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Date:   Mon, 30 Aug 1999 08:23:53 -0700
Reply-To:   Steve Macaulay <smacaulay@INFINTIUM.COM>
Sender:   Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:   Steve Macaulay <smacaulay@INFINTIUM.COM>
Subject:   Re: replacement for skylight gliders
Comments:   To: SPENCERVW@AOL.COM
In-Reply-To:   <893e88c0.24faffb9@aol.com>
Content-Type:   text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

> Has anyone found an alternative to replacing the nylon gliders that fit in > the bracket on the lifting mechanism for a Westy skylight?

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


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