Date: Tue, 15 Jun 1999 21:09:26 EDT
Reply-To: CarlMarin@AOL.COM
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Carl Turner <CarlMarin@AOL.COM>
Subject: Replacing pop top bug screen the manly way.
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
In a message dated 6/15/99 3:30:36 PM Mountain Daylight Time,
LISTSERV@GERRY.VANAGON.COM writes:
> Replacing pop top bug screen? What of it?
We replaced our screen in our Westie. All it takes is some work. Easier
than replacing the canvas I think in the long run and quicker than bitching
about it for years :^0 We used a good quality screen mesh material from
the Surplus store, fiberglass based rather than the flimsy plastic that was
in there before. Its also a dark green in color rather than the original
white which makes looking in during the daytime less of a problem.
Anyway, on to the basic concept. You need to cut out the screen to the
proper size, use the old one for a pattern if any of its left, we made a
paper template as ours was completely gone. We sized it so that it was
loose, wouldn't be stressed by the canvas and we knew that these things
always end up tighter than you think after the sewing is done so we were
generous, left an extra 1/2 inch all the way around. Next, we sewed on some
cotton edging material to the screen similar to the original, this we could
do on a machine in the house. The edging is just some 1 inch material folded
over on itself, you can buy it at the fabric store in all sorts of festive
colors. We stuck with tan. Our original stuff was rotten so we didn't try
to reuse it.
Now the task is to stitch the screen to the zipper. On ours we had to also
replace to the zipper so we figured out how it had to fit from looking at the
remnants on the canvas, machine sewed it onto the screen. If your zipper is
still good your task will be somewhat more straightforward. You need to rip
the stitching from the old screen to the zipper down into the canvas seams.
Get a seam ripper from the fabric store, makes the job much easier. On ours
we ripped the seam holding the zipper to the canvas as we were stitching in a
new one but the principle is the the same. You need to fix the screen in
place about where it needs to go using straight pins (fabric store item
again) You then basically replace the stitching by hand using two needles,
working from both sides and using the existing holes from the original
stitching. Not really that hard, just tedious. Do it in one hour sessions
and you will be done in less than a couple of years ;^) Of course we did a
double row of stitching just as the original was done. If you look at a
cross section of the seam you will have what looks like a continuous figure 8
pattern formed by the two threads going in and out, each hole will have a
thread going through it from both directions, get it? Very strong and won't
rip out if it fails in one place as it would if you were to be able to make
one of those cheezy hand sewing machines work as they only form a chain
stitch. Fail in one place and it just zips open all the way around pretty
quick. Besides, these machines won't work worth crap on thick material
anyway, actually, they don't work worth crap on anything come to think of it.
Someone like to buy mine?
If you are sewing to the zipper the effort is pretty easy but you will still
need to sew the bottom edge to the canvass capturing it in the bottom seam
from the flap (which you had to rip open of course) and do some big seams in
the corners. Use a thimble to save your hands, have a pair of pliers to get
through the hard parts. I guess you could use some seam sealer from the
camping store to finish off with but we didn't bother with ours and it hasn't
leaked in the rain (mostly under the canvas flap after all.
Total cost for the job, about 10 bucks. Please, I don't need to hear about
how your time is too valuable to do any work like this. That's your problem,
not mine. Hard and (nearly) pointless work is ennobling to the human spirit
after all. Busy people with the real valuable time will just have to live
with the bugs I guess ;^) (Maybe busy people with the extra valuable time
shouldn't own Westfalias anyway. United Airlines gets there faster :^(
Regards,
C Turner
84 and 85 Westies from Hell.
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