(soft guitar music)
- Hello, and welcome to this video
in the Kiravans series of how to convert your camper van.
Today, we're gonna be looking at fitting van windows
into our project van, which is a VW T6 short wheel base.
First of all, we're gonna go through
a bit of an overview of how to do the job.
Then we'll look at what tools you may require,
and also the materials that are gonna be involved.
Now, like anything in camper van conversion,
there are lots of opinions on how to do different things,
or what's the right way, what's the wrong way.
We're just gonna focus on the way
we recommend fitting windows
using the product available on the Kiravans website.
Let's have a quick look inside the van,
and get a general overview.
Then we'll go through it in more detail.
These windows are called bonded windows
because they basically get stuck onto the van.
What we need to do is cut out
a hole in the metal panel,
leaving a couple of inches all the way around.
It's not as bad as it sounds because,
on the inside, you've got an inner skin
which actually dictates the line that you cut,
so you can't really go wrong.
Once you've got your hole cut,
finish off your edges with a bit of trim.
Then we put a bead of adhesive all the way around the hole.
Then it's simply a matter of grabbing the glass,
and sticking it on.
Now, on the back of the glass,
you'll see, this is the bit that
you can actually see through, but on the outside,
there's a solid ceramic band,
and this is the bonding surface
that actually adheres to the van.
Let's take a look inside now.
As you can see, inside the van here,
we've got the outer metal skin,
and basically the inner metal skin
or framework that goes around it.
This dictates our cutting line.
We'll literally just follow this all the way around,
and then we need to put a nice, straight cut
across here and up here to take out
that central strut as well.
Now, the first stage is gonna be cutting
our hole for the windows.
For this video, I'm gonna go through
and use a range of different tools
and give you some feedback on them,
how I find each one performed.
Hopefully, you'll have one or two of these
at home that you can use.
Just to go through quickly,
a standard drill with a metal hole cutting set.
It's quite a good way to do the corners
if you want to do that.
Jigsaw, very useful for cutting out
the bulk of the metalwork.
A mini grinder as well.
This one, I've got a thin cutting disk on.
I also used a slightly thicker grinding disk.
Other tools, reciprocating saw,
if you got one of these, this can work.
I'm also gonna try using the compressor tools.
This is a little air saw and a nibbler.
When I was converting vans for a living,
this was the tool that I used all the time.
It's a set of power shears with a little oscillating blade.
You probably don't want to go out
and buy one of these 'cause I think
they're over 200 quid.
I'll go through this range of tools,
and let you know how I got on.
In terms of materials, obviously,
you're gonna need your windows.
Window fitting kit, which comes with
some adhesive in it, some glass activator,
some primer, some dabbers,
and the little nozzle, and a pair of gloves,
and some instructions in there.
You're gonna want extra adhesive
for any more windows that you're gonna fit in.
A range of hand tools, adhesive gun.
Window suckers are really useful
for when you want to offer the glass up to the van.
Some face protection, some de-greaser,
some window cleaner, you're gonna need some edge trim,
and a few other hand tools.
Let's get started with cutting the holes.
Before you cut any holes in your van,
we really recommend that,
as soon as your windows arrive, you unbox them
to check for any damage.
Take off the protective plastic wrapping,
get some window cleaning agent,
give them a good clean on both sides,
and give them a thorough check over.
If there are any spots of adhesive on the glass
left over from when they put the sliding panels in,
that can be removed with a de-greasing agent.
Then, once you're completely satisfied with the glass,
you can start cutting.
If there are any problems, then Kiravans
will certainly swap them over without any quibbles.
Once you're satisfied that your glass
is in good condition, nice and clean,
you can get on with protecting your van.
We recommend getting a sheet of polythene
or something like that, taping it along the bottom
to protect the paint work below where you're working.
Then right around the corners
around the window openings, we also put
a double layer of masking tape
just to be doubly sure that no exposed paint work
would get scratched in the process.
Most cutting tools won't very successfully
get through the outer skin and the central strut
at the same time, so what I'm doing here
is using a mini grinder.
I've just marked a straight line along
the top and the bottom, and I'm cutting out
the top inch or two of that metal strut,
and the same along the bottom.
That will enable our jigsaw
to cut out the bulk metal panel without jumping.
Once we've got rid of those two bits of metal,
I'm just putting a dot in each corner,
about 10 mil in from the corner,
and with the drill bit, drilling through
from the inside to the outside.
Then go outside the fan, and with a straight edge,
just join up those dots with a permanent marker.
This is gonna mark our rectangle
for cutting out with the jigsaw.
Get your safety kit on.
I've stuck a handle in the middle
'cause I'm doing this on my own.
You may well do it on your own as well,
so it just means the panel's not gonna
fall in and scratch anything.
As I cut, I'm cutting along,
but I'm stopping about five mil short of each hole
so that the corners remain connected.
Just be aware that the base plate of your jigsaw
isn't gonna scratch any exposed body work.
Now, as I do my final cut, I'm gonna cut right to the hole,
and then trim off the last little bits
in each corner, and remove that panel.
Now, when it comes to cutting out
the remaining inch or two of metal,
you can use a jigsaw.
It's quite tricky to get around the corners.
I gave it a go here, and was reasonably successful.
You just have to take your time,
and keep looking inside the van,
and following that line of the inner skin of metal.
Another option I tried was to use an air saw
with a very fine blade.
It's quite tricky to keep straight,
but it did handle the corners very well,
so if you have a compressor, then that's another option.
If you got access to a hole saw and a drill,
then this is quite a good way to do the corners.
You can go right into the corner.
It creates a nice curve for your cut.
It means that you then just have to cut
along the straight edges.
For this one, I've left that central strut in tact
'cause I'm gonna use a fairly powerful reciprocating saw,
and that will cut through both skins of metal at one time.
This is just another option.
With the tools at home, I'd probably recommend
that you use the hole saws to do the corners,
cut the top and bottom bits out with a grinder,
and then use a jigsaw.
Using the air nibbler was reasonably successful,
and it did produce a nice, smooth cut.
It doesn't go in corners well,
so I removed the corner material.
What I did find, once I'd cut out,
was that it actually left three or four mils of metal
all the way around, which I then had to get rid of.
Finally, this is the power shears in action.
As you can see, they produce a nice, quick, clean cut.
Just be careful that any metal you trim off
doesn't scratch the paint work of your van.
I've cut all the metal panels out of the side
of the van where I want to fit the windows.
We're left with a fairly sharp metal edge here.
I've gone along with the angle grinder,
taken off any high spots, being careful
where the sparks are going, not to contact the van,
and giving it a light rub with some sand paper.
Next thing we've gotta do is rust-proof that edge
so that it doesn't start to corrode.
To be honest, I've always used a bit of the primer
with a little dabber, and that just seals it all in,
makes sure no corrosion is going to occur.
Then, after that, we grab some of our edge trim
and knock that on before we actually
stick the glass on.
When it comes to edge trim, there are a variety
of different thicknesses you can get.
At present, we sell a thinner one and a thicker one.
This is a thick one I'm putting on here.
Historically, when I was fitting windows,
I would always use a Stanley knife
and cut out the rubber pinch weld
between the two metal skins,
and then re-bond the skins together,
and use the thin edge trim to hold them back together again,
but actually, a few converters have said,
"Well, why don't you just use the thick one,
"which will go over both skins as it is?"
That's what I've done here,
and it's worked really well.
Now we're ready to start prepping the vehicle for bonding.
Get some de-greasing wipe,
and give it a really good clean around the paint work
where the primer's gonna go.
Actually, you get rid of any polish
or residue that's on there.
Then give it a final wipe 'round
with some glass activator.
Give your little bottle of primer a good shake
for 30 seconds or a minute,
get the little ball bearing moving.
Load up your cotton dabber.
Now we're just gonna follow the line
of the knock-on trim all the way around the window,
starting here, and if you can do this
in one continuous movement, it's recommended
'cause they say, if you start painting it on
with forward and back strokes,
you'll not get such a clean bed
of primer on there for the adhesive.
This has gone all the way around.
When I get to the top corner,
I'm gonna go slightly outside where I first started
'cause that's where my glue is gonna go
to create a waterproof seal,
as you can see here.
Same on the barn door windows.
Next, we are going to use the glass activator
and give that a decent wipe all the way around
on the ceramic band of the window.
Now, this is a good time to dry fit your windows,
just make sure there's no high spots in the frame
that it's gonna rock over.
This rear quarter window is a little bit
high in the middle, so I'm just gonna take a rubber mallet,
and tap in the body work a bit.
This'll just make sure that,
when you stick your window on,
it's gonna sit flush against the van body.
Now, you want to use some kind of tape that's not stretchy.
This is gonna hold your window in place.
I'm just putting a couple of loops
on the top of the van.
Now, offer the window up,
get it roughly in the right place.
You just want to try and get the gap
top and bottom to be about equal.
Then I'm gonna go inside the van and,
with a pencil, just follow the line of the edge trim.
This is really just so that
I can take the window off again,
and it'll give me my line for
where I need to put my primer.
I've used a little bit of the edge trim
just so that I can gauge how far
outside that line the actual adhesive is gonna go.
Then, similar to what we did
on the actual van bodywork,
we're gonna paint a continuous line of primer
just outside our pencil line,
leaving a gap for the trim, as you can see here.
In theory, that's gonna be where our adhesive
is gonna contact the window.
By using our pencil line as a guide,
it just means that we're not gonna have
any primer visible inside the vehicle,
on the inside of the glass.
Now, your adhesive is gonna come
in one of these sealed canisters.
The first thing you gotta do
when you're ready to load up your gun is
pull the ring pull on the back, pop that off,
take out the little silicon cartridge,
and then, with a screwdriver,
you need to puncture that metalwork on there.
Then screw your nozzle on.
Take the end off your mastic gun.
Then simply drop the cartridge in.
Get your nozzle pointing the way you want,
and then squeeze like that.
If you're doing this job in winter time,
bring your glue cartridges indoors
so that they can get up to room temperature.
They'll be a lot easier to squeeze out of the mastic gun.
Now we're ready to start applying
the adhesive to the van.
On this side, I'm starting on the top right hand corner
just below there and working my way down,
keeping the nozzle right up against the plastic window trim.
It forms a nice pyramid of glue all the way around.
When I get back to my starting point,
I'm just gonna feather outside my starting point,
and that'll make sure we get
a nice waterproof seal,
so any water running down from the top isn't gonna creep in.
Because I'm doing two windows on this side,
I'm doing the adhesive around both windows
so that I can stick them both on at the same time,
and make sure they're perfectly aligned.
You simply offer the glass up like this,
get it roughly in position.
I'm not pressing down too hard at this stage.
I'm just gonna take my tape loops down
to hold the glass in place.
You want to aim for a uniform gap
all the way around the window.
Then I get both bits of glass on.
Just do some minor adjustments,
and then start to press evenly and firmly
all the way around to make sure
the whole window gets in contact with the adhesive.
The important bit is where the two bits of glass
join in the middle, you want to get that
a nice uniform gap.
Same situation on the barn doors, really.
This time, I'm starting in the top left corner,
going around clockwise, and then,
when I come to my finishing point,
I'm going to feather inside my starting point.
Now, I'm doing all this with one tube of adhesive,
and I nearly get the second window finished,
but at this point, it runs out.
As long as you've got another tube ready to go,
you can simply take that one out,
and put the next one in, and then make sure
your adhesive joins up with where it finished off.
This stuff is moisture-curing,
so the more humid the day, the faster it's gonna go,
but it'll still take five or 10 minutes
before it skins over, so you've got a bit of time
to get your glass up.
Just make sure your gap is uniform,
and your top and bottom corners line up.
Once you've got your windows stuck on,
it's best to leave them for a couple of hours
to let the adhesive go off.
One final word, remember not to slam your doors
before it has gone off 'cause it is possible
to blow them back out again.
There you have it.
That's how we recommend sticking bonded windows
into your VW panel van.
In terms of time to do the job,
I'm guessing it'll probably take
a couple of hours per window.
I know when I was fitting windows for a living,
I was able to glaze a whole van
in a normal working day.
If you do have any more questions,
please get in touch via the website,
but I hope that's been of some use to you.
Good luck with your project.