Windshield Chip Repair
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 1,058
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From: Indiana
Windshield Chip Repair
Anyone have luck getting windshield chips repaired so they are invisible? In the past when I got them filled they still looked the same. Safelite is the only place that claims to make them invisible. BTW my chip/star is about a nickel size.
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My one and only chip bounced off my hood and then chipped my windshield right in the HUD line of sight.
My insurance company covered the repair, however all Safelight did was insert the clear gel to prevent the chip from expanding or further cracking. I had originally thought they had a process to heat up the windshield that would then melt the chip away and reform the glass. However that's not how they repaired mine.No biggie, it just sort of bugs me that the windshield is flawless with the exception of this one chip. What's worse is that I remember the moment I got the chip from a beefed up 4X4 Jeep with donut off-road tires spitting gravel through a construction zone.
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I've had several windshield chips repaired and while they looked much better than before, you were still able to see a trace of the chip and Safelite did the repair on the windshield. Perhaps the skill of the technician comes into play, but the chips on mine were not totally invisible.
It sure beat having to replace the entire glass though.
It sure beat having to replace the entire glass though.
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Sort of makes me wonder if I can get a better outfit to "repair a repair" and actually improve on the original work performed by Safelite?
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jun 2009
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From: South Dakota
I had one fixed a few years ago. I could still see it and the guy who did it scratched my hood due to carelessness.
I said I would never get another one fixed, but wait until it spread and I could get the windshield replaced.
Well, a few years later, I had a Blazer that had one and I didn't want to pay for a windshield, so I bought one of the Loctite kits for $5 or $10 and tried it myself. It was as good as the repair I paid for, but still not good. The only thing it accomplished was that it kept damage from cracking across the windshield until I sold the Blazer a couple years later.
I said I would never get another one fixed, but wait until it spread and I could get the windshield replaced.
Well, a few years later, I had a Blazer that had one and I didn't want to pay for a windshield, so I bought one of the Loctite kits for $5 or $10 and tried it myself. It was as good as the repair I paid for, but still not good. The only thing it accomplished was that it kept damage from cracking across the windshield until I sold the Blazer a couple years later.
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Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 1,058
Likes: 91
From: Indiana
I called everyone in my area to see what they thought. I got people saying that it would look the same to 50% better to 90% better. Safelite had no gaurantee. Glass Doctor told me that it would be nearly invisible then I showed up and he said 50%. I went to another place and he told me 90% so I let them do it. The "legs" are truly about 60% less noticible. The center is less about 50% better but the worst looking part is where he drilled it out first. The drilled part is black about the size of a pencil tip. I think if it hadnt been drilled the center would look better but I dont know if the drilling makes anything else better. All in all im about 50% satisified with the looks and do have peace of mind that it wont get worse.