VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1937-1945 1938 chevy windshield

Is the front windshield tinted on a 1938 chevy master.

I believe all the windows on my 38 Town Sedan are tinted. They are a very subtle green color.

I agree with old216..... My 38 coupe has subtle green tinted windows also~~~but I never noticed if the windshield is tinted or not.
That's a good question>>>> it is hard to tell because you cant see the edge of the glass like you can on the door glass......ED

I'm just passing what the glass shop told me when I had to replace the windshield of my '38. I noticed that the glass they cut had a slight green tint and asked them about it because I didn't ask for tinted glass. They told me "clear" automotive glass has a slight green tint because of the lamination between the glass. If that is indeed correct and you ask for tinted glass you'll get it even darker.

I am not positive but I think Tiny is right. I don't believe they used tinted glass back then. My replacement clear glass has that green tint if you look at the edge but it is not tinted.

Some of the car clubs require that the vehicles have "safety glass" all around. This is listed in the inspection list. Now I am pretty sure that my 38 had a laminated windshield and tempered glass for all the other windows. I am assuming that this is the only was this glass is made. Is that correct?

On my 1951 truck, I was asked when I bought the front windshield whether I wanted clear or tinted. I bought clear and it is clear but the other windows have the slight greenish tinge to them.

Chevrolet started using laminated safety glass in the windshields starting in 1933. Don't know when other glass was safety glass.

Chevrolet used Safety plate glass starting in in all windows and it ad a slight green tint to it. Compared to actual tinted glass that Chevrolet offered as an option beginning in 1952 that was much more tinted tehe regular glass was almost clear. The glass Chevrolet used also had the black enges.19333-1936 has safety glass windshiels and vent windows with saftey glass available in all windows as an option It was required by some states at that time.
Some othe makes of cars used plate in the windshields as it was required and sheet safty glass in the side windows - which could produce wavy vision.
If you install tinted glas in a 1938 the windows will look very green and dark.
Chevrolets first use of tempered glass was the curved back glass in 1940 -and up. It wasn't till the '60's the tempered was used in the side windows but was an option in 1958 and up. It is illegal to use tempered in the windshield in the US but is used in the windshields in some European countries.

I think they had safety plate in all windows by 1936, not sure about older than that but I agree with Chipper that 33 was the first to have it in the windshield.

Chevgene, So safety glass was available in all windows in 1933? When did it become standard in all windows? I know my 37 and 48 had it in the side windows and the 48 had the tempered in the back window.

I ordered all new glass and the installer said the glass should have a greenish tint if it's safety glass. I ended up with extra door glass if you need it. It was cheaper to get the set than buy it seperately I found out.

All the glass that I removed from my 38 is in great condition. The windshield I am sure is laminated. So I thought "safety glass" was tempered glas, but apparently not. I have two questions here:
Should I be replacing all the glass?
If I replace all the glass, what should it be with what is avilable today?

The only reason I replaced the windshield is because it got broken while removing it. I kept all of the rest of the glass original, even the safety glass that is showing the brown bubbling around the edges. All of the glass in my coupe was/is laminated safety glass except for the back glass which is not laminated. If the original glass in your car is unbroken I see no reason to replace it. The brown edges around my windows get a lot of attention at shows, most like that I left the original windows in the car.

I replaced all the glass in my 37 except the wing windows and back window in 1980 for two reasons. For one, some of the glass was starting to fog and the main reason was the car was in a shop fire and it cracked most of the drivers side glass. Now one of the wing windows is delaminating and I need to replace it. The back window is tempered glass, I thought it must have been replaced but maybe not? I almost lost both the 37 and my 33 coupe in that fire.

If someone needed to buy glass where is the best place?

You can find a number of places on line but most local glass shops carry flat laminated auto glass and will cut to fit. The cost is usually comparable and you won't have to pay shipping.