swap shaft handles on window regulators?

[roundhouse]

on The truck we bought, the window crank splines are stripped,


the 73 doors are rust free,  the doors on the 82 parts truck are rusty.

originally  we were gonna use the 82 door panels and  we were going to swap regulators since the splines in the parts truck were fine,
however, upon disassembly we discovered the doors have  the '73 only small rollers on the regulators,


looks easy enough to drill out the rivets and swap the shafts?

other than watching out for the spring tension, anything else I need to know?

[roundhouse]

Anyone ever done this ?

[Captkaos]

Are you actually swapping just the crank portion?  No only do the 73 regulators have smaller rollers, they are also shorter at the stalk length.

[roundhouse]

Think we're going to swap just the shaft

A added bonus is we can use the latest model door panels

I'm pondering trying to swap the small roller onto the one track that's welded inside the door
The. We could use the later model glass and felt

I've not found any window felt for 73-81. Only for 81+

Wish there was an easy way to swap the welded in track for the larger one

Thought about drilling out the spot welds and installing a wide track in the door

The track is permanently attached to the glass right ?

Is the 73 glass even available  ?

[Captkaos]

Not sure why you can't find window felt as it is in the store link at the upper portion of the forum..

Here is all the weatherstripping.  If you don't see what you need, email me
http://store.73-87chevytrucks.com/merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=7&Category_Code=WTHR

It is easier to swap to a newer door than use the 73-early 74 ones...
The glass track can be removed from the glass.  As far as I know the 73 version is available...

[roundhouse]

Not sure why you can't find window felt as it is in the store link at the upper portion of the forum..

Here is all the weatherstripping.  If you don't see what you need, email me
http://store.73-87chevytrucks.com/merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=7&Category_Code=WTHR

It is easier to swap to a newer door than use the 73-early 74 ones...
The glass track can be removed from the glass.  As far as I know the 73 version is available...

Thanks for the link
The first time I searched the store i didn't see the pre 80

Anyhow
I swapped the handle shafts yesterday

Not difficult
Passenger side.:
Remove the regulator
Crank the regulator to the down position
Put a C clamp on the toothed rack so it wont fly when you remove the crank
(I've seen people get their teeth knocked out when it lets loose )

Drill out the rivets and remove the cranker

I found some bolts that had a really thin head
You will need one to replace the rivet under the rack
With the cranker removed You will need to pull the rack past the cranker to access that hole.

Plug the screw in that hole then release the rack back to the C clamp
Put small bolts in the other two holes. 
Drop the cranker on the bolts and tighten the nuts

Done

Also when we pull our regulators out of one door we discovered that the regulator and glass was a 74+ model. With the large rollers on the glass and the large roller for the door roller track was replaced with a bolt and several jam nuts sandwiching a properly sized steel washer  in place of the plastic roller

To replace the rivets under the rack You can also use a small screw for a countersunk hole and lightly countersink  the hole in the regulator

For the drivers side you can crank the rack around enough to access all three holes

Don't forget he C clamps
There's a lot of energy stored up in the spring

Also don't mess with the cranker gear assembly
They have a coil spring inside that has to fit a certain way