windshield Cracks

[Kelvin]

Alexander van Gerbig asked...

>Anyone ever have those "winder" fixers come and fill in small cracks in
>their windsheild.  I have a very small crack that is from a stone.  The
>crack can't be felt inside or outside the car, so it's internal I guess?
>Isn't that the type of crack that can be fixed?

     A small stone hit my windshield, on a '92 100CSQ, about two year 
ago, leaving a disc shaped cone of cracks about half an inch in diameter 
in the outer layer of glass; the inner layer wasn't touched. My insurance 
company sent me to Safelite. The drilled a small hole in the center of 
the cone, but just in the outer layer of glass, being careful not to 
penetrate the plastic laminate between the two layers of glass. Then they 
applied a vacuum to the hole and cracks after which they injected a clear 
thermosetting plastic that the vaccuum drew into nearly all the cracks. 
This was allowed to set for about 30 minutes and then I drove home. The 
prominence of the cone diminished by about 90% but one can still see it, 
especially when the light comes from only one direction. Fortunately the 
crack cone is low enough on the windshield, about three inches above the 
bottom edge, that the hood is what I see behind it, so it's not a 
nuisance. I was concerned initially that I might fail the Pennsylvania 
State Inspection, but I've now passed for three years and become quite 
used to the cone.

     If I continue to use the car as my primary driver to about 200,000 
miles (it's now got 128,000) I may replace the windshield at some point 
when the sand blasting gets too bad, but would cringe at the cost since 
embedded in it is a radio antenna, either AM or FM, and the price for 
that kind of windshield has got to be steep no matter what the source.

Kelvin Kean