Bug me enough and you might just get:

<http://homepage.mac.com/kimbrennan/PoptopAssist/index.html>

On Feb 3, 2007, at 12:05 PM, Pensioner wrote:

> McMaster - Carr sells a wide variety of gas struts.  Kim Brennan
> mentioned
> that he installed some on his westy just for raising the top.  I
> suspect he
> could post some pix of that clever installation on the yahoo
> vanagon group
> to give you an idea of how to do it.
>
> Kinda works like this.  You will buy two sets of struts, one for
> just the
> top and one for the top plus whatever you have currently mounted up
> there
> (cargo box, spare moose, that extra vaganza).
>
> The struts help you lift the top.
>
> Or you can just get several varying lengths of the ubiquitous PVC
> irrigation
> pipe add a rubber crutch tip to each end and you have a prop that
> will help
> alleviate the 'clean and jerk' move to raise the top.  Raise it a
> ways,
> insert the first pipe, take a break, raise it the next step, insert
> the
> second pipe...pipe is placed between the top and the ledge at the
> front of
> the roof where the latch is.  Rubber feet keep it from slipping.
>
> Of course you should carefully lubricate the hinges both at the rear
> (they're plastic bushings) and at the front so rotation is as
> friction-free
> as possible.