Topic: How to improvise a soft top?

[jfrabat]

Here's my dilema; this Sunday there is a trail ride to an area that has lots of off camber stuff with mud/rock walls on either side.  These walls have already eaten hardtop for breakfast, so I rather take the jeep without the hardtop.  But I dont have a soft top.  Asked around, and there are local guys that can make me a frameless top, but it would be ready for Wednesday of next week; good, but not for this trip.

The other part of the issue is that we are in the middle of the rainy season in Costa Rica, which means it WILL rain.  I dont mind driving with the half doors in the rain, but what do you guys suggest to do for the top?

I am considering using some tarps that I have and using slings to tie them to the roll bars; it will be noisy (for sure!) and water will still get in, but at least I will not get SOAKING wet...  Any suggestions as to what else i could do?

Felipe

[Jeffy]

A tarp would be fine. You'll still get wet but not overly.  I'd consider something like a duster cover to cover the back with.  Then all you need to do is cover the front.  There is no good way to seal off the gap between the door and the roll bar though you could add a flap to it.

[jfrabat]

A tarp would be fine. You'll still get wet but not overly.  I'd consider something like a duster cover to cover the back with.  Then all you need to do is cover the front.  There is no good way to seal off the gap between the door and the roll bar though you could add a flap to it.

Well, i dont have a dust cover or anything; in fact, i dont even have the rails anymore, as I sold my soft top complete with hardware, half upper doors and everything while I was in Miami (had nowhere to store it, as the Jeep is typically in Panama at my parents house - and my mom gives me enough crap with just the jeep! - and I live in Costa Rica)  I'll see if I can use the tarp as a half cab type setup (i doubt it's long enough, but I'll give it a shot tonight!). 

I'm thinking I'll use bungee chords to tie everything up, and will hook up the front to the footman loop and the 2 loops that hold the hard top in place; that, and tied to the rollbar on the sides SHOULD be enough to hold it in place...

Felipe

[Mozman68]

I thought you had some fancy Sony marine head unit in there??

Go topless and don't look back...what, are you made of sugar or something??

[Jeffy]

Well, i dont have a dust cover or anything; in fact, i dont even have the rails anymore, as I sold my soft top complete with hardware, half upper doors and everything while I was in Miami (had nowhere to store it, as the Jeep is typically in Panama at my parents house - and my mom gives me enough crap with just the jeep! - and I live in Costa Rica)  I'll see if I can use the tarp as a half cab type setup (i doubt it's long enough, but I'll give it a shot tonight!). 

I'm thinking I'll use bungee chords to tie everything up, and will hook up the front to the footman loop and the 2 loops that hold the hard top in place; that, and tied to the rollbar on the sides SHOULD be enough to hold it in place...

Felipe

Well, I doubt you'll be keeping water out of the Jeep if you get a down pour.  If anything try to run a tarp long-ways so you can try to get as much cover on the back as well.  This will help keep water from coming back at you from behind as it runs off.  Then just pull any carpet.

[jfrabat]

I thought you had some fancy Sony marine head unit in there??

Go topless and don't look back...what, are you made of sugar or something??

No marine unit for me; just a regular one.  But the CB and 2m radios are not wateroroof either.  Plus, rain and cool weatehr (notice it's cool, not cold, but ad water and this changes!) is not the best idea if you want to avoid a cold (and a cold for me is a bit more problematic because I suffer from Asthma)...

Plus, my copilot is my wife, and she DEMANDS some creature comfort...

[DodgeMudder]

If I was planning on running a tarp as a top I would make sure it covered all the way to the tub in the back if you will be on road to keep the roadspray off the back of your head and the inside of the windsheild, I would also plan to use lots of duct tape to seal the tarp to the windsheild.

[jfrabat]

I decided to go with the hard top; I'll take off the half doors and throw them on the back of the Jeep.  If it rains, i'll put them back on, but if it does not rain, i'll just go with the doors off.  I was looking at some videos, and it seems the off camber stuff is not THAT bad (it's bad, but not HORRIBlE).  Now I just need to make sure I secure everything inside the Jeep so that nothing is flying around while doing the rough parts...

[sharpxmen]

i've seen a picture once with a guy holding an umbrella in a convertible...

joke aside, there are some full length bikini tops (not even sure if that's the proper term) - they will go back all the way to about where the rear seatbelts are bolted on to the rollbar - not perfect but better than nothing and you don't have to mess with the tarp - pretty small if you fold it so easy to store too.

[jfrabat]

i've seen a picture once with a guy holding an umbrella in a convertible...

joke aside, there are some full length bikini tops (not even sure if that's the proper term) - they will go back all the way to about where the rear seatbelts are bolted on to the rollbar - not perfect but better than nothing and you don't have to mess with the tarp - pretty small if you fold it so easy to store too.

Those are the safari tops; I am getting a home made version made that will not use channels, rails or anything like that, that I can use whenever I take the hard top off.  They idea is to keep it kind of like a safari top, but you can also zip windows to it to make it a complete top.  I would have to install some buttons to the side of the Jeep (like the Suzuki Samurai's and Land Rover Defenders sometimes use), but I rather have that than need rails. 

The idea is to be able to leave the safari top on under the hard top, and store the 3 windoes between the had top and the safari top.  I have an appointment tomorrow to see how exaclty this will be done, but the cost is about $100, so it looks like a good idea. 

[Jeffy]

You might consider taking out the rear glass if you think there is a chance it could get damaged.

[neale_rs]

Those are the safari tops; I am getting a home made version made that will not use channels, rails or anything like that, that I can use whenever I take the hard top off.  They idea is to keep it kind of like a safari top, but you can also zip windows to it to make it a complete top.  I would have to install some buttons to the side of the Jeep (like the Suzuki Samurai's and Land Rover Defenders sometimes use), but I rather have that than need rails. 

The idea is to be able to leave the safari top on under the hard top, and store the 3 windoes between the had top and the safari top.  I have an appointment tomorrow to see how exaclty this will be done, but the cost is about $100, so it looks like a good idea. 

Sounds like a very good design they are proposing.