Bronze Mist 64 Riviera Posted July 30, 2021 Share Posted July 30, 2021 (edited) Has anyone found a source for just the 18" wiper refill for the first gen original blades? I can find whole blade assemblies, but I think that's unnecessary, and I ordered some refills from Amazon that were supposed to fit according to their compatibility data, but they were way too narrow for my blades. Edited July 30, 2021 by Bronze Mist 64 Riviera Additional info and spelling. (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kegart Posted July 30, 2021 Share Posted July 30, 2021 Look for a local auto parts store that still has books. Most chain stores don't know how to find parts if they aren't on their computer. Kevin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted July 30, 2021 Share Posted July 30, 2021 TRICO 43-180 is the correct refill; if no one before you has replaced the original 18” overlap blades with some shorter 15” blades. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Ugh -- don't get me started... I see this issue everywhere; even with contemporary cars. It seems nobody wants to stock/sell refills, only blades. Really annoying on cars such as my wife's Equinox that uses different length blades on the driver & passenger sides. So, even if I find refills, I need to buy the longer ones and trim one of them down to fit the shorter blade... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CTX-SLPR Posted August 1, 2021 Share Posted August 1, 2021 The 43-180's seem to be discontinued or just out of stock. Looking through the questions on Amazon, someone mentioned them fitting a '63 Riviera, so confirmation there, and another mentioned them being 6mm wide. Seeing as the Tricos are not easy to get, is any 18in "narrow" refill (specifically the 6mm ones) be appropriate? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronze Mist 64 Riviera Posted August 1, 2021 Author Share Posted August 1, 2021 No, the N18 refills are too narrow for the original blades. That's what I bought.I measured my original blade refills and the metal reinforcement that goes into the blade is about 9mm wide so the 6mm blades just fall right out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted August 1, 2021 Share Posted August 1, 2021 (edited) Google "Trick 43-180" Lots of specialty houses are showing them as being in stock. Trico's website does not show them but they show that they still make the complete wiper assembly. Edited August 1, 2021 by RivNut (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronze Mist 64 Riviera Posted August 1, 2021 Author Share Posted August 1, 2021 Just ordered a pair here: 2x 18" Trico Wiper Blade Refill-Long Frame Metal Vertibrae Refill set of 02 refl | eBay I'll post back once I get them, and let everybody know how it goes. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted August 1, 2021 Share Posted August 1, 2021 Upon receipt, let us know how well the fit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronze Mist 64 Riviera Posted September 8, 2021 Author Share Posted September 8, 2021 (edited) Sooooo.....Sorry this took a while. Finally got over to the car yesterday and installed the refills I got on ebay. They fit perfectly EXCEPT they lack any kind of retaining clip to hold them in. They very easily slip in and out of the blade. If my memories of installing refills years ago are correct, there should be a small springy clip at one end that hooks onto the wiper blade. This has to be pressed in on both sides in order to remove the refill. These blades are okay for now, as the car is not yet driveable, but I'm not sure I would want to try to use them while driving. I really wanted them so that if the wipers inadvertently get turned on while I'm working on the car, the blades won't scratch the glass. If they slip out while the wipers are running, the blade will scratch the glass. If I figure anything out, I'll post again. Jeff ROA 13051 Edited September 8, 2021 by Bronze Mist 64 Riviera Signature (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seafoam65 Posted September 8, 2021 Share Posted September 8, 2021 The 15 inch blades are available every where with the correct stainless steel blade holder included. I put these on my 65 Riviera and they look and function great....good coverage on the windshield, and the added bonus is that I can turn the wipers on high without the left blade slapping the stainless trim on the left side of the windshield. My Dad's 65 Riviera had this problem when brand new, and my car had the problem as well until I put the 15 inchers on. The stainless on my car was scratched from the blade slapping the trim, and I had to sand out the scratches then polish the stainless to make the trim look new again. I don't know why Buick put 18 inch blades on the car.......my GTO has the same size windshield with 15 inch blades. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
65VerdeGS Posted September 8, 2021 Share Posted September 8, 2021 4 hours ago, Seafoam65 said: The 15 inch blades are available every where with the correct stainless steel blade holder included. I put these on my 65 Riviera and they look and function great....good coverage on the windshield, and the added bonus is that I can turn the wipers on high without the left blade slapping the stainless trim on the left side of the windshield. My Dad's 65 Riviera had this problem when brand new, and my car had the problem as well until I put the 15 inchers on. The stainless on my car was scratched from the blade slapping the trim, and I had to sand out the scratches then polish the stainless to make the trim look new again. I don't know why Buick put 18 inch blades on the car.......my GTO has the same size windshield with 15 inch blades. Great info - thanks for confirming the 15" blades are the way to go. The longer ones also scratched the windshield trim on my car and I wondered why Buick would use loo-long blades on their premier car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jframe Posted September 9, 2021 Share Posted September 9, 2021 I have 18" blades on mine, and have experienced no issues. Could it have something to do with how the wiper arms are indexed on the wiper transmission? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanZverina Posted September 9, 2021 Share Posted September 9, 2021 To Seafoam65: Maybe I missed it, but do you have a url to the 15" blades and blade holders that you would recommend? Thanks, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seafoam65 Posted September 10, 2021 Share Posted September 10, 2021 Correction everyone....they are actually 16 inch blades , not 15inch, so two inches shorter than originals. You can buy them most everywhere......Amazon sells them as well as vendors like Jegs and Summit. They come with the blade and the blade holder already all put together, you just clip them on the wiper arms. They sell for about 13.00 per blade. I have these same blades on my 69 GTO and 70 Chevelle SS as well as the Riviera.....they look and perform like the originals. Just google search 1965-1966-1967-1968 Trico 16 inch wiper blade and they pop right up on your screen from various vendors. 5 hours ago, jframe said: I have 18" blades on mine, and have experienced no issues. Could it have something to do with how the wiper arms are indexed on the wiper transmission? No, I have the arms adjusted all the way to the bottom of the windshield when parked......it's just a design flaw from the factory. If there is an adjustment on the wiper transmission to solve the problem I'm not aware of it, but the shorter blades solve the problem every time. If you have a 65 Riviera with 18 inch blades and it doesn't hit the stainless when the wipers are turned up to high speed, you are indeed fortunate. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted September 11, 2021 Share Posted September 11, 2021 I drove my 63 as a daily for over 15 years with 18” blades and the never slapped the A pillars or got hung up on each other. The shorter blades do not clear the center of the windshield. But if your car never sees rain, what difference does it make - unless some savvy judge notices it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now