Smooth wiper cowl?

[likaroc13]

Anybody running a smooth wiper cowl? Would love to hear some input from those that have (or had) one. I'm thinking about getting one to replace the factory grate-style cowl on my Tahoe. I know the ones by Street Scene are fiberglass, so I'm not sure how the fitment is. I also found one on StreetPros website that's made from urethane. Pics/info of both examples below:

http://www.stylintrucks.com/parts/sm...95070102-.aspx

http://www.streetpros.com/product_in...iper_Cowl.html


And here are a couple of installed example pics I found on Yahoo Images:

[Mapearso]

that fit doesnt look too great

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by Mapearso

that fit doesnt look too great

Yeah, probably not the best example. I've noticed some others in pics that fit about the same. I'm guessing it's a crap shoot as to whether it fits great out of the box. Otherwise it might require some tweaking.

[likaroc13]

Did some searching over at Fullsizechevy.com & found numerous posts complaining about the fitment of these. This went back over a span of at least 10 years. I can only assume that things haven't gotten any better today. While I really like the look, I'm not sure it's worth all that effort when it still might not fit right. Aside from being cosmetically nicer, I thought it might help keep debris out of the cowl area. Maybe I'll just look into installing some mesh screen under the cowl panel & just have it painted to match afterward.

[JWall]

Originally Posted by likaroc13

Did some searching....found numerous posts complaining about the fitment of these.

That's what I've always heard about these too.

I bought one probably 10 years ago and it was junk. Never used it.

[Blue97]

If it came stamped steel im sure the fitment would be good as stock.... I always get nervouse with thin fiberglass parts...Ive noticed over the years they tend to change shapes.

when I lifted my truck I was going to install fiberglass fenders till I did extensive research.. 9 out of 10 did not fit right.. even the body shops here told me don't do it..

Glad I didn't.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by JWall

... it was junk. Never used it.

Surprisingly, I saw at least a few folks who mentioned the same. They didn't even try to make it work.

Originally Posted by Blue97

If it came stamped steel im sure the fitment would be good as stock....

Makes you wonder why nobody has done that over the years. There's still a lot of these trucks on the road & in shows today, but I'm not sure how big the demand would be if somebody offered a steel version. A good metal fabricator could probably do it with relative ease.

[LOW1TON]

I have the urethane one on my red dually. It came from LMC it fits ok not perfect but looks better then the factory piece looks and is much easier to keep clean. My big issue was when it sits out in the direct sun it will want to warp up away from the windshield. So to help with this I epoxied a piece of aluminum flat stock to the back side and this helped a ton. But overall it fits probably 8 out of 10.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by LOW1TON

I have the urethane one on my red dually. It came from LMC it fits ok not perfect but looks better then the factory piece looks and is much easier to keep clean. My big issue was when it sits out in the direct sun it will want to warp up away from the windshield. So to help with this I epoxied a piece of aluminum flat stock to the back side and this helped a ton. But overall it fits probably 8 out of 10.

Any pics of yours installed? or of how you modified it? While I posted a link to a urethane version in the first post, most of the complaints have been regarding the Street Scene fiberglass cowl. Haven't seen much about the urethane, so I'm a bit curious to see how it compares.

Thanks

[JWall]

Originally Posted by likaroc13

Surprisingly, I saw at least a few folks who mentioned the same. They didn't even try to make it work.

We spent some time body working it & was still junk in several fitment aspects.

Originally Posted by likaroc13

not sure how big the demand would be if somebody offered a steel version.

I'd buy one. Especially if they made a completely smooth one to delete the wiper arms all together!

I saw one on a 88-98 style Tahoe years ago at a show the guy had made & it was awesome!

[LOW1TON]

I really don't have any good pictures of the cowl specifically.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by JWall

We spent some time body working it & was still junk in several fitment aspects.

I'd buy one. Especially if they made a completely smooth one to delete the wiper arms all together!

I saw one on a 88-98 style Tahoe years ago at a show the guy had made & it was awesome!

Gotcha. Yeah, I know they make the fiberglass ones with & without the wiper or squirter holes. Ideally, I agree that the completely smooth one would look best. However, I need my wipers. I can imagine a steel one that someone took a little time to make fit right would look great.

Originally Posted by LOW1TON

I really don't have any good pictures of the cowl specifically.

Thanks for the pics, & that's a beautiful dually. The first pic looks like it fits pretty good, but I can't tell much in the others. Do you have holes for the wipers still?

[LOW1TON]

Yes still have wiper holes I just don't have wiper arms and blades installed.

[red94chev]

God I love that dually.

[LOW1TON]

Thanks red94chevy! I kind of like it also. Hard to find a good regular cab dually that's not tore up.

[red94chev]

Heard that, impossible to find where Im at lol

[JWall]

Look what I found... Steel Smooth No Wiper cowl... I emailed them to see if they have any installed pics...

http://grantkustoms.com/catalog/wipe...owl-p-840.html

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by JWall

Look what I found... Steel Smooth No Wiper cowl... I emailed them to see if they have any installed pics...

http://grantkustoms.com/catalog/wipe...owl-p-840.html

Attachment 1242721

Cool! Let us know what you find out. Wonder how much work would be involved in making one of those compatible with wipers?

[red94chev]

Yeah, I may be interested in one too.

[LOW1TON]

Yeah if those fit and look good I am in. Maybe we can do a group buy and get a better price from grants!

[JWall]

Bringing back an old thread here. Low1Ton & I both bought one of the smooth cowls from Grant. Got them fitted and ready to take to the painters. Thought I'd share the pics so far. They required a few mods to get them have nice even gaps but they are a nice piece. I can't wait to see it painted.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by JWall

Bringing back an old thread here. Low1Ton & I both bought one of the smooth cowls from Grant. Got them fitted and ready to take to the painters. Thought I'd share the pics so far. They required a few mods to get them have nice even gaps but they are a nice piece. I can't wait to see it painted.

Sweet! Definitely update us when it's painted. How much work was it overall to get the fitment right? I'd like to have one, but I definitely need my wipers since it's a driver.

[JWall]

I will post pics after paint.

The install wasn't bad but did require a little work. We shaved a little off the back edge against the windshield to get the gap consistent all the way across & also on the sides to get those gaps right too.
Then one of the mounting tabs had to be moved over a little. It's a nice piece especially after spending a little time on the fitment. I am excited about it.

[lester622]

I have one of the street scene ones on my copper truck and I used sheet metal screws in some areas to get it to fit right. They fit pretty good after you play with them. I will be getting one of the grant ones for my new truck since its completely smooth.

[red94chev]

I'd like to see it with paint.