And just as an added info piece, I am the one who provided the US
manufacturer way back in 1993 with the OEM replacement that was utilized as
the template pattern for all those sold by GoWesty, CIP, etc.  I do agree
with Ron there may be an issue in production sizing standards (ie: some
slightly too big, some slightly too small).  So, yeah, it's all my fault ;-)

I still have that OEM replacement stashed away for future use on mine when
the time comes.  Yep, it's one window style, which is fine with me.
--
Jim Thompson
84 Westfalia 2.1 "Ole Putt"
73 K Ghia Coupe "Denise"
72 411 Station Wagon "Pug"
oldvolkshome@gmail.com
http://www.oldvolkshome.com
**********************************
On 3/27/06, The Bus Depot <vanagon@busdepot.com> wrote:
>
> >  I installed the BusDepot 3 window pop-top canvas
> > and it fit nearly perfectly and has NEVER leaked.
>
> > Ok, i have installed 10 canvas in a row... most from GoWesty,
> > some from CIP1.com and 2 from Busdepot.
> >
> > The Gowesty and CIP1 look alike and fit alike...
> > The one from Busdepot feel different, at first i was not impress
> > feel way thinner ...but after i had finish the installation, i was
> > very happy with the fit, feel and look ...and yes, the
> > Busdepot one are the closest in size to the original than the
> > other ones. Stangly, the Gowesty one were 2.5 inchs way to
> > high??? ...
> > Also, i did some testing with heavy water! Again, i was sure that
> > the Busdepot one wouldn't be good under heavy water....
> > again i was wrong.
> >
> > I would like to see a 3 windows from Busdepot?
>
>
>
> Thanks for your positive comments, Ben and Malcolm.
>
> Actually, most of mine DO have 3 windows, Ben - all but one, in fact. In
> tan, we offer our European sourced aftermarket poptop canvas in either
> 1-window ($179) or 3-window ($237), as well as the OEM Westfalia one (in
> 3-window) for $332. ( Prices reflect listmember discount.) In Gray we
> carry
> the 3-window OEM Westfalia one, for $332. (We also list cotton or acrylic
> U.S. sourced ones, in gray or tan - the same ones the other vendors sell -
> for a bit less, if someone wants them... but frankly I don't see the
> advantage.)  Here's the full list...
>
> <http://busdepot.com/view.jsp?model=43&category=40&group=94&prodgroup=909>
>
> As for the BusDepot canvas feeling thinner than the U.S. made
> (GoWesty/CIP1)
> canvas, this is because they are totally different fabrics. The U.S. made
> product is more of a functional replacement rather than an attempt at an
> accurate cosmetic reproduction. While it is indeed thicker than any of the
> others (the original, our European made repro, or our OEM Westfalia
> replacement), it is a totally different material - a courser textured
> cotton
> with black stitching that doesn't look particularly stock. Our European
> sourced repro is meant to look stock, so the material is more like the
> original. (And of course our OEM Westfalia canvas is even closer
> still.)  As
> you noted, even though the rough cotton canvas was thicker than the
> others,
> it did not turn out to be any more water resistant (and didn't fit as
> well).
> Speaking of fit, I too am surprised that you found the U.S. (GoWesty/CIP1)
> canvas to be too big, because as I said, I have found some to be a bit
> small.  So perhaps this could be a quality-control issue rather than a
> problem with the pattern itself.  That would explain why some are
> apparantly
> too big and others too small, even though the manufacturer insists that
> their actual template is correct.