Windshield source
 

Does anyone have a good source for windshields that are original dimensions? I recently picked up one and it is about .5" short in the width. My car is a '56 Ace, but has the curved windshield frame which is the same as the Cobras.
Thanks,
Jay Peterson

www.finishlineaccessories.com
www.cobrarestorers.com

I have no interest in the sale but I thought of your post when I saw this eBay listing.

AC Ace windscreen

Hey, as an aside do you know if the AC Ace leaf springs were used in the early 289's?

-John

Try these two, they are not cheap but very nice.


http://www.cobra-windscreens.co.uk/

or

CrisGlover@brasscraft.co.uk

Brasscraft Windscreen Frame Manufacturers
Farley Mount Hogs Back
Seale Surrey GU10 1EU
Tel: (01252 782702)

Thanks for the responses and I will recheck with Finishline. A couple of years ago I ask someone there and they said they were not sure if their windshields would fit original frames, but maybe that has changed. As for Cobra restorers, I've been burned by them twice so I will be going elsewhere. I was hoping to find something on this side of the pond, but if Finishline does not pan out, I'll try one of the other sources since the ebay guy did not want to ship his.
John, To the best of my knowledge (and I am by no means an expert), the cobras all received different springs than the Aces. There were extra leafs (both front and rear) as well as the width the front being slightly different.
Jay

Motorsports International in California sells windshields that I know fit. I can also cut you one out of Nascar type Plexiglas that works wonderfully. It is slightly tinted (you can't tell by looking, but it has a UV coating the drivers like). It has worked very well on CSX 2401 for many years. I switched to plastic after breaking two glass ones in two years on the track due to body flex coming off the high banks of Charlotte and Atlanta Speedways. Jim

Hi Jay,

Cobra windshields will not fit Aces and Bristols. You may have a custom built screen which is curved, but the standard glass will not fit. The arc of the cars are different by about an inch or so. When the Bristol motor was no more, AC redesigned the body slightly for the Ruddspeed Aces, this is when the smaller grill opening was used and the little "mustache ' was lost. The winscreen will not snug down. You will have a gap of 1/2 inch or so on each side by the escutcheon plates.

RedEsprit,
If I understand your comments correctly, the windshield from the 2.6s (first small grill opening cars), is the same as the Cobras, but different from the rest of the Aces. I have never heard this before and will have to check the clearances on the frame I have to see what the spacing is next to the frame uprights. Is the curvature difference in the bottom piece and do you know of a way to positively identify whether the frame is Cobra or Ace?
Thanks,
Jay

Hi Jay,
Aces and Bristols originally came only with flat screens to my knowledge. I have seen several retrofits, however, including factory retrofits. Many owners had the factory "build" curved screens to modernize their cars when they saw the Ruddspeeds and Cobras. AC was a very accommodating manufacturer and I dealt with them for many years and inquired about the windscreen update to their Store's Manager back in 1969 or so. You may have an AC factory retrofit or modernization. The reason I know about the windscreen is that I completely re-bodied a 1958 AC Bristol as an FIA Cobra and naturally replaced the flat screen with a standard curved Cobra screen. The cowl is slightly flatter on a Cobra than on a pre-Ruddspeed AC. and this came directly as a result of the Bristol engines (which were very tall) no longer being available. AC took it as an opportunity to modernize the body a little and used the grills from the AC Greyhound (upside down) which they had in large supply.

De-arcing the chassis is a real pain and we solved the problem by having a glass shop disassemble the sceen and "shave" some glass from the center of the bottom and then re-assembled the screen. This screen was a chrome aluminum frame rather than brass, however, and was a little more "pliable". It never fit perfectly but we got the gap down to a managable 1/4 inch or so which was covered by the gasket. To my knowledge, there is no way to tell simply by looking at the screen. It is the double-curved bottom extrusion that creates the problem. Your best bet (and easiest fix) is to have a custom screen built in England for the car. All about the same price. I am having a racing screen built there for my ERA.

Jay,

Allan gave you contact information on Cris Glover in England, above. Cris has the original jigs for the AC windscreens and he can get you the correct unit to fit your car, whether it is a Cobra or Ace. He markets under the name Brasscraft. I have one of his units on my Cobra and it is top notch quality.

The previous comments about the Ace body shape being different from the Cobra are correct. Also, if you refer to Rinsey Mill's book on Original AC Ace and Cobras, he states that curved windscreens were available as extra cost options on Aces directly from the factory, but he does not say when they came into production.

Good luck with your car.

Bert Brown

RedEsprit and Bert,
Thanks for the education! I only wish I had learned this before rechroming my Cobra windshield frame and ordering a windshield for it. I'll probably be ready to paint my car in a few months and will revisit my windshield situation then and decide whether to try and shave the current one bit, or order a real Ace one and sell mine. The problem with ordering a real Ace one is while the prices in the UK are reasonable, the current exchange rate drives the prices to very high levels.
Thanks guys,
Jay