ASI Riviera Top Refresh

[DonnieUtah]

Morning all,

I was "just going to fix this one thing" yesterday.... and well, here we are.

It's been a long time since I posted updates to the Samba, so I thought this might be a good one, especially with how rare these Rivieras are getting these days.

All the wood under the lower frame is rotted away and every bolt had to be snapped off. Not too surprising after 21 years roaming around the PNW and always parked outside (I first installed the pop-top in '01).

Now that she does have a garage and has retired from daily drive duty, it's time she got some TLC... I'll update the thread here as I pull apart the top, reinforce and repair the fiberglass, repaint, etc. Then there's the body rust...

[Red Ryder]

Got some work to do there! Did you do the conversion yourself using an ASI top? I thought the original ASI conversions may have used a tintop with a factory sunroof.
_________________
“Most everyone’s mad here. You may have noticed I am not quite all there myself.” — Cheshire Cat, Adventures of Alice in Wonderland

“Scarlett” — 1990 Vanagon Carat Wolfsburg Edition (Tornado Red)
“Nigel” — 1999 Jaguar XK8 convertible (Alpine Green Metallic)

[?Waldo?]

The original ASI conversions did not use sunroof vans, or at least none of the ones I've dealt with.

Nice pics showing that the base of the ASI top is fiberglass despite how vocal (and wrong) danfromsyr has been about that not being the case...

[GoEverywhere]

[vanagonjr]

[DonnieUtah]

[?Waldo?]

[DonnieUtah]

FYI, if anyone is waiting with bated breath for me to provide updates... I apologize. This one's going to take awhile due to budget and time.

BUT! I will update as I go through and hope that this surgery will help to keep another ASI or two on the road in the distant.

Finally cleared out the basement a bit tonight, so I could start taking apart the Tent Top.

Most of this hardware is looking pretty beat... Anyone know where to source replacement rollers?

Removed inner cover. This thing is really flimsy and doesn't appear to take any load at all. It's so brittle it started breaking apart on my hands. Not worried, because I plan to replace the inner plastic with a stained wood panel over insulation.

The wood inside the tent top is not nearly as nasty as in the base. Still, it'll all get replaced.

And finally... It's been interesting to come back and ready the conversations about whether the ASI is a fiberglass OR plastic top.

Truth is.... It's BOTH. Just as @?Waldo? says, the Base unit is heavy fiberglass. The (what I call) Tent Top is thick, hard plastic. As mentioned above, there's a thin plastic cover inside as well.

Base underside (you already saw the tent roof underside above):

There is a small plastic reinforcement under the bed:

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'87 Wolfy ASI Camper
PNW transplant to Central VA.

[rmcd]

Here you go.

https://countryhomescampers.com/product-category/replacement-parts/page/2/
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VW LT40 build. Like a Vanagon but 30% larger in every direction and 40% slower even in metric.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=749359&highlight=

[?Waldo?]

If you don't plan on reusing the busted up inner plastic liner, pieces of it can be dissolved easily in acetone to make a slurry that can be used to patch any cracks in the outer part of the top.

[Red Ryder]

Best thread (with photos) I’ve seen yet on ASI tops!
You will want to choose wisely on replacement lumber to avoid future dry rot. Consider types used in marine applications.
_________________
“Most everyone’s mad here. You may have noticed I am not quite all there myself.” — Cheshire Cat, Adventures of Alice in Wonderland

“Scarlett” — 1990 Vanagon Carat Wolfsburg Edition (Tornado Red)
“Nigel” — 1999 Jaguar XK8 convertible (Alpine Green Metallic)

[DonnieUtah]

rmcd: Thanks! I don't know why I didn't think to look up Country Home. Guess it's been longer than I realized since I worked on this top. Will definitely order through them. Gotta support the few folks helping to keep our vans on the road!

?Waldo?: Great idea. The top is in pretty good shape, but who knows what I'll start to find one I get the tent off, right?

RedRyder: That's my thinking as well. Was thinking Teak or Mahogany for the frame and a thin panel for the roof. Going to install 1/4-1/2" of insulation as well.

I have a MaxxAir fan I want to install, but have been concerned about the weight. To address this, I plan to add two more cross-members with side connections, strengthening the frame and creating a sealed, square opening for the fan. Once all tied together with the top, should be nice and sturdy.

Thanks for the feedback and support all. Looking forward to finally "getting it done" after years (and miles) of brainstorming...
_________________
'87 Wolfy ASI Camper
PNW transplant to Central VA.

[DonnieUtah]

Updates...

Spent a few/many hours clearing out the old rotten wood from the fiberglass base. There used to be a PVC-based side tent made back in the mid-80's that had some glued-in bits and button tops that I also cut out.

Apparently there aren't many marine-focused shops out here to get proper fiberglass resin and supplies, so I'm just working through all the prep stuff until I can make a trip out to Richmond or further to pickup supplies.

_________________
'87 Wolfy ASI Camper
PNW transplant to Central VA.

[DonnieUtah]

More updates...

Taking a little break from the pop-top to address the roof... Once it's all cleaned up, I am thinking of painting over it with rubberized RV roof paint or truck bed liner. Should give better protection to rubbing & moisture (and might add to sound deadening).

All of the holes had a bit of rust, but this big bit of cancer dead center above the windshield was the worst.

Cleaned up with sander, then wire wheel, then some evapo-rust, cleaned with kerosene and some filler primer to seal before bondo.

Gave the entire roof a good washing and sanding with 80 grit to remove any remaining clear coat and lose paint. Spot-sanded down any hole or spot with rust, then the same evapo-rust, kerosene and fill primer. Tomorrow I'll finish up with the inner lip where I cut the hole so many years ago.

_________________
'87 Wolfy ASI Camper
PNW transplant to Central VA.

[DonnieUtah]

Trying to think of options for attaching the roof that don't require drilling sheet metal screws directly into the roof.

Aside from the nasty rust up front, every other mount point had rust. Even the ones that were "sealed" well were just hiding the rust under them...

The Westy luggage rack area attaches with a few brackets that are bolted to the roof. Could be an option, but tricky to get the mounts right. Maybe mount with Riv-Nuts?

One thing I am thinking is to mount a T-Channel to the roof, and attach the fiberglass to that (would be a much smaller channel. Using this as reference).

Or, with the top attached around the opening, are these screws really necessary? Maybe just some good butyl around the edge? Hmm....

_________________
'87 Wolfy ASI Camper
PNW transplant to Central VA.

[DonnieUtah]

Dropping here for later.

After going down the rabbit hole this morning, considering double-ended studs, hollow thread bolts and others.. I think I'm going to go with "sealed rivnuts", which I didn't know existed until this morning.

https://www.amazon.com/Threaded-Hermetic-Waterproo...amp;sr=8-1

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'87 Wolfy ASI Camper
PNW transplant to Central VA.

[rmcd]

I restored and then installed a rivi top with ss sheetmetal screws. In my build thread.

If I were to do it again I would weld some kind of 1/8” backer plate to the roof with captive nuts in the backer plate. .

I wouldn’t waste time trying to get the internal plastic roof sheet perfect. It will crack no matter what you do. I would upholster the surface with some kind of wipeable vinyl.

And don’t waste your time with those internal flaps that are meant to seal around the opening when the top is closed. They aren’t long enough to be effective.

The top plastic (not fiberglass) can be patched with liquified legos. I never did it but I have a baggie of white legos in waiting. Google the recipe to determine the solvent and process.

When I use rivnuts I ALWAYS spot weld them in place so there is less of a chance they will spin.
_________________
VW LT40 build. Like a Vanagon but 30% larger in every direction and 40% slower even in metric.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=749359&highlight=

[dobryan]

Kerosene is a light oil. Why use that for paint prep?
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Dave O
'87 Westy w/ 2010 Subaru EJ25 (Vanaru) and Peloquin TBD

"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive." Robert Louis Stevenson

MD>Canada>AK>WA>OR>CA>AZ>UT>WY>SD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=620646

Building a bus for travel in Europe (euroBus)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=695371

The Western Syncro build
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=746794

[DonnieUtah]

[DonnieUtah]

Thanks for the tips!

Thankfully the plastic top is in great shop, so won't need to do much there. I don't plan to reuse the interior plastic. Instead, I'll put in some thin insulation and a panel to cover. Agreed, it's not worth saving.

If I had a welder, I'd agree on the backer plate. Unfortunately I had to sell it along with a few other shop items a few years back when funds were tight, so this will be a weld-less project.

You don't use the vinyl covers? I've used them for many years as they cover the bit of tent around the opening. Maybe they work well because I have them velcro'd to the lower fiberglass base and don't wrap under?