Hymer window locking strap.

[Fixer uper]

Good afternoon. This is my first post and it is about a subject that has been talked about a number of times, so forgive me if I repeat anything previously posted. So.... My 05 Hymer 700 has the awful self destructing sliding plastic strip that operates the window locking mechanism. And in common with many other owners experience mine crumbled owing to a combination of UV and old age. I have seen the cost or replacements (when available) and was stunned, £50 for 50p worth of plastic. So I came up the following solution which might be a help to others. I bought a length of 25mm white plastic cable duct, the type you use to run a wire across a wall. It has a clip on lid and self adhesive backing, cheap and readily available. I took off the clip on "lid" and discarded the rest. I found that the two shoulders which protrude to clip Into the body of the duct are almost exactly the same width apart as the original locking strap, so using them as a guide I cut down the inside of them using a Stanley knife (new blade!) this gave me a strip of material very similar to the original locking strip in width and thickness. Next I took the original strip and it's fitting out of the window. It was broken into 4 pieces so I laid the pieces in thier original position out on a long flat board and clothes pegged them down to hold them in place, so that I could lay my new strip next to it and mark the slot positions for the fittings. I cut out the slots using a Stanley knife. I then cleaned the aluminium channel on the van, and trial fitted the strip in it's slot, sanding down a couple places where it was a bit wide. When it slid freely I lubed the aluminium runner lightly with silicone grease and refitted the strip. After this all that remained was to clip the fittings back into place. The widow locking mechanism now works perfectly. Total cost £3. Total time 2hrs. Hope this might help someone. Happy to answer any questions. Fixer uper.

 

[Figaro]

Useful first post, thankyou.
My Hymer 2003 windows are going the same way but still work for now.
I'll certainly give it atry in future.
Did you leave them white ?

 

[Fixer uper]

Hi there, yes I left them white, the one I bought was a nice shade with a satin finish, and was very acceptable to the decor police

 

[vanphil]

What a great tip, my kitchen window strip is in several parts.

 

[dalspa]

When one of mine broke I did a temporary repair gluing a couple of short strips of cut up zip tie (grey to match the trim) across the breaks. I found the zip ties were suitably strong but also flexible enough to follow around the corners. Three years later and still working, plus have had to do same on other windows. Cheap and simple repairs. I, too, did look up the cost of renewing the whole workings but thought that they were much too expensive for what they were.

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