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Old 12-23-2019, 11:33 AM   #1
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Aluminum Window blanks for passanger vans?

Anyone have any recommendations on a company that still makes these? After some searching I did come across a company Opt Overland. I tried reaching out via email, phone, pm on this forum and instagram with no luck. Not sure if they are no longer in business or if someone maybe has a new contact for them
Looking for both driver and passenger side fixed windows and driver side rear door window.
I did look into a few local metal fab spots here in NYC but as you can imagine, that also came with absurd NYC prices. unfortunately I do not have the tools or space to cut some out on my own.

This is for an 03 E350 passanger van

Thanks guys
Joe

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Old 12-23-2019, 07:28 PM   #2
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Last I heard Dai of Opt Overland moved to Washington State. Haven’t seen anything from him since then.
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Old 12-23-2019, 07:55 PM   #3
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Last I heard Dai of Opt Overland moved to Washington State. Haven’t seen anything from him since then.
Thx Otter, hopefully someone here can chime in on new contact info, or maybe a different recommendation
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Old 12-23-2019, 09:38 PM   #4
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Any metal fab shop should be able to recreate these for you. If it were me I’d hit up a salvage yard and grab the windows you’d like aluminum blanks for, pull them and take them to a few shops and give them the part and get quotes from there. That way they have a tangible piece to recreate and your van isn’t missing parts in the meantime.
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Old 12-24-2019, 07:44 AM   #5
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I wonder if there's a thin, aluminum skinned foam core that might work, while providing some level of temperature insulation.




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Old 12-24-2019, 08:39 AM   #6
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Now there’s a idea. I currently have thinsulate under the cedar paneling I used to cover the windows. It’s such valuable wasted space and with all the passanger van conversions we’re starting to see, very surprised this hasn’t been done yet.
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Old 12-24-2019, 09:26 AM   #7
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^^^ it’s been done by at least 2 members of this forum. Rallypanam and brian94ht are the 2 that come to mind first but I’m pretty sure there’s more.
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Old 12-24-2019, 06:16 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Otter View Post
Last I heard Dai of Opt Overland moved to Washington State. Haven’t seen anything from him since then.
He went out of business & moved to Washington, you can only burn so many bridges... and this guy (Dai aka Opt Overland) has burned them all.

You’re better off just taking both windows out, scribe them on card board & have a set of aluminum skins cut to re install. Make sure you take both out. They are not the same...

Good luck.
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Old 12-24-2019, 10:46 PM   #9
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He went out of business & moved to Washington, you can only burn so many bridges... and this guy (Dai aka Opt Overland) has burned them all.

You’re better off just taking both windows out, scribe them on card board & have a set of aluminum skins cut to re install. Make sure you take both out. They are not the same...

Good luck.
Looking like this is the route I may have to go.
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Old 12-25-2019, 09:32 AM   #10
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Quote:
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Looking like this is the route I may have to go.
In the event you do go that route a small note is the glass being curved will NOT directly transfer to an in-the-flat tracing when/if a panel were to be made that way.

I considered doing this to my van on the five windows I would be covering. I applied two-sided tape around the periphery of the windows and trimmed it flush with the glass edge. I then spread a heavy paper over the glass making sure to carefully match the curve before pressing it against the two-sided tape---trim the paper to match the glass shape.

Once this is done you have an accurate template from which a metal plate could be cut. One thing that kept me from doing this was my concocted method would have run a lot of money and time as I wanted the finished product to look like the deep tinted factory glass AND have the outer surface of the metal be flush with the body. That would not have been easy. I'd have had the panels painted a color resembling the tinted glass so it looked nice. That would have required the panels being painted and wet sanded and buffed before installation.

So naturally there's an easier way to do this if aestetics are NOT the main goal.

JRRedone if you do this please document your process and finished result--as best you can anyway. I know others here would be very interested.

TIA
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