Hydraulic conversion to manual sundeck

I have a 2000 X-Star with the hydraulic hatch. I am going to be ugrading my rear bags from the 450's to the 750's and need that extra room on the passenger side. I am afraid the 750's will put to much stress on the hydro arm and snap that puppy. A;so that arm takes up some space in there to prevent the sac from filling. WAs wondering if anyone has taken that out and gone with a manual solution? IE 2 gas shocks on each side and a latch in the middle by the ski pylon to keep it from opening on the highway.

I figure it would be possible but am not for sure on this. Any info part#'s would be great

Thanks in advance

They're made for rear gate on SUV's. You can buy them at any auto parts store.

Mounting them just right can be tricky, but done correctly they work perfectly. You want the shock to be fully compressed when closed, sounds easy but it all depends on where you mount each end. Will take some toying around before they're just right so keep that in mind. You may have to mount the bottom of the shock close the hinge to get the right stroke when closed and open.

Start by measuring the cylinder itself, then add an inch as the piston doesn't fully compress into the cylinder. (Good luck compressing it and getting a measurement by yourself)

You will want the latch on there for towing, but if mounted correctly, they won't open by themselves. I hope you can fit in the compartment otherwise it will be a lot of trial and error...

Here's the exact conversion you're talking about, done on a '98 Malibu Sunsetter VLX:


http://www.themalibucrew.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=10683

I relocated mine to the middle of the pad, and it works great! Just move the screws and the mount. It took me like 30 minutes and didn't cost me anything.

good idea duffy

Duff
That was my original plan. Just move it to the inside of the divider. Wasn't sure how easy that was going to be. Seems like that ram is anchored from the top and would require me to re-upholster the deck. How did you move the anchor bolts that come in from the top of the deck to the new location?

Figured if I had to do that much work I mine as well ditch the hyrdo arm and make it a bit easier to get in and out of.

Yeah, mine was easy. I have an older v-drive. Mine was just screwed in using some short screws.

That is my boat mechmaster posted. I wouldn't go back to the electric ram for anything. The manual way works way better. I uses two 30 lb rams. The only change I would've done is to mount the lower end of the rams on fiberglass instead of the "dividers". I had to reinforce one of those this year. Otherwise it has worked perfect since the conversion............