Splitting the navbar?

[Luggruff]

Hi there!
This is my first time totally re-aranging a style for vBulletin.

Now my problem is that I want the menu-buttons to be in a row at the top of the site.
I just tried to make a new template adding the "
<!-- nav buttons bar -->" part from the navbar template and calling it with $thenewtemplatename in the header template.
Though nothing showed up.

Then I just put all of that code directly into the header insead, wich worked, except all of the links in the menu that comes from plugins didn't show up, how come?
(would be great to just call the menu with a command like $thenewtemplatename instead of all that code directly into the header)

Any tips?

(the login and "welcome" + pm status and such, I would like to be able to just place anywhere, so that's why I want to split it)

Ps! Is there a way to delete the current templates in the forum and just have own templates? (or maybe I could name each one to "empty" and empty it.. then fill them as I go? Just trying to look for ways to make it less confusing in the final style)