Chris and everyone else:

Actually it is 3/4" PVC pipe cut into an 8 3/16" piece.  I have Karl
Bloss' excellent  Adobe pdf file that was on his now defunct web site.
 It works great.  It is on my 84 Van.

I will email it as an attachment to all who ask.  Will collect names
through Thursday and respond once or twice so you can run to the
hardware store and fix that rear hatch this weekend.

I have to admit that I like the struts on my Syncro a little better, but
not enough to fork out the $$ for struts on my 84.  But my struts
were/are not completely dead - not strong enough to hold it up but they
have enough left to let the hatch slowly descend and close itself.  If
 the hatch just became dead weight falling free when the PVC pipe was
moved, I don't think I would like this solution nearly as much.  Free
$.02 of evaluation.

Sam Walters
84 Vanagon - PVC holds up the hatch
89 Syncro GL - new struts from PO