Hi everyone,
I purchased a Hardtop for my 1970 a while back. I am having fitment issues. I can't get the back to sit flat on the deck lid. The sides are tight and so are the rear corners. I don't have the screw set up in the rear center but I don't think that will help as the gap is so large I can slip my fingers under it. Are all the hardtops the same for our years? Any idea how to fix this?

****I do not have the deck lid gasket in yet b/c I am just checking fitment. Although I don't think this is the issue... but I could be wrong. Just to note... the top is really SNUG where the pins latch and I plan on bolting it down for extra security. ANY help would be great. Thanks

 

The seal will take up the gap

 

Hey Gdaina... man you are always here...

Which seal? I have the hardtop weather stripping in place. It is tight all the way around except the center of the deck lid... it is almost like the contour of the deck lid is different than the top...

Or did you mean the seal for the deck lid itself? Won't that just raise the lid up? What am I missing... I know it is something.. ahhah

 

The hardtop seals should be about 1/2 lower then the bottom edge of the top

 

the hardtop should flow with the contour of the deck lid seal installed and top bolted / latched on. If not, somethings wrong.

 

Really nice car. Can you post some more pics of the hardtop at the front and sides? Judging by your Vette pics... mine may be sitting too far back... I can't really tell where your sits in reference to the doors and windshield frame... THANKS!!!

 

Could you post some pics of what you've got so far? There's really not a whole lot of adjustment available to shift the top around. It should lock into two pins at the windshield header (not much play there), attach using two special bolts at the very forward part of the deck lid, and there's two studs that pass through the convertible top receivers at the rear corners of the deck lid. I think sometime in late '69 or '70 they added a third stud in the middle of the deck lid. As GDAINA said, you should have about 1/2" of weather stripping to compress before the hardtop can contact the deck lid. All I can think is that you may need your deck lid adjusted slightly.

 

I have the same issue. I do have the center bolt on my top but I have not reinstalled it yet..

Do you have bolts holding the top down or does the hard top have pins like your soft top?

A new weatherstip improved it for me slightly as the original had shrinked a lot.

I think you need to install it with the bolts and then adjust it till it tightens down.

I also think that these tops were not used very often. Mine was off the car for 15 years straight by the previous owner. How your top (and mine) was stored (mine stood on its tips) may have bent it out of wack enough to ruin the seal.

Just my 0.02.

Pic of mine below.



Mine is installed with NO center bolt and soft top pins. To install it with bolts you really need to pull the ragtop out.

Cheers,

Pete

 

Sting...
DAMN IT.. mine looks EXACTLY like yours. The sides are touching and the center is jacked up for some reason. The weatherstripping is in place and I am using the pins... not bolts. It almost seems as if the contour of the top is different than the deck lid. I tried loosening everything then adjust... NOT HAPPENING... I don't think the top is warped... it is fiberglass. It would crack first before it moved this far out...

The pins are so tight... the weatherstripping at the corner is mashed down as so the top is "almost" touching the decklid surface. If I make it any more snug... it will be touching on the sides. ANYONE solve this issue...? I really want this top on the car...

Also... hey Sting... Man get some 1500 wet paper on that paint... hee hee ( just finished my color sanding and it looks GREAT!!!)

 

Like everything else on these, fit and finish appears to vary wildly. I bought one used and it falls in between "big gap" and "perfect" on my stock decklid. I suspect it has more to do with the decklid than the top. The gasket should take up the slack on mine.

I'm purchasing a used lid (to notch for a rollbar) and I'm hoping that the top fits better on that one. To roadrace it with a six-point bar, a hardtop is required in my club.

Hans

 

I have three hardtops on three different cars. All have different quality/age weather strip in place. None of them are fitted to the vehicle using soft top pins at the rear. They all use studs which are used to pull the rear down until it connects tightly to the soft-top pin receivers. The studs go all the way through the pin retainers and a large washer & nut are used to pull the top down tight. Any gap at the center of the rear glass should be taken up by the weather strip. On my 72 and my older 71 there is a center stud which goes through a chrome grommet in the center of the deck lid (you can still by the grommet and install it on your 70 if you like). This stud can be used to pull ALL of the remaining bow/slack out of the rear. On my 71 that gap can be as much as half inch but the center bolt easily takes up the slack. Nice thing about having the top on that tight is there are no squeeks/rattles etc. You should also have two special nuts that hold the corners of the top to the rear deck lid where it meets the rear of the car doors.

And, there is NO need to remove the soft top to install any of the mounting nuts either. Simply place the top on the car. Install the special side nuts first (you must pull down on the top very hard to do this and it helps if the rear deck lid is unlatched/lifted somewhat). Now carefully unlatch the rear deck lid, if you haven't already, and lift the assembly into the air. This provides very easy access to the stud/bolt assembly under the rear lid. (May take a second set of hands to hold the top up while you wrench on the nuts OR you can prop it up using a floor broom etc). Once you've pulled everything down tight to the rear deck lid gently lower the top/deck assembly down to the vehicle and align the front bow pins. Now press down on the rear deck on each side to latch into place and finally latch the front bow pins.

Rock solid; no leaks, no wind, no squeeks. Good time to align those side windows too. Then when the hardtop comes off in the spring simply align the soft-top to the perfectly aligned windows.

 

I would wet sand the paint but it is very thin. I tested a patch last year and it was ugly.

My top is bowed like yours. Build quality was all over the shop back in the 70s. (All due respect to Zora and the bos)

Hammerhead Fred has some good advice. Never thought of pivoting the hardtop on the deck lid. Firbreglass does flex (a little). Hopefull enough for the centre to flatten out. Just took the hartop off last week. Will try again in a few months.

 

Okay, so I use a center mount it will pull the gap down? My gap is exactly the same size as Stings... I am concerned if I try to pull too much gap... It will crack the HardTop bow or worse.. the rear stock glass....

Sting... why don't you try it first... then let me know how you make out!

 

Hey if the defective hardtop doesnt work for you and you decide to junk it I will take it to the dump for you, just let me know where to pick it up lol.

Seriously, I hope you get it fixed, seems like this has been a PITA for you for a while now!

 

Jake.. .make you a deal... If I can't get it to work... you can take to the junk... it will be in MANY PIECES!

 

this is the best picture i could find of mine.