I have a Gary lee ladder, hi lift, 29" spare tire and steel rim, Jerry can, shovel, and horse skull on the back of my bus. It"s heavy!
Currently with two good strong shocks, I can lift the hatch and it will stay open I the spare tire is off. With the tire on, no hope. 
My plan is stronger shocks. I've found some twice as strong as the strong ones sold for a Vanagon, and I hope they'll work out well for me. They may require modifications but noticing extreme. I'll keep everyone posted. 

My real solution is to have a reliable engine and not have to open the hatch often as a result. 

-craig

On Apr 18, 2012, at 1:14 PM, Robert Stevens <mtbiker62@GMAIL.COM> wrote:

> On Apr 18, 2012, at 10:53 AM, Loren Busch wrote:
> 
>>> When my struts were getting weak I thought about that fix, it has
>>> been done in PVC. Then someone mentioned 'forgetting' the lock was
>>> installed and bending something trying to close the hatch.
>>> 
>> 
>> That thought crossed my mind when I installed the PVC but over the years it
>> hasn't been a problem for me or for anyone working on my Vanagon.  You
>> would have to really put some weight on the hatch to bend anything.
> 
> That context/result is impossible for me to imagine, based on experience.
> 
> I have a bike rack/gas can, bike on the rack, and prop the hatch up
> often when I'm out on the road, and have never had any problems
> with anything breaking/bending/etc. I do have a mechanic's strut
> clamp as a back up, that I place on the other strut sometimes, just
> to be sure I don't get clobbered by a falling hatch, which has not
> happened.
> 
> bob