jmanfish

I hear you! I know it's hard but please wait one more week until my experimental parts will arrive. I will post the results then. I don't want to mislead you into buying something that wasn't tested yet.
For everyone else, please note that the experiment I'm about to do will be performed in sub-arctic climate (that's where I live) - so I assume that if the parts will work here, they're supposed to work EVERYWHERE else :D ("here" is Hay River, NT, Canada - 50 degrees sub zero Celsius at worst. Just googlemap it).

In the meantime I found the following solution...
I bought a spray can called "Ice-Off" (made by CRC). It's a very powerful de-icer that actually works on my blades. Here's the link: CLICKY
I got mine from Home&Hardware, I don't know who would sell it in the US.

What I'm doing is: remote-start my car in the morning, leave the defrost ON for 15 minutes at max speed & heat while pulverizing Ice-Off on the blades and the ice built at the base of the windshield. By the time I actually start the ice is pretty much melt and I can easily remove it with just my fingers or an ice scraper.

Very important: in order for the blades to wipe properly you need to Ice-Off the joints of the wiper arms (ALL of them): the point where the rubber joins the metal parts; the articulation point between the blade and the arm; the articulation point at the base of the arm (where the motor axle protrudes the body, right under the windshield); around the motor axle itself. It is a good procedure to remove the blade from the arm and clean the articulation too. Be CAREFUL though - if the temperatures are extremely low, the blade-arm assembly (made of plastic) may become bristle. DO NOT APPLY FORCE! Just use more Ice-Off and wait a minute or two more. And don't be very generous with the solution. Just apply gentle pressure on the can button and pulverize only as much as you need for the ice to melt. The can is about $8.99 CAD and you might want it to last a bit longer.

Following the tip I found on another forum I got a spray bottle and filled it up with Rain-X. I spray it on all the surface of the windshield so that I can keep the Ice-Off for the blades only. Blades will wipe better on a Rain-X-ed surface. Also, fill your windshield washer tank with Rain-X too.

Another useful tip (especially for cars left outside) is to cover the wiper area of the windshield with a long stripe of synthetic material (nylon in my case) so that the snow won't build up during the night. I found a special accessory (a windshield cover) at a local store - what you have to do is neatly covering the area and lock the far edges of the stripe under your driver and passenger doors. Voila, clean windshield and/or wipers in the morning.

On a more practical note, keep always in mind that the wiper blades are NOT DESIGNED for ice removal. You have to use your hands and tools in order to get rid of the ice. Actually the blades end in a very thin (and fragile) edge and the effect of the hardened ice on them is pretty much the same as if you would brush your skin against sandpaper.

Please reply if this has helped. I'd like to forward more results to other interested people. Thank you!