You just don’t agree with what I think/know of glass repair. Totally fine.
Fixing a chip is fine. I think fixing a crack is ridiculous. Nothing makes a car look more busted than a crack in the windshield.
If that’s what you’re into, cool.
That's all good! Stay on topic though, or else what's the point of a forum at all, right?
Thankfully for the sake of organization in a forum, I made a thread about windshield replacement and which insurance policies work and for who, since mine does not offer repair or replacement. You can talk about that subject there!
You also still don't seem to know how a repaired crack looks--or should I say
doesn't look. It is possible maybe you are just bad at applying a repair yourself, but since you said you don't bother with it, it's not conclusive. At any rate it isn't easy, you do have to have some skill and patience when it comes to this, not just anyone can repair a crack in the windshield or other automotive glass. While I have successfully repaired many cracks and chips, and even used these kits for repairing other types of glass such as fish tank glass and 6 over 6 window glass, some things are best left to pros or buddies that you
really really trust.
So let me take a second to thank you for giving me a chance to spread some good information and awareness for anyone who may otherwise think their windshield or auto glass is in need of replacement when it actually probably isn't thanks to the modern convenience of glass repair via resin and consumer available applicators of said resin. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't really need to explain this, so props for that, since I love this topic.
If you're already tired of reading,
here! Hope that helped.
An automotive glass repair done right is nearly invisible; light does not hit the crack and reflect off, it is simply ever so slightly more opaque than the regular glass. No fault to you or anyone else who does not know much about automotive glass repair. You, for example, don't get repairs done you just have replacements done, so you would not really know how invisible they become when simply repaired vs replaced.
What this does mean though is you've probably seen hundreds of repaired windshields, with cracks, and never noticed. Why?
Because they're repaired: the repairs are realistically invisible, which is what makes them legal especially when in line-of-sight of a driver. A repaired crack, especially one that has been end-drilled will not continue to spread under most circumstances, and will not interfere with vision because the crack has gone from reflective to transparent as it is filled with transparent resin. A correctly repaired chip will not spread, either, and is also virtually invisible; does not interfere with a driver's line of sight, making it legal and viable. So unfortunately, although you may think fixing a crack because "a crack in the windshield makes a car look busted," thankfully it can be remedied! A crack can have existed, but as long as it is full of automotive glass resin which has been properly applied, it is no longer seen as a cracked piece of automotive glass.
I think, though, on a truck windshield a crack or six adds character, though, myself. Keeps you on your toes when you're driving by regular police parking spots.
From Safelite's Website: Examples of Automotive Glass Repairs, Before and After
That does not mean that a properly repaired cracked windshield that was beyond a legal crack length limit prior to repair is not up for debate in a court of law perhaps for structural integrity, or that having a repaired crack longer than DOT / legal limit is a good idea in the first place for say safety/structural reasons, even though it would be in practice nearly invisible and therefore visually legal while technically structurally in the realm of illegal, but that is up for debate, apparently even for those who have liability on their backs and are regularly deployed by insurance companies to come solve your automotive glass woes:
Safelite--An Auto Glass Repair Company's Website said:
So I suppose it is fair to just air on the side of accepting
a crack or chip can be repaired and be made structurally sound. If they're wrong, I guess you get to sue them. Sounds like a win to me if that's what you're into.
And not to mention -- it goes without saying -- not all repairs done with a "windshield"/glass repair kit has to be limited to a vehicle that even sees the road at all, or a windshield, or even a vehicle.. This thread is for talking about resin and kits, not windshield replacement vs windshield repair as a debate topic.
"Windshield" is not even in the original post, anywhere.
Let's all get back on topic, now.