Bullseye chip: a dark circle with a clean edge
A bullseye is a cone-shaped separation directly under the impact point. It reads as a dark or silvery circle with a defined edge, often with a tiny pit at dead center where the rock actually landed. No arms, no legs, just a ring.
Bullseyes are the friendliest break there is. The cavity is open and regular, so resin flows in evenly and fills the void completely. They are also the most stable — a clean bullseye can sit in a windshield for months without moving, which is why people put off dealing with them and then get surprised.
Half-moon: a bullseye that did not finish
Same cone, but only part of the circle formed, so it looks like a crescent or a D-shape. Half-moons behave almost identically to bullseyes. The one difference is that the flat side of the crescent is a stress edge, and that edge is where a crack will run from if the glass gets shocked. In Phoenix in July, that shock is usually you: interior surface temperatures on a parked car push the glass well past 140°F, and blasting max AC onto it is a real thermal event. Crack the windows first for a minute and bring the temperature down gradually.
Star break in a windshield: legs radiating from a center point
A star break has short cracks — legs — running outward from the impact. Three legs, eight legs, sometimes a dozen. Under the light the legs flash silver individually rather than as a solid mass.
Stars are the ones that grow. Every leg tip is a stress concentrator, and it does not take much to extend one: a pothole, a door slammed with the windows up, a Florida afternoon storm dumping cold rain on glass that has been baking since noon. In Tampa, St. Petersburg and Orlando we see far more star breaks turn into long cracks than we do in the dry months, and humidity is part of why — moisture and road film wick into the legs, and contaminated legs do not accept resin cleanly even if you get to them later. If you have a star break, put clear tape over it to keep the legs clean and get it looked at.
Combination windshield break: a bullseye with legs
Exactly what it sounds like. A circular or crescent separation with cracks running out of it. This is the most common damage from highway debris at speed, and it is the hardest to judge from a photo, because the outcome depends entirely on how long the legs are and where they point.
A tight combination break with short legs is often repairable. One with a leg running toward the edge of the glass usually is not, because edge stress will take that leg the rest of the way. That is the honest answer, and it is why we look at the actual glass rather than quoting a decision over the phone. Our mobile glass technicians come to your driveway or office lot in Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, Kissimmee or Fort Lauderdale — Bang has no shop for you to drive to, which is the point.
Where windshield damage sits matters as much as its shape
Three locations change the answer regardless of type. Damage within roughly two inches of the perimeter sits in the bonded, high-stress zone and tends to run. Damage in the driver's primary viewing area may repair structurally but leave a visible blemish or slight distortion right where your eyes live, which many drivers will not accept. And damage in the camera window — the black-bordered patch behind the mirror — sits directly in the field of view of the forward-facing camera that runs lane keeping and automatic emergency braking. A repair there can refract light into the lens. If that windshield does get replaced, the camera has to be recalibrated afterward, and ADAS recalibration is not optional on a vehicle equipped with it.
Once you know the type, the insurance question is simpler
Florida drivers get the clearest deal in the country: Florida insurers must waive the comprehensive deductible on windshield replacement (Fla. Stat. § 627.7288), so with comprehensive coverage on the policy the replacement is often $0 out of pocket. Note the limit — that statute covers the windshield, not door, rear or sunroof glass. Our plain-English breakdown of the Florida windshield law covers what it does and does not reach.
Arizona works differently and gets misdescribed constantly. A.R.S. § 20-264 requires insurers to offer an optional zero-deductible full-glass endorsement. It is not automatic — you either bought it or you did not. Separately, A.R.S. § 20-469 means you pick the shop, not the carrier, unless the policy contract provides otherwise. Our page on Arizona glass insurance walks through how to check your declarations page, and we verify your coverage for free before any work is scheduled.
What to do this week
Photograph the damage with a dark background behind the glass — a folded towel on the dash works — so the break shape actually shows. Cover it with clear tape to keep dirt and moisture out of the legs. Skip the automatic car wash and the high-pressure wand. Ease into the AC instead of blasting it. Then get eyes on it while it is still small: same-day appointments are available in most areas across the Phoenix metro and both Florida coasts. If it ends in a replacement, the work carries our lifetime workmanship warranty, which stands behind the installation and the glass itself against defects for as long as you own the vehicle.
