Date: Thu, 30 Jun 94 16:11:02 CDT From: Joel Walker Reply to: vanagon@lenti To: Multiple recipients of list Subject: Re: Side Window Re. and Re. On Thu, 30 Jun 94 12:29:42 CDT Michael J. Rensing said: >opening types. I'd like to remove the window completely to properly treat >the rust. Does anyone have any experience removing and replacing the entire >side window, frame, gasket, and all? If so, could you share your wisdom >with me? unfortunately, yes i do have some experience. :) getting them out is not so bad BUT! you need to be really careful about prying on the aluminum frame: it will bend very easily. best way to get it out: you are gonna need one person inside the bus, and another person outside the bus at the window. i slide open the window, and just start pushing on the frame, while pulling up on the rubber gasket on the inside (pushing from the inside toward the outside. you'll have to work your way along one end of the window, up and down, pushing/pulling a little bit, then move up/down about two or three inches and do it there, then move again. it takes a lot of effort and a pretty good while to get it moving at all. once you've loosened the grip of the rubber gasket, you can push/pull on the frame all the way from the middle of the top horizontal, down the vertical, and back down to the middle of the bottom horizontal. like this: _____________xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx pushing/pulling on the x's. | |x | |x | |x |____________________________|x xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx i don't think it matters which end (front/rear) you start with, but i always started with the front end (cause that was what was 'open' when i slid the glass back. once it starts to come loose, the person outside needs to hold onto it very securely: it's heavier than it looks. armorall helps. soap and water would work as well. but both will make the rubber slippery (which is what you want ... so it loosens quicker) and harder to hold onto. putting it back in: much easier. you will need: the other person, outside, to hold up the window with the rubber gasket already on the window frame; a short piece of broom handle (about 6-8 inches long) with a hole drilled in the middle; enough strong twine (and i do mean STRONG) to circle the window. fit the twine into the INNERMOST (also biggest) gap in the rubber gasket. there are three 'gaps' in the gasket. the outermost two are for sealing the rain out. spray some armorall (soap and water) along in the gap with the twine. put the one end of the twine through the broom handle and tie it off. the twine should meet at the middle of the bottom of the gasket. like this: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx where x is the twine and x x bbbbb is the broom handle. x x x x xxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx x x x bbbbbbbb fit the window/gasket into the opening as best you can, centering it as much as possible. the outside person is gonna have to hold it up by themselves while the inside person pulls on the twine (the broom handle helps a lot by keeping the twine from hurting your hands and fingers). as you pull the twine, the innermost flap of the gasket should be pulled over the little metal edge of the window hole. you may have to adjust the position of the window/gasket to make sure it does at first. then, keep pulling the twine as you go around the edge of the window. you'll have to wiggle/adjust the window/gasket a couple of times from the outside, and the whole mess needs to be pressed IN to help the gasket take hold of the metal edge around the window hole. once you get all the way around (rolling the twine around the broom handle as you move around the window ...), you may have to still 'adjust' the window and the gasket to get it just exactly right. push on the window frame from the outside ... just following the frame around the window. just to kinda 'seat' it. once i get the gasket all situated, i get some 3M Heavy Duty Drip Check (in a tube) and squeeze it under the gasket flap next to the body metal on the outside. this stuff is just some grey fluid putty that fills in any gaps between the rubber and the body and keeps the water from getting in there. it's hard as hell to describe it ... and i don't expect you to be able to make sense of what i wrote. once you've seen it done, it's like 'Oh!'. but do be very careful with that aluminum frame. i found out the hard way that is very soft, and trying to pry the frame out with a screwdriver is NOT a good idea! well, anyway, that's about it. if you have any questions, let me know. i have an article from HOT VWs that has pictures, if you want a copy to look at. hope it helps. joel