Z's Fiamma Awning Brackets

[86Scotty]

I would not recommend removing any putty. I would just mount them. I had no problem getting good purchase and I have added some sealant (Vulkem polyurethane sealant) to my gutters as well. The factory putty squeezes and moves out of the way just fine, and the reason VS (and Zeta and others) use 3 brackets instead of two is to get a good solid mount on the gutter, which I agree is a little precarious looking, but it is in my opinion the best solution for a van with rain gutters. I installed mine first with just the front and rear mounts, since my CVT awning is much smaller and lighter than a Fiamma, but it was still pretty loose feeling. When I added the third (center) mount it shored things up rather nicely.

Sorry I missed your question on bolt size on the other thread. Did you figure this out? I could get you the mount bolt size but if your brackets have arrived you've got the bolts already to match. As for the awning to awning bracket bolts mine won't be the same as a Fiamma. They are very small on my CVT, but there are four per mount. Still, let me know if I can help further.

[skyrat]

Thanks for your input on this whole thing Scotty!
Re: the Bolt size... I was just trying to get a jump on the brackets since I was headed to the Grand Canyon last Wednesday. The brackets did not arrive til late on Saturday and by then I was too busy to mount the hardware. It was no big deal as I figured we would not really need the awning on that trip anyway. (And I was right, we did not need it).

I found from a call to VS that the bolts were 5/16, and another post mentioned using 1.25" was better than the 1.5" it came with, so I went to my local Aircraft Surplus Hardware Supply Store (Luky's in Burbank, CA http://lukyshardware.com/) and bought some quality 5/16" x 15 x 1 3/8" stainless steel button head bolts, ss washers and ss nylock nuts (for less than 50% of the Home Depot prices and I am sure better quality). I felt this would give me the lowest profile possible with the ability to shorten the bolts if needed while still maintaining the corrosion resistance desired.

[86Scotty]

Glad to help.

[skyrat]

Originally Posted by rallypanam

Anyone else have an issue with the middle bracket? Not sure how to describe it, but when the awning is hanging on the cleats in the two outside brackets, the middle of the bracket doesn't fit flush with the back of tee middle bracket.. Almost like the awning is sagging in the middle, or the middle bracket is too tall.

Is it just me!

Hi Rally and others!
I am having the exact same issue with the brackets from Van Specialties. The front bracket must go where it must go, on the pillar between the front door and side barn door. I can move the rear bracket around a bunch and the front and rear work great and the awning hangs great with a wide range of positions for the rearward bracket.

The issue is that with the awning hanging from the front and rear, no matter how far forward or rearward I move the rear bracket, the awning hits the Z bend in the middle bracket before the middle bracket is high enough to engage the drip rail. Because the drip rail is not completely parallel to the ground (it is lower on the vehicle near the front and rear than it is in the middle) there is less room between the drip rail and the awning in the middle than there is on the ends. It is as if the middle bracket needs to have the Z bend lower on the bracket to allow for less space between the drip rail and the awning, or have taller front and rear brackets.

It looks like I could mount the front and rearward bracket and mount the middle, but it would not really engage the drip rail. All the real support would be coming from the front and rear only.

I will try and post pics later to help in the explanation.

Is this the nature of the issues with middle brackets that others have had? Most seem to have a problem getting the top of the bracket in the same plane as the front and rears.

[rallypanam]

Exactly the same problem sky rat..

I solved it by mounting awning in front and rear, then wiggling in middle bracket and tightening it down.

[skyrat]

Thanks Rally, I moved the rear bracket sufficiently forward that it raised the center enough so that now I can get the bracket close enough to the right height to make the middle bracket get some purchase on the drip rail. My rear bracket looks about 10" farther forward than anyone else's though to make it work, but after a dry run it looks like I should get that middle bracket to work once I bend the top part to bring it into alignment with the awning mounting surface.

[skyrat]

Now with that bracket alignment, all of the mounting brackets on our awning are inside the pivot points of the awning. So I cannot bolt outside of where the arms, that support the top, pivot on the "Shock Absorber." Therefore, I am interested in seeing (from the awning side) where you (anyone and everyone) drilled for the bolts that mount the awning to the bracket.

There is just not much room there and I would love to use button bolts again that have the nut inside the awning.

It looks like it should be as low as possible (since the bottom of the arms are chamfered and might allow a bit more room). Does anyone know of any good pics of that mounting bolt? Also, what did you do?

[chetubi]

What did You pay for the VS brackets lately (shipping included)?

[86Scotty]

Originally Posted by chetubi

What did You pay for the VS brackets lately (shipping included)?

I think I paid about $170 shipped.

[chetubi]

Thx!