Vinyl Top

[BadJoey]

One of my next jobs is the Vinyl top . I would be grateful for any tips . So far all I know is that I glue it on .

Someone told me the glue comes in a spray can and you go fro, there .

That same person told me he took his drip edges off , I would really rather not take them off giving a choice . I realize to be careful about not trimming too much off when cutting which is easier said then done I'm sure .

Any in put out there ?

[440WhiteBoy]

yes --- REMOVE your drip rails -
you will need to tuck the material under them.
you only have to pull off the rubber gasket, then unscrew the trim.
THIS IS A REAL EASY THING TO DO!

make sure when you do this, if you can also remove both the front
and rear window trim to tuck under them too. 
otherwise - you would have to caulk everything all around -
not a good way to do this, for you risk the edges comming up later.

rough sand the top with sandpaper, wash and clean

B 4 you glue -- measure your roof to find center - mark the front & back
center line. you could pre-cut to rough it in with a couple inches all around,
if this is your first one, then maybe not for you -
use those squeeze clamps to hold one side to your window drip edge all along
keeping it straight, then look down the car to make sure you have the top even
and center from side to side/back to back with the seam.

then spray glue only half, after the glue is setup - tacky, then lay down the
first half -- carefull to try and keep out bubbles, you may want to only do a
6" wide band first to try and see if you understand how it will go ( in case you
mess it up and have to pull it ) also make sure you dont pull too tight to not
stretch the material.

this is something like doing wall paper -- except more like laying down formica
that the glue is set once the material hits it.

[BadJoey]

Well the guy just left . No way in heck I could have done the top without screwing it up .The guy came to my house and did it in the garage which is a big plus since the car isn't insured and I didn't want to leave it anyplace . He has done hundreds of tops and with everything ready to be stuck on , and I'm going to put all the chrome on, and it still took 3 hours . He supplied the glue which he sprayed out of a paint gun . Total was the best $200.00 I put in the car so far . I'm very happy and it looks like new . This has been bugging the heck out of me for a few months now so I've just been working around it .

[Chryco Psycho]

 

[BadJoey]

I always feel bad when someone wants pitchers . I'm going to have to get a computer camera and learn how . Sorry .

[Aracer]

     I have a story about the 74's roof or "C" panel (roof behind the rear side windows) which had 2 visible bumps along the welds. They are leaded and easy to sand down. The Dealer offered me a free Vinyl Top and side moldings to correct the problem so I took it to the installer, who was only paid $65 for the job. I watched him drill holes and pop rivet the bottom chrome strip's attachments. Then grind the C pillar, spray the roof with a compressor paint gun filled with contact cement and the top. He laid it on and tucked it in the window trim with a smooth putty knife. The roof drip rails were not removed due to the factory bonding, so he cut the vinyl just right to set under the rail edge. The front strips were glued down past the hood and it look good, just like the one in the Catalog, Tan top / Dk. Brown Met. paint.
    Now,the very last ticket I ever got was in 1978, and when I questioned the Marin CHP why he picked me out of all the speeders he said "I was following your white top". I ripped that piece of crap off the next day.  The paint was still good underneath but the pillars were surface rusting. I found the paint in cans at Napa and I left back the trim on for years, but now I have filled in the holes with fiberglass putty and finished in black primer. I got singled out many times  before but It never dawned on me that the cops are fixated on White and Black to the point of giving chase to clarify what they saw as competition. 
     I started drag racing @ Sears Point that year, so the need for speed was subdued until race days, then the 55 MPH got dumped, and the roads filled up with speeding foreign cars. Now the CHP uses small planes and road senors to patrol instead of all the prowl cars, but they still do bunch up in Morgan Hill, CA around the truck scales. CHP used to leave their radar on full time but now they try to fool drivers with multiple cars at the on ramps and pull over 5 cars at once in a show of force. Now I trailer the cars to the track due to all the insurance I would need for a few days a year of Cuda driving.