Velle side window retro fit?

[max and caddy]

Anybody ever fitted velle window "frames" to a panel van shell? If so how and how did you gain acess to the rear seam?

I want to lose the ugly conversion windows and now have a suitable body cut..

[Plasticman]

depends on just how you want to do it and what cuts you got
mm

[max and caddy]

I was hoping you would respond! I would like to do it by the book....but if there is a way around it...I have the full upper panel cut from under the slider rail, upwards next to the vent, and a good sized lump of roof still attached, inner and outers. I plan to join behind the door track cover, plug weld as per factory up the door aperture, but the top edge and back edge by the vent I'm open to ideas at the mo..

[jimpainter]

I did it with a full bodycut.
I had to unpick the spots from the posts and roof, then seperate the inner frame from the outer.
Removed the panel from the van and spot weld the outer of the donor panel in its place, then spot weld the inner and outer together.

Obviously not as easy as that but gives you an idea.

Jim

[max and caddy]

I haven't had a real good look but the inner panel you removed? How much of it? And I have a hitop on so the roof is not an issue but the panel is welded inside the roof rail...

[Plasticman]

its a bit too involved to detail here in writing but as jop says, you have to remove the external panal where and as ity joins the adjacent panals as per vw, tricky to do in some places but fun in a twisted way , you also have to remove the interior portion so from gutter down ,inside and out it comes of, its then a case of despotting the inner an d outer factory glazed part and inserting them , bodge it and you we i whatever can tell,do it right and its unnoticable. next time i do one where the owner is happy for it to be posted i will unless anyone else has detail picks of the process
mm

[max and caddy]

I will have a reet good weigh up....and report back.

[jimpainter]

Not detailed pics but you get the idea.

[max and caddy]

I don't! It's the rear window I'm intrested in, not the middle...anyway here's what I have...


And the back


And I now see the upper part of the inner is spotted on along here where those rivets are, but I don't have much of the rear pillar as its been cut down it so I would need to join there inside I guess and also I don't have all the lower inner so would need to join at the top of the trim panel area? My inner panel on the conversion van has had the lip removed at the bottom of the window as well so I need to attach a bit from the doner panel to get the frame. Back to 2 layers...am I making sense so far?

[billy739]

the inside panel is already fitted to your van

just cut the outer skin as large as poss, un pick the welds on the inner edge were outer/inner skin meets.

if you cut your outer skin larger than the recess you can either drop the new panel over or under and weld them together.

as previously said , if don right then it will turn out ok , if done poor , then just leave as it is with aftermarket windows!

[Plasticman]

puty the cut on nthe inner is where it it is.
treat the job as a wing, unpick the donor so you have an oputer and an inner, you will then see how the outer is fixed to the remnants of ther adjacent panals, , unpick this , and do the same on your van, then repeat with the inner, your a bit bo*****ed byb the poor cut so join it but the rest well fit entire to the top and the other vertical side and join out of sight on the lower and you take yopur pick on the bad cut bit, thenm carpet over, oh and dont forget to keep the inner gripped or tascked around the apreature whilst fixing it
mm

[max and caddy]

Think I have translated most of that....thanks, have you been at the panel wipe?

Only joking, I have had a good look at how it fits together and I'm fussy on metalwork so will be as original as possible...it inner window lower lip will have to be repaired with a bit of the new panel,