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Date:         Wed, 22 Jun 2011 09:38:24 -0600
Reply-To:     ralph meyermann <ralphmeyermann@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         ralph meyermann <ralphmeyermann@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: Replacing Canvas on Westy
Comments: To: Jonathan Poole <jfpoolio@gmail.com>
In-Reply-To:  <BANLkTinphBtqcqeqFWubJ+aYRfMumArvpQ@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

Thanks for the useful information. I had recently purchased the three window german canvas from bus depot awaiting for body and paint to be finished before the install.

On Jun 22, 2011 9:37 AM, "Jonathan Poole" <jfpoolio@gmail.com> wrote:

Hey Ron,

Thanks for your feedback and for sharing more information. I've been meaning to contact you about the top but have been dragging my feet since I'm not looking forward to the replacement process. I'm glad that I'm the only one who has seen this top deteriorate and will add a little more usage history from my top in case it helps explain what I am seeing with it.

The first tear was at one of the side zippers which was binding in the closed position (I've since stopped zipping them all the way closed to avoid this) and when I finally broke the zipper free I had managed to tear the fabric a bit near the zipper. This was a few months after I had purchased/installed the tent. From there I've been very careful with the tent because it tore pretty easily in that case. Also, the side zippers often are sticky after being left in one position for a day or two. I'll try your lubrication suggestions which I haven't done. I have noticed the zipper track (name?) becoming distorted at the slider position after a few days in one position. Usually this is associated with flapping in winds/etc. but if the side zippers were the size of the front I doubt this would be a problem. The top has been on my van about three and a half years and in those years there have been at least three periods of more than a month where I've camped on the coast with the top up almost continuously. This has resulted in a lot of sun exposure and often light dampness at night during those periods. The top has typically dried out the each day during these times. I've been driving Westies for more than a decade so have learned to keep the top dry when it is stored, to roll it up so that it never hangs out of the seals, etc. This top has been treated well beyond the beach time that I spoke of above and left down for the most of the time that it's been installed.

The tears have popped up in different places and not at the normal spots (middle sides, middle back). Two of them showed up when I was washing the top last year (mild soap and water, long-handle brush) and indicated to me that the top was getting worse. I suspect that all of the tears may be associated with a spot where small damage had previously occurred at some point though I'm not sure. The fabric tears very easily along it weave/grain, like paper, once a hole or small tear appears somewhere which is why I suspect this.

I will definitely call you when it comes time to get a new top and will be glad to send this one back so that you can experiment with it and compare it to others if that is helpful. I'm glad others haven't had trouble but I still think it's helpful to advise care in handling of these tops based on my experience. Most of us do hope to get a decade or more out of these things between the awkward replacement process.

Jonathan Poole '83 AC Westy

On Wed, Jun 22, 2011 at 8:33 AM, The Bus Depot <vanagon@busdepot.com> wrote:

> > It has been on my ...


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