Date: Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:19:18 -0800
Reply-To: Alistair Bell <albell@SHAW.CA>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Alistair Bell <albell@SHAW.CA>
Subject: Re: Adapting visor clips to use late model visors in early
vanagons
In-Reply-To: <CA+r_p2wmQnombSa=m1=c53uD5ss6qfJTMEuk4_s3L=TkmbAyww@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
you can tighten them :)
but hold on, just checked, my '82 westy has visor's with phillips head screw on the back (upper/front) that adjusts the tightness, my '86 does not have the screw.
alistair
On 2012-01-31, at 3:24 PM, John C... wrote:
> Hi all,
> Kind of a hijack but still concerning sun visors :o)
> I've been wondering lately of the possibility of
> Keeping the sun visors up and out of the way
> ( where they were when new probably )
> with a super magnet. (or two )
> But then, it would probably have to be epoxy glued to the sheet metal
> above the head liner.
> Is there an easier way?
> They dont stay up as tight as they should?
> JC..
> By His Own Design
>
>
> On Tue, Jan 31, 2012 at 6:30 AM, Jim Felder <jim.felder@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> And please excuse the casual reference to "early vanagons." The problem may
>> be limited to early Westies, but since I do not have an early non-westy
>> around to check, I"ll have to let you do that.
>>
>> The main problem is that by now, the early-80s era sunvisors (which weren't
>> all that great to begin with) have become sagging bags of foam dust. I have
>> tried everything I could think of to rebuild them. It's a lot of work with
>> mixed success.
>>
>> Online parts vendors stock them, but they tend to be for one side or the
>> other, not a set, don't have a mirror where they should, and are hideously
>> expensive.
>>
>> The world is full of very nice, late model padded visors in great shape. So
>> why can't we use them?
>>
>> The problem is easily noticed if you install them. The very end (near the
>> mirror) of the visor beyond the point where it snaps into the the visor
>> clip has just a little too much meat on it. Everything else lines up,
>> screws all fit, no mods needed, everything is nice--until you operate the
>> visor. When you do, you rotate the visor through almost 180 degrees,
>> thereby smashing that "meaty" part against the hardboard ceiling, and
>> levering off the top part of your clip in the process.
>>
>> If you are handy with a hobby saw, and sandpaper, and have access to a set
>> of four clips that can be combined into two, you can have a very nice set
>> of late-model visors in your early vanagon. Did I mention that you could
>> have a lighted mirror on the passenger side?
>>
>> I have pictures to send to those interested, but basically you take a clip
>> and an x-acto hobby saw and you saw the top (the part with the clip, sure,
>> you can used a broken clip for this) so you have a base with a flat top and
>> no clip. You take another one and saw off the clip as low as you can. You
>> glue the two together into a unit that looks like the original only about
>> 1/4 inch taller. You sand the sides so that no excess glue show, and
>> install as usual.
>>
>> Some may comment that it would be easier just to make a base out of some
>> plastic material that raises the unit, but if you get into it you will see
>> that there is a molded plastic tang on the bottom that fits into a square
>> locator hole where the clip goes. Unless you are prepared to recreate and
>> attach this tiny tang, you are better off with the procedure described
>> above.
>>
>> It just works great. Time will tell if the epoxy has trouble sticking to
>> the plastic of the clip. I will report in due time.
>>
>> Jim
>>
>
>
>
> --
>
> "Wait till the sun shines, Nellie,
> When the clouds go drifting by,
> We will be happy, Nellie,
> Don't you sigh.
> Down Lover's Lane we'll wander,
> Sweethearts you and I.
> Wait till the sun shines, Nellie,
> Bye and bye."
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