Date:         Fri, 2 Apr 1999 20:26:28 -0600
Reply-To:     Jim Fritz <jfritz@DECORAH.K12.IA.US>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Jim Fritz <jfritz@DECORAH.K12.IA.US>
Subject:      a long last...a useful post
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Volks,
After months of just being a useless, scum-sucking, parasitic, lurker :-) I finally am going to post 2 things that might be of use to some of you.  If your an old-timer and giggle at my attempt to be useful, you have my blessing to employ your delete key.

So, anyway...its finally warm and spring-like here in Iowa.  I pulled my "new-to-me" 89 Westy out of storage the other day and started putting in some of the little extras I had acquired over the winter.  Like the VW cup holders from J. Cohen and the new skylight from Trevor.  Trevor's skylight is a quality item, fit perfectly, looks great, and you can't beat the price or Trevor's service.  Anyway, in my usual bull-in-a-china-shop fashion I managed to break that little plastic roller/flange on the end of the mechanism that raises and lowers the skylight.  I was despondent and all prepared to cough up $30 to have Ron or Ken send me a new one when this morning I woke up with one of those "ah-ha!" moments.  I went to my local Coast to Coast Store and got and "E" clip.  I call them split-ring clips but they said it was an E clip.  Anyway, with a sharp knife I removed just enough to allow the clip to slip on and still keep the roller part intact.  So, now it doesn't slip out of the track, it raises and lowers and I'm a happy camper.

My PO has long since lost the screens that go into the sliding side windows.  I read everyone's posts about the various ways to make them with magnets, etc. to fit the front windows.  Well, the storage problem and other reasons led me to dismiss them.  I was all ready to pony-up the $100 for the screens when, lo and behold (as I was looking for my E clips) I saw an adjustable window screen at the Coast to Coast.  You know the type....pull it apart to make it fit your window, lower your window down on it and you've got instant screen.  Well, anyway, this screen is 15" high, with two seperate sections.  Its made by Marvin Window..Model 1533. I pulled the sections apart, flattened some top and side metal edges to fit into the groove in the Westy window, and finally chopped the length of the existing section down to 13", re-nailed the wood edge back on, and spray painted the whole thing black.  It fits real tight, can stay in the window, and cost me $8 plus spray paint.  It took me about 3 hours total and just a bit of "re-engineering" to make it work.  I'm sure the real thing would be more elegant but I plan on spending the $92 worth of elegance on party materials for the first camp-out!
If your interested in more details but can't figure out what I did, p-mail me and I'll try to send you a picture.
Happy Camping!
Jim in Iowa
91 Passat Wagon Gl
89 Westy
66 Beetle