Date:         Mon, 12 Sep 2016 17:58:11 +0000
Reply-To:     Jim Felder <jim.felder@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Jim Felder <jim.felder@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Five years on homemade tyvek Westy cover--here's how it had done
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It's been about five years since I bought $40 worth of tyvek on eBay and
sewed my own westy cover. It was a pretty easy weekend project even on the
very slow machine I was using back then. I was looking at it on the car
today and realized I had promised to write a review in the future as to how
it has held up. Here goes. Remember that this is not any kind of heavy duty
stuff like the professional covers probably are, but just cheap plain old
tyvek.

1. It's still hanging in there, maybe another year or two of life in it,
maybe more with a little work.

2. It shrinks. If you use it, make it fit loose. Mine fits like my Westy
has put on a little weight. Other than the shrinkage, the material hasn't
seemed to degrade any that I can tell.

3. If you use a machine with an external light bulb, turn it off. The bulb
bulb will burn a hole in the tyvek in a nanosecond.

4. Provide LOTS of drainage for the luggage rack. If I do this again I will
sew in a mosquito net or other type of screen to drain water. If you don't,
you are going to get soaked when removing it after a rain, and worse the
weight is going to tear they tyvek. I have some small holes now but they
need to be larger.

5. No need to do anything fancy for access, no zippers or such. Very easy
to get into the car, any door.

6. Ice is the worst. If it gets wet underneath in the winter (and it will)
the cover is stuck to the car.

7. It does a beautiful job of protecting the finish from tree sap, falling
berries and bird droppings, and it keeps the car wonderfully cool in the
summer.

8. The place that gets the dirtiest now are the wheels where rain splatters
debris up onto them. If I do this again I will consider bringing the cover
to the ground.

9. Strong winds can blow it off if you don't have ties (I do, but don't
often use them).

Jim