I have installed both kinds so I guess I can speak on this issue. First of all, all pop top canvases come from the same supplier. So no matter who you buy it from (me, BD, or Go Westy) you are getting the same quality tent. Second, order your tent way in advance of when you need it! These tents are made to order. The first one I installed was the acrylic and it took about two months to show up. I ordered it for an '83 Westy, but when we went to install it, the dimensions were wrong and we wound up short in the back. My father fabricated some blocks of wood which we attached to the squared off corners of the rear of the pop top and this allowed the canvas to fit (if I didn't tell you we did this you would never know). The acrylic canvas was very stiff and very hard to work with as far as installation goes. It basically made me decide to never install this kind of tent again (it is a real pain!).

The canvas tent I bought for my own '85. It actually only took a few weeks to show up. I installed it without any fitment problems and it wasn't that bad (no matter what doing this installation is almost like passing a kidney stone so I can't say that it was fun, just not as big of a pain as the acrylic).

I think the concept people have when they think of acrylic ( warning >>my opinion, not fact<< (see also "warning coffee is hot", and "caution scissors are sharp" warning labels) is that here is a modern fabric they are putting on that will hold up in the sun better than the standard canvas. And you can see this Sunbrella material used on awnings, etc. It holds up really well. However how much sun time does your pop top canvas actually see? Be honest now! I think mine was up long enough for me to install it this year and that was about it. So I don't think sun damage should be a factor unless you are living in the van and have the top popped for weeks and weeks on end.

The second concept that people think about is rot. You know when you bought your westy the canvas had that black stain on the side and it was mold that ate a hole in the canvas. This acrylic material is supposed to be good at resisting mold. However if your pop top seals are in good condition you should not have water coming in. And if you had a morning where your pop top got wet at night in a rain storm or from the dew, you should leave it up until it dries and then put it down (says so in the manual and also you are on a vacation trip for Pete's sake, let the thing dry!).

The third form of failure for the canvas is simply not putting it down properly and cutting the canvas in the hinges. Please affix a warning label to one of your hinges to remind you not to rip the canvas (or just use your brain, a quaint notion I know). The acrylic may resist being cut a little more than the canvas (I don't know I have not done any field testing nor do I know the thread count, etc of the canvas. I've got my team of scientists on it right now :-). It is thicker so perhaps it would not be cut as easily I don't know, but this is a factor that I think that either of these materials would be prone to. You just have to be careful.

So now you know what I know. If you take care of your tent, either one should last you 20 years. If you neglect it and abuse it, then you are just setting yourself up to become the accursed PO of the next guy who buys your van and has to replace the canvas.

Thanks, Ken Wilford John 3:16 http://www.vanagain.com Phone: 856-327-4936 Fax: 856-327-2242

----- Original Message ----- From: Joachim Preiss <jp0815@EARTHLINK.NET> Date: Tuesday, October 8, 2002 10:54 pm Subject: canvas or acrylic poptop tent

> I need a new poptop tent. Now do I go with canvas or acrylic. My > regulartent (the one I set up on the ground) is acrylic, and > hardly anybody would > use a canvas tent nowadays. Are the canvas poptop tents for > enthusiastscommitted to keep their westy in original shape, but > practical people go > with acrylic? Are acrylic poptops worth the extra money? Anybody with > good/bad experiences with the aftermarket poptop tents from the > bus depot, > go westy, etc? How do they fit? > > (I am surprised I didn't find this topic in the archives) > Joachim > > '85 Westfalia >