Date: Tue, 11 May 2010 01:02:14 +0000
Reply-To: Bill Shawley <easywind1975@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Bill Shawley <easywind1975@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: any words of wisdom for a virgin to the world of westy's?
In-Reply-To: <AANLkTikVvnQUjiBzHh_ydJoHtlINTn4XVkQlqodlJlXp@mail.gmail.com>
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Peter,
I'll let others go on about the technical aspects of your van venture but I suggest you ask yourself if you need a full westy, weekender, or just a van with a bed. When I jumped in 4 years ago I was convinced (and naieve) that it was a full westy I needed. Now that I've had a few years to consider, a poptop weekender would've been perfect for me. I use the van for hauling and local stuff as much or more than I do camping and the cabinet and kitchenette take up a lot of space. If it were just me and my wife I think a just a van with the fold out bed would work and I could easily get 4x8 sheets of plywood when needed. The price difference between a nice van and westy is night and day, the savings could be sunk into camper upgrades (swivel seats, curtains, stereo upgrade, magic fingers, etc....) I don't cook in the van (except heat water), I rarely use the fridge, the sink is pretty cool though... Just some thoughts that's all here everyone has different needs and the right van for you may not be the right van for another. For God's sake though man, make sure the van is dry and rust free!
Ryan
> Date: Mon, 10 May 2010 19:15:21 -0400
> From: bybike@GMAIL.COM
> Subject: any words of wisdom for a virgin to the world of westy's?
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>
> I am looking at getting my first westy, and have spent the past couple of
> weeks looking through gowesty and thesamba to see what knowledge i can
> glean... along with reading all the the info here for the past week or so.
>
> i'm not a mechanic, although i'm good with simple machines (i love bicycles,
> and am looking for a westy to keep my bikes company : ) I work with
> computers, and don't love them... 'nuf said. So after a couple of weeks of
> reading, I think I'm on that page "are you a eurovan guy or is a vanagon in
> your future"... and as much as I appreciate the creature comforts of the
> eurovan, I think it's a vanagon. So... now what?
> I'm up in Canada (Toronto), and importing one from the States seems like a
> lot of added effort. Most of the ones I see up here are out on the west
> coast, which means I need to ask and assess remotely or spend a lot on
> airfare to visit. I do get the "avoid round headlights" level of info I have
> (so '86 or later), I don't know enough to be able to assess what leaks or
> malfunctioning parts are the ones that will have big $$$ signs attached. And
> rust... well, where is it really bad and if I see it I should stop dreaming
> vs just an indicator of some body work and paint?
>
> I'm sure everyone here has gone through the newbie thoughts when they first
> got the westy bug... help?
>
> --
> /Peter K
> > You can find me at http://studiofstop.com
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