I had a poptop assist on my van - I got it from Frank Condelli, and it
worked just fine.

The problem in lowering is not that the top is hard to hold up - it can be
hard to pull down.  I was carrying a 48-lb kayak plus perhaps 6 pounds of
racks, so I needed the assist to get the top up.  Bringing it down was
fine, normal.  But when I took the kayak off, I had to swing from the bar
in order to get the top down, or in some other way really give it a lot of
force and momentum.  I'm a short woman of moderate (well, okay, maybe a tad
more!) weight.  If you are stronger and heavier, which is likely, you
should have no trouble getting it down.

Joy

On Fri, Jun 7, 2013 at 11:14 AM, Loren Busch <starwagen@gmail.com> wrote:

> RE: Pop Top Assist Struts
>
> I have these
> <http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=798951>
> and love them.  And as far as lowering it is just the opposite of what you
> are worried about.  I can stop the top (no head holding) about a foot up,
> pull in the canvas and then slam the top closed with ease.  I added these
> when I put a solar panel on top and the install is very easy, full
> instructions included.  And no holes to drill into the body, just two holes
> in the roof.
> BTW, I know about a dozen other (or more) Westy drivers that also have
> these from that source and all love them.  I've heard a couple of negative
> comments about the kit from Go Westy.
>