Other: '47 Stude vacuum to electric wipers

[Randy Bohannon]

Has anybody converted vacuum wipers to electric (6V) on a '47 Commander?

[j.byrd]

Randy, see if you can find out if 55 model 6 volt ones fit... bet you know where you could get one of those !!!

[skyway]

Also take a look at 1941/42 Commanders and Presidents because they came (not sure about Champions?) with electric wipers.

[Hallabutt]

Studebaker made electric wipers a no cost option in 1951, so it's certainly doable. It's just making the determination as to what works. As an aside electric wipers were used as an option on some pre-war Studebakers, so it was nothing new.

[bezhawk]

Use the wipers, and linkages off a 52. They are a direct bolt in, and do away with the cables.

[RadioRoy]

Use the wipers, and linkages off a 52. They are a direct bolt in, and do away with the cables.

Make sure the linkages do not interfere with the radio case. The radio case was redesigned in 1951 to clear the new internal wiper linkage. I have not looked under the dash of a 47-49 to see if there is clearance.

There used to be a company that made electric wiper motors that bolted on to the spot where the vacuum motor mounted. I did that with a 1958 Jeep station wagon once.

[Greenstude]

Having the vacuum motor from the '47 rebuilt by Ficken could be a lot less work. Been there, done that, and glad I did.

[enjenjo]

Newport engineering makes a bolt in motor that replaces the vacuum wiper motor using the stock linkage. https://newportwipers.com/product-ca...rs/studebaker/

[altair]

There is an additional option, in the day there was an electric vacuum pump that ran through the vacuum circuit and when the vacuum dropped off the motor started and recreated the vacuum so the wipers would not stop going up a hill.

[6hk71400]

Thinking out loud here: would it be possible to wire in a rheostat in the electric wiring circuit to have variable speed wipers? I think it would be nice to be able to vary the speed of the blades depending on the condition of the weather. Not to go as far as Ford did with the intermittent wiper system but be able to control how fast the blades operate might be nice.

We have our monsoon now and it can vary between slight rain and steady rain so having more than two speeds might be nice. It is also nice to have the rain in Arizona with cooler temperatures

Bob Miles
It rained 3 inches yesterday, 3 inches between the drops

[gordr]

The problem with rheostats and wiper motors is that the load on the motor varies over the span of the sweep, and also if the windshield is wet, or dry, or coated with bug guts. As the load on the motor changes, so does the voltage drop across the rheostat, and hence the speed can vary a lot. I think a toe button mounted on the floor, and wired in parallel with the wipers' park switch would be the way to go. Give the toe button a slight tap' you get one sweep. Hold it down, and the wipers run until you release it. My Suburbans do that if you twist the wiper control backwards; one sweep per twist.