Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2003 00:19:46 -0600
Reply-To: Eric and Marica <eric.clarke@SHAW.CA>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Eric and Marica <eric.clarke@SHAW.CA>
Subject: Re: What do I need to do about this mirror!!!
In-Reply-To: <AFCC75DB-BCCD-11D7-8BBF-000393D4F99E@jdevilla.com>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
I bought my 80 Westie with both mirrors wrapped in electrical tape -
including cracked plastic and the whole bit. I set about to replace
them and lo and behold the 'universal' replacements available at
Canadian Tire (for $50 each) required drilling holes etc - I was not
about to go down that road so I took mine apart.
I removed them from the van and undid the tensioning nut accessible
through the base (with much tapping, patience, and wd40), the washer,
spring, and a "half-ball-with-a-hex-hole-in-the-centre" piece off of the
shaft coming out of the mirror piece. This piece was welded on by rust
and once I removed it (had to use a vice I believe) and cleaned /
restored all of the pieces it turns out that the half-ball piece is
intended to float along the hex shaft.
I used a hot glue gun to fill the voided area behind the worst crack in
the plastic, and then used model airplane glue to vulcanize / weld the
casing pieces back together. I went over the whole thing with fine steel
wool (obviously not the glass) and it looks brand new.
Once the spring, washer and nut went back on nice and tight with a gloss
of white lithium, I reinstalled the mirrors and for the most part it
holds like glue. I had to install a second washer in my PS mirror as I
think the spring has lost some bounce but other than that, they hold
tight driving down even the worst washboard logging roads (to my
brother-in-law's).
Good Luck,
Eric
80 Westie "Rusty"
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf
Of Johnny DeVilla
Sent: Tuesday, July 22, 2003 11:23 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: What do I need to do about this mirror!!!
Ok so my Mac runs great, and my Westy runs pretty damn good (boy I am
glad I work from home), but every few days I throw my surfboard on top,
head for the beach and wonder, what the hell can I do about the
passenger mirror. I can get it set perfect see all the traffic on the
left, then next time I want to pass a car(yea there are some drivers
that even me in my Westy will have to get around) and bam there it is
pointed at my sliding door. I put one of those nifty concave mirrors on
it, and that seems to keep me from running people off the rode(this is
LA nobody looks before changing lanes), but having driven across the US
and Canada with a Trailer 4 times in a rock and roll band, I kinda got
used to mirrors. Does anyone have a solution to this? Chewing gum, super
glue? My Hula girl and Tiki are resting comfortably on the dash thanks
to the magnets (didn't even know it was metal)
Johnny
81 Westy
|