Projects Low cost canvas top. Almost home made.

Here's my low cost canvas top.
Bought The Speedway motors universal cab frames:


Made a plywood piece to fit on the Duvall screen (that is home made as well).


After lots of massage and patience, I got the style I wanted With the frames still possible to collapse.


Made a top out of masking tape to check. Did this 3 times before I was satisfied...


Covered the masking tape top with thick plastic pieces that later became templates to cut out the fabric pieces.
Got a professional to sew the 3 long seams across the rood, as my old cobblers sewing machine is no good for sewing long straight seams.

Testing the fitment to check that the seams were following the frame:


Rear window frame:



Done!

 

Wow-Great tech and well done !

 

That came out nice.

 

Outstanding job. I'm in the process of doing a top for my RPU. I love the masking tape idea, I'm going to try that. Thanks for posting.

 

I think I would have eliminated or at least moved that brake light so that the hole in the top would not have been needed.

 

Currently finishing up the mock-up on a 29 roadster, and have been wondering how I might be able to afford / build a top for it. I think this is do-able and affordable, thanks. Your roadster looks great!

 

Nice Job !

 

Thanks for your replies!
An explanation of the brake light: The location is not perfect, but the best of several possible solutions. Trouble is:
1. I don't want to remove it.
2. When the bows are folded down, the 2 roof bows lies in front of the brake light, and the bottom bow lies behind the light.
3. If I have moved the light forward, the roof bows would have hit it, or I would have had to move it a lot forward.
4. If I moved the light further back, I would have had to move it very much, othervise it would have hit the bottom bow.
5. Changing the bows would have changed the look of the complete roof.

So it's really a compromise.

 

What does it look like folded down?

 

Top looks great and best of all, you did it yourself...

 

Looks great. Like your window and the over all lines. Another option is to use the top irons from an M G B I found a set at a swap meet for $50 Some minor modifications to adapt to my 32 roadster. .

 

Outstanding work! I like the look!

 

Having trouble finding frame on Speedway site. All I see is a Model T kit. Can you give part number of what you started with?

Looks very nice!

 

The Speedway top is a Kwik Top and they sell it for $495.00
I bought this one that was listed on e-bay for $295.00 (28-32 but can be adapted to other years)
It is no longer listed there however they still make them (In the US) and they are of very nice quality for the cost.
If you want their contact info, just PM me and I will give you an e-mail contact address.
Larry.

Edit: Speedway has lowered their price , the steel Kwik Top is now $399 and the stainless steel version is $499.

 

Cool a roofless car with an up and down top. Nice clean work.

 

Great ideas and work. Even looks great. Thanks for the tech!!

 

I'm liking it!

 

Built the top bows for my cabrio. Probably less than $50 involved. Stretched a piece of an old tent across them to see the shape. Now if I can rent/borrow the correct machine, I'll try sewing it up!! Yours worked out real well. Tim

 

Haven't any photo of it folded down. I must seperate the windshield wood from the bows to lay it flat down.
But that's really no big job.
The intention with making it foldable is for example during longer trips, it will be much easier to put the roof on and off several times if the weather is changing. Or if the weather is nice, but unstable the car may be used with the top folded down, ready to fold up quick.

The reason I started with the Kwik top is simply thay I didn't have a clue on how top bows should work, dimensions etc. The Kwik Top gave me the starting point that I needed to - well start the work.
If I should have done the same once more on another car, I would probably just bought some pipes and made the bows, too.

 

Staleg: I looked at the Kwik top and it really looks like a great deal to me. Happens that a friend of mine gave me the bows for the right side, no lefts. I looked them over and figured out how to build my own. Cabrio bows are far more involved than roadsters so I built them more like roadster bows (had one a few years ago) The pic of the top folded down isn't very good but the bows go below the body line, out of sight. I give you an A+ for the effort. Most of us wouldn't try it. I wanted to ask earlier what body you used for your roadster? Tim

 

looks great!I noticed that you said your duvall windsheild was homemade also,how about a tech thread on your building it?
doug

 

Nice work !

 

The bows will not fold below the body line.
But the bows are also possible to take apart and put in the trunk.

The body is steel, original Ford but with several modifiactions, because of its bad shape when I bought it.
Originally is was a 4 door . Then someone tried to rebuild it to a 5W and chop the roof in the same process. This didn't turn out very well.
Then I came across it and bought it.

2002:






I have modified the top of the doors and added power windows, and the area between the trunk and the front seats is the upper part of a hood from a car with hidden windshield wipers.

Home made dashboard:


Here's some old HAMB threads about the car that I have made during the build
Door panels:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/home-made-door-panels.713522/
3 point seat belts:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/3-pt-seat-belts-in-a-34-roadster.650806/
Home made pistol grip gear stick:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/home-made-gear-stick.650080/
Home made steering wheel:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/home-made-steering-wheel.620824/
Home made hanging pedal Assembly w/ 90 degree MC.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/hanging-pedal-assembly.554009/
Home made Duvall windscreen.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/home-made-duvall-screen-update.276681/

 

I clicked on your "Door panels" thread link and got an error message. I noticed there was a 3 on the end of the url address and figured it shouldn't be there, so deleted it and tried again. Bingo...

www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/home-made-door-panels.713522/

Great tech threads.

Glen.

 

I have corrected the link.

Thanks for the heads up!

 

Great work man!

 

staleg,beautiful job you did. You should be proud. What kind of plastic did you use for the pattern's ? Im going to try to do my RPU. Thanks staleg. Bob.....................

 

Nice job!

 

I would like to know about how your atatching header to the top of your windsheild; wingnuts or what an were ? I see 4 tabs on top of frame? are those what somehow are holding header? Thanks

 

Lots of really nice work Staleg, but you haven't told us about the gauge bezels.