Busted Vista View

[Holzarbeiter]

Well today it happened.
Neighbour kids playing around managed to bust the Vista View.
I did the searches and all i came up with was, that the frame needs to be removed. Drill out Olympic rivets, need special tool for replacement rivets and vulcrum?
I was wondering if somebody has step by step instructions on how this is done, has anybody performed this surgery?
I'm hunting for the window now, so if anybody knows about a 33" long window( length of the frame) please let me know.
thanks, Felix

[Janet H]

We had 2 kids on bikes crash into the front corner of our freshly restored argosy a few weeks ago - it now looks well used!

Will your home owners cover it?

[wahoonc]

Felix,
You will need a replacement. I ordered mine from Inland Andy. It ran about $246 and shipped from the factory. It is a single pane. I haven't installed mine yet. But the process is as follows.
1. Drill out the old rivets
2. remove the old vistaview
3. THOUROUGHLY CLEAN the outer skin
4. Install new Vistaview with plenty of Vulkem
5. Shave rivets

You might want to check pricing with These guys too. I buy parts from them quite abit. They are in Colfax, NC.

Let me know if you need more help. I am only few hours up the road.

Aaron

[Holzarbeiter]

Thanks for the quick replies.

In regards to homeowners covering it, is it even worth making the claim? In my opinion Insurance is an evil necessity. Make a claim and the rates go up. I'll rather pay out of pocket for small claims.


Aarron,
Have you performed this surgery? What size drill bit do i need? and do the rivets come with the frame or is that seperate? Any other specailty tool i need?

[Holzarbeiter]

one more thing

Do i need to remove the interior skin?

[wahoonc]

felix,
Rivets don't come with the new window, they have to be ordered seperate. I use a 1/8" bit , but a #30 will work too. Somewhere on the forum someone listed a link to Aircraft parts website. They sell a really neat self centering bit/tool for $50 for drilling out rivets, it is on my short list to buy.
You should not need to remove the inner skin. Also a word of caution, the new window is slightly larger than the older one that you are taking out. Not sure if you will need to trim the outer skin back or not. If it needs trimming no big deal with a decent set of metal snips.

A rivet shaver is a nice tool to have too. But they run $225 or so. You can use a Dremel to cut the rivet shanks down after the intstall.

I am probably not going to do mine until I finish the floor replacement.

Aaron

[gregg]

before I pulled my vista view I would find a glazier who will cut some glass to a template and send it out for tempering. probably will be cheaper....certainly an easier project .

[wahoonc]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by gregg
before I pulled my vista view I would find a glazier who will cut some glass to a template and send it out for tempering. probably will be cheaper....certainly an easier project . [/QUOTEon

Gregg,
I don't think you are going to find any local glazier to work with a curved, tempered glass window. I know I haven't had any luck with it. I also know that people have tried to find replacements for the curved wing windows, mainly the older units with the Corning Glass units. No one has been able to find a supplier.

If you find a source PLEASE post it!

Aaron

[Holzarbeiter]

A little update,
I got the Vista on order. Thanks for the lead Aaron. The people at Out -of- Doors Mart are great. Good prices as well.
So for a temporary fix i used some lexan. I couldn't get the lexan to flex enough across the short width without breaking. So what i did was, put some Quick clamps across the width applying pressure so that it follows the curve of the roof and heat it with a torch. After some gentle passes i increased the pressure on the clamps alittle more, heat again and let cool. This put enough of a radius on the lexan that i was able to get it into the frame. Applied a sealer inbetween lexan and frame and cut some 3/4" blocks to wedge from inside frame to the lexan. This created a tight seal and will keep the weather out until i can replace the Vista window.

Felix

[Inland RV Center, In]

Felix.

What kind of Lexan do you buy?

We can bend ours into a circle without breaking. We can also hit it with a sledge, without breaking. Denting yes, breaking no.

Perhaps you purchased an acrylite or plexiglass type plastic.

You can see one posted in our web site.

Andy

[Holzarbeiter]

It's acrylite, at 2$ for a piece of scrap it's well worth it for a temporary fix.

[Inland RV Center, In]

Your right. Acrylite won't take much bending, unless you heat it to a little over 200 degrees.

Some people put the Acrylite in boiling water for a couple of minutes, then it will bend OK.

Heat it to 325 degrees or so, then you can bend it any way you want to.

Andy