Date:         Fri, 27 Aug 1999 11:51:25 -0700
Reply-To:     Steve Macaulay <smacaulay@INFINTIUM.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Steve Macaulay <smacaulay@INFINTIUM.COM>
Subject:      Re: Bugs out, and other annoyances
Comments: To: KGGILBERT@AOL.COM
In-Reply-To:  <ae461863.24f807e2@aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

> Now my question: What can I do to keep the little boogers out? >

Hi Kevin,

The Reimo sliding door screen sold by Steve Lashley at www.eurocampers.com
uses no-see-um netting that is small enough to keep the little bugs out.  I
put one on my Westy and I like it.  It won't help you keep the little bugs
out of the pop-up vent, sliding window, or back door screens, but it will
allow you to get some good bug-free ventilation if those other items are
closed and the sliding door is left open with the screen in place.

> Also, I need:
> 4. to replace the little plastic guides or rollers on the roof
> vent crank arms
>

A couple of weeks ago I took care of this permanently by drilling a small
hole through the rivet that the little plastic rollers go around.  I then
placed a small bolt through the hole, with a nut on one end and a washer on
the other end that replaced the nylon roller.  The core of the original
nylon roller was left in place, but the edges were broken off and the washer
is now used to hold it in place in the channel guide.  If you try this, use
the smallest bolt that you can find since a long one would catch on the
bolts used to hold the vent on when you raise it.  I did not remove the flex
arm assembly when I drilled the holes, but believe me when I say that it
would be a lot easier to do if you did.

Another option would be to replace the flex arm assembly.  Bus Depot
(www.busdepot.com) has them for under $30.  However, you'll probably get the
same nylon rollers that will probably eventually break also.  That's why I
decided to go with the bolt and washer setup that I described.  It won't
break, and it appears to be much sturdier than the original setup and it
seems like it would even stand up to repeated driving with the popup vent
open, something not recommended for the original setup due to the fact that
doing this will probably break the rollers if they already aren't.

Hope this helps,

Steve