Dave Herrod Posted October 25, 2005 Report Share Posted October 25, 2005 I have just about had enough of baling water out of the car every morning and evening for the last week, and I am thinking of buying a hardtop in the hope that I might be able to achieve a more effective seal around the sidescreens. I have found websites for Honeybourne and Smith and Deakin who both do fibreglass ones. Does anyone have any experience of either? Dave Quote Link to post Share on other sites
grommitt Posted October 26, 2005 Report Share Posted October 26, 2005 Hello Dave The hard top you saw on Grommitt at Malvern (in the rain) is from Honeybourne Mouldings. After a lot of hassle I managed to get it to fit well enough to do the job of keeping the weather out, but it is still a bit squint. This is probably caused by the car not being exactly square. Chris Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dave Herrod Posted October 26, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2005 Hi Chris, It was seeing your car at Malvern that has made me think about getting a hardtop. (I particularly liked the red car/white top combination) I am pleased to hear that you can make them watertight, but I suspect that my car is quite a long way from being square, especially around the windscreen. I expect to have to somehow adjust the stanchion fixing brackets to get a good fit. Dave Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Richardtr3a Posted October 26, 2005 Report Share Posted October 26, 2005 The seal around the top and rear edges of the sidescreens will always leak unless you fit a factory metal hardtop and then adjust the sidescreen frames before recovering. I have fitted a small deflector between the windscreen and the stanchion which protrudes about 2" and the sidescreen tucks neatly into it. this makes a wind and rain free leading edge. the metal hard top also makes the body much more rigid and I run with it in place for most of the year. The back window will pop out over 75 mph which I have cured by fitting some stainless clamps designed by an engineer friend. Good luck. Richard Quote Link to post Share on other sites
james christie Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Hum ! Hardtops. I have one but only used it for one winter, and decided that it wasn't really worth while - leaks and more noise in the car were the principal arguments agin it. Plus our cars are meant to be driven with de roof off, doncha think ? You will be disappointed if you think it is going to keep the weather any better than a soft top. All depends on whether your car is straight and your skill in sealing the "edges" is up to it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dave Herrod Posted October 31, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 Hmm.. Thanks for all the responses. James, I agree that these cars are at their best with the hood down, but I use mine as my everyday transport and it lives outside. Consequently there are lots of times when the hood stays well and truly up! I had hoped that a hardtop would be quieter and, being rigid and having things like gutters, would allow me to get a better seal around the sidescreens. In light of the somewhat mixed response I will ponder for a bit longer. Richard, would be very interested to see a photo of your wind deflectors. I'm not sure I understand how they fit between the windscreen and the stanchion. Dave Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rudi Posted October 31, 2005 Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 I have a factory steel hard top (white on red car) and it sits on the car all year round during rallying. The top is certainly not a straight fit but it keeps the elements out. NO water entry in the car even during very bad weather. It makes the tub more ridgid and eliminates scuttle shake. It took me a while to find one and effort to restore it, but after I was able to adjust the side screens to close, I am 100 % satisfied. I must say that a lot of people have advised neg. to buy a polyester one. If you can find a steel hard top my advise is buy it! It is worth every penny and it looks great! I can mail you a picture if you want. Regards, Rudi Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Richardtr3a Posted November 1, 2005 Report Share Posted November 1, 2005 Rudi is absolutely correct. The car will be much improved. My wind deflectors take care of the leading edge and you may need to cut the sidescreens and then recover. My stanpart screens were a poor fit from the start. They will need recovering after welding, and this requires a special machine in the trim shop. There was someone advertising this service in TRaction and I lost the number. I asked for help in finding them in a letter to the magazine in 1996 but had no response. The wind deflectors fit between the stanchion and the frame and you will need 3 slightly longer screws. Take care not to go too long and crack the glass. Yours Richard :: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rudi Posted November 2, 2005 Report Share Posted November 2, 2005 Main problem area is to seal the side screen to the rear edge of the windscreen pillar, so that they stay in the channel at higher speed and at the same time still have a good fit at the top. That took me a while of trial and error. But the problem is the same with the soft top. Rudi Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Richardtr3a Posted November 2, 2005 Report Share Posted November 2, 2005 My wind deflectors are fixed to the windscreen and protrude sideways and backwards so that there is no air oressure against the sidescreen at all. They are like small wingsand work really well. Richard :: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dave Herrod Posted November 3, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 Thanks for your replies. Richard, what are your deflectors made of? could you possibly post or e-mail a sketch or photo? I really need to come up with sometrhing if I am to keep using the car. At the moment I have soaking wet carpets and seats. Rudi, Would love to see a photo of your hard top if you could e-mail it to me. I see that you both believe that metal hardtops are a lot stiffer and better than grp ones. Obviously the latter are more readily available, and I would be interested to hear if anyone has experience of both types? Dave Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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