Sam wrote:
regarding Yakima roof racks:

Also, I THINK you can use standard
3/4" pipe for the Yakima rack bars instead of the plastic covered and much
more expensive stuff they sell.

---------- reply ------------

Yakima load bars are 1 1/8" OD (outside diameter) including the plastic
coating.  This is an uncommon size of tubing, usually hard to get.

Some older Yakima carriers require exactly 1 1/8" load bars, meaning
anything other than 1 1/8" will not work.  I think their newer bike carriers
are more universal and can accommodate a variation in tubing diameter.

For what its worth, I make Westfalia roof racks.  These only fit the 1980 -
1991 vanagon westfalia.  They bolt to the fiberglass pop top and also
incorporate rain gutter clamps.
http://www.telusplanet.net/public/gary2a/rack/roof/roofrack.htm

Gary Lee
http://www.telusplanet.net/public/gary2a/rack/vanagonrack.htm