6 volt wipers for p20

[KMReeves]

Does anybody make a 6 volt wiper motor to re-place the vacuum wipers for a P-20 ?

[wldavis3]

I don't know the answer, KM, but the '51's (and later, I think) used a

motor. So, maybe you could adapt a '51 or '52 wiper motor to your '50.

[Plymouthy Adams]

I have never tried this myself but I tend to think it was covered here once before and was considered not a direct swap out...

[blueskies]

  KMReeves said:

Does anybody make a 6 volt wiper motor to re-place the vacuum wipers for a P-20 ?

Why? You'd be amazed at how well the vacuum wipers work when the vacuum wiper motor has been rebuilt. I had mine done by Ficken Wiper Service, for $70. The wipers work faster than the wipers on my new cars.

Here's a clip of my wipers in action.

They just about throw the blades off when they are going full tilt.

The only drawback to vacuum wipers, is they will slow down or stall under full throttle, when the engine is not producing vacuum. This can be remedied by installing a vacuum reservoir cannister, which maintains enough reserve to keep the wipers going.

I drove my car for 7 hours in a torrent of hard rain last spring, and my wipers handled it better than my '04 Jeep would have. They have infinitely variable speed, don't get hot, burn out, etc. A rebuilt vacuum unit is about half the cost of an electric "kit", and is a factory bolt-in deal that takes about 15 minutes to accomplish, no modification to the mount or linkage necessary.

I have a '53 chevy truck that I've had for 25 years, with vacuum wipers. When I bought the truck in high school, the wipers did not work worth a damn. They would slowly drag themselves up the glass, and then stick. I would have to turn them off to get them to budge again. I tried rebuilding the vacuum motor four or five times myself, and could never get them to work any better. I finally did an electric motor swap from a '55 truck, which entailed building a mount for the motor, and changing the wiper arm linkage. The old electric wiper motor didn't work much better, it was slow, and smelled bad after running for a few minutes. At some point, I found a brand new vacuum motor in a junk yard truck. I gutted the electric setup and put the new stock vacuum motor back in, and have been using it regularly for the last 18 years. The wipers still work faster than my '04 Jeep wipers. I knew from this that when it came time to fix the wipers on my Plymouth I'd stick with the vacuum setup.

Pete

[bob_amos]

At my shop in California, which really does not need wipers all that much, we have used Ficken Wiper Service for all of the vacuum wiper motors we work on. He does great work and has a fast turn around time. He's also very reasonably priced. I did an electric wiper conversion on Tony Cipponeri's car a few years ago. It worked out real well and was not too difficult to do. But there was some work involved in modifying things to fit. If it were me, I'd get you vacuum unit rebuilt at Ficken. Much easier, it will work well and will be authentic..

[FMSPEED49]

You also might try spraying wd-40 into the old one, moving it around by hand, and respray a few times, then see if it will work.

I have done this to 5 different cars, and it worked every time.

[KMReeves]

Thanks for the input, I will give Ficken wiper service a try and put a reservoir in.

[Dwight Pectol]

I installed a vacuum reserve tank for my wipers after a Fickens tune up about 3 years ago. It makes a big difference on the operation of the wipers.

Here is a picture of my take that I installed on the little shelf on the passenger side wheel well.. DW

[David Maxwell]

...which I've had laying around for several years. You said there was a big difference. Is the difference in consistany of speed only or did you also notice a faster wiping speed?

Thanks,

David

[Dwight Pectol]

David the main difference is that they keep working when you accelerate. The speed seems to be more consistent. DW

[KMReeves]

I will have to find another place to put mine because of the heater.Good picture though!

[Young Ed]

Anyone know if one of these would fit up in the header of my truck?