Spent the whole day yesterday replacing my convertible top. Scared me to death to tackle it, but I had done some british cars and thought, "what the heck". Hats off to Al Knoch for an excellent product. I followed their directions and it fit perfectly, but it is definitely a two (even three!) person job. I did have a problem with worn out and missing tack strips, and I didn't realize I would HAVE to change the front and rear weatherstrips! Luckily Corvette Express in Vacaville had everything in stock and I was able to finish.
I did take pictures and I'll post them next week (going to the Monterey historics tonight) if anyone would like to see them. It sure looks nice now :D

Hans

 

I want to see pics......I am installing mine.......In Three weeks.......Do you have the video...Want to sell it?.........which top did you go with??


[Modified by Alwyn678, 1:46 PM 8/15/2002]

 

I'm installing mine next week , I have put this project off as long as possible , I bought the ecklers video ~$25 has seats, door panels, and soft top installation , I have already watched the video , walks you thru the soft top step by step.

 

Alwyn, I don't have the video, but I understand it's a good one. I tried to borrow one, but had no takers. I bought my top from Al Knoch interiors in El Paso, Texas direct from their website on sale. I was suprised how well it went, but I did discover a problem that I'll have to resolve later. The front header bar or crosspiece is what the top staples into, with a tack strip under the weatherstrip and trim. The tack strip is held in with about 15 metal tabs that just bend over and hold it. At some point in my cars life, it must have had a bad leak at the top of the windshield and top, and these tabs rusted badly. The rest of that part (its a wide pressed steel piece that all the latched bolt to) is OK, but I had to glue the tack strip in and I'll need to replace that part. once I had it stapled and new weatherstrip installed, I latched it down and will leave it that way for a week so it can all set up. The manufaturer of the top suggests leaving it up for a while anyway. You'll need a good staple gun and adhesive that can handle heat. I think the can had a "90" on it that indicated it was for high temp applications. I understand the other stuff turns to goo when it gets hot and won't hold.

For all that are going to do this, the hardest part is installing the rear weatherstrip! It was a pure h**l b***h to get the top rear edge piece, rubber weatherstrip and the plastic "lock" strip all in the groove on the rear bow.

If you want to see what I'm talking about, unlatch the rear of the top, fold it forward to expose the weatherstrip, and pull it out a little at one end. You'll see what I'm talking about. My rubber was junk, but if yours is OK, it might be easier using the old one that already fits well...