Trying to roll the windows up or down in my '72 Chevy had become quite a tricky situation that required both hands, some clever guesswork, and sometimes pure luck. It didn't take much to figure out that the old window regulators were on or past their last leg, to say the least, which put too much emphasis on the "manual" side of manual or non-power windows.
But doing things the old-fashioned way in an old truck brings me some sort of odd satisfaction, like listening to AM radio, popping open a cowl vent, or rolling down the windows by hand. Plus, I find safety in tried-and-true analog/mechanical engineering, which is contrary to many people out there who find comfort in their power everything, including windows. For all I know you'd probably have to pay extra for a car with roll-up windows these days.
So I called up Classic Parts Depot in La Habra, California, to see if they had the parts to set my C-10's cantankerous window regulators straight. Since they carry parts for Chevy and GMC trucks from '47 to current, it was no sweat, but I wanted to take care of a few other things while I had the door panels off. The '72 isn't the prettiest truck at this point, but every little bit helps, and it had some grungy door panels, door handles-both inside and out-and window cranks that all seemed to be on par with the regulators. In a perfect world I would have also replaced the weatherstripping, but there isn't the slightest threat of rain in Southern California until who knows when, and I'd rather replace it after the truck gets some new paint.
All in all, replacing the regulators wasn't that hard, it was just more of a puzzle trying to figure out the best way to disassemble the door's guts to get to 'em. You'll want to take care to protect your paint on the doors around the window opening if it's nice, and plan on spending the afternoon in the garage or driveway to do both regulators. Once you get done putting everything back together and give that nice new window crank a spin, you won't have any regrets, just a cool breeze in your face. Give Classic Parts Depot a call and see how they can ease your frustrations!
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I picked up everything I figured I'd need partswise from Classic Parts Depot to rehab and spruce up what's on the inside of the doors, and a little of what's on the outside while I was at it. Here we have the new regulators, outside door handles, inside door handles, and window cranks. | 
Well, the first matter of business of getting the window regulators out was to get inside the door shell. And not only were the window regulators toast, but the door panels and all their inhabitants had seen better days; more on that further down. |