Technical Convertibles verses roadsters

I've never really been a convertible guy although I've had a couple of them, the tops were in good shape and the windows went up & down, the heaters worked but for some weird reason I just wasn't happy with them, the early Corvette sold fast and the Falcon Sprint did too.

I had a Deuce roadster and it never had a top, no windows, no heater, I got sun burned, half drowned and froze my arse off more times than I care to remember but I loved that car.

There is nothing wrong with ether of these types of cars but I just prefer the roadsters, anyone else got the same screw loose? HRP

 

Just get a motorcycle.

 

I find the novelty wears off quick on a no roof car.
Like you said the sun, freak rain, wind, cold etc etc .

Like the ol’ saying “ sky’s the limit if you have a roof over your head !


I have plenty of screw loose, and a lot missing. Guess in this case just different ones then you.

 

I have had 7 converts. Loved driving around at night when cool out with the top down, windows up and the heater on full. But that's just me.

 

I did the interior for a guy who wanted a roadster. He came back and wanted a top made because his lips got sunburned.

 

Been there ,done that and have the scars, plates & screws that accompany riding hard and going down hard.

 

I've had the same rag top for 40 years.
In my 20s I never put the top up.
In my 30s I put the top up in the rain.
In my 40s I put the top up in the cold.
In my 50s I put the top up in the heat.
In my 60s I never put the top down.

 

half a brain would get you to convertibles make more sense, but roadsters are so much more sexy. then if you add in the orgasm from watching open wheels go down the road, well its a no brainer then

 

HRP, this is funny having just had a conversation with my brother from up in NE, with me in NC, about which we would prefer. He prefers a coupe because as he sees it he can use it earlier and longer in the NE. I on the other hand prefer a roadster because we get the sun earlier and more often in the south. I guess it all depends on what floats your boat!

 

To a lot of guys roadsters are like boats...with 2 happy days.

 

I had a 1931 Model A hiboy when I was young and was great when not raining . Now I like a shell over my noggin for a few reasons .

 

I had an OT 66 Fairlane convertible before my 35 Chebby phaeton. Drove it with top up and down as it had wind up windows and a heater. However on my 35 the top does go down sometimes, no heater or windows.
It's damn hot here, the skin cancer capitol of the world and when it rains I do sometimes get wet despite side curtains. When cold I rug up, all part of the experience however this time my current 46 Olds build features a solid roof, wind up windows and a heater and a few other creature comforts.

 

My '31 roadster pickup has the non folding original type top and it stays on all the time. Well, I have had it off once! I like the air of a roadster but not the glaring sun too much. My '24 Dodge roadster hot rod doesn't have a top and I drove it to Bonneville and back towing my TrailorBoat camper behind it but a top is in the plans. It WILL fold down.
But most all my roadsters have tops and they stay up for shade.

Dave

 

At 17 I passed up a great deal on a 55 safari to buy a 56 Olds convertible. Didn't like it. It had a crazy-thick X member but still had cowl shake and I just didn't care for the air blowing on me and in my ears. Only had one more and that was purchased to flip for some 34 money. I guess I'm just not a rag-top guy.
Never owned a roadster except for an old modified I built and I never got it on the street.

 

I've owned O/T convertibles, both sports cars and American convertibles.
I've owned two roadsters, one a topless highboy, & one a full fendered with top and side curtains and a heater.
I loved them all, but for another roadster, I'd have the top,side curtains and a heater.
I did want to build a '36 Ford cabriolet with a/c and heat to pull a small travel trailer and tour the country in retirement, but that dream is crossed off the list

 

I have almost always had a convertible on the patch. My favorites have always been the ones that are at the end of their life. The beaters. The nice ones you can't have fun with. lol
I have only had one true roadster, a TR-3. I have owned it for over 40 years. Never had any side curtains for it, seldom ever had a top on it. Fun when it was a beater and still fun semi restored.

 

The 32 Ford cabriolet still qualifies as a convert,but is has roll up windows—-roadsters don’t have this option. Instead they have ugly snap on side curtains for foul weather driving. You hardly see a deuce roadster with the top down because when it is down,it just bunches up 6-8 inches high behind the drivers compartment. A 32 cab has a “well” that allows the top to sit almost flush with the deck lid. There was approx 10,000 deluxe and std roadsters, and a little less than 6,000 cabriolets.

 

Had a Roadster 7 years,(Pic's in albums) here in Wisconsin the weather is not Roadster friendly IMO, It had a bolt on top which was home in garage or motel room when needed, always watched weather forecasts, but again here it can change quickly. I made snap in lexan windows which were good for the cooler evenings, spring/fall. Traded it away for my 32 3 window, sold that in 2015, second guessing that decision these days, the only Roadster I would ever own again would be convertible type/Dearborn Deuce style. I rode cycles (dressers )for 36 years and IMO the Roadster was worse for freezing/wet/cold/miserable than the bike. I Like ragtops, as a kid had several as an adult have had one since 89 and that will be last car I give up. With a ragtop on a nice evening, top down, its as good as it gets, again in Wisconsin we get a handful of perfect days/evenings per year, the heater is your friend. LOL

 

I've had several convertibles, currently have a '40..I love them.
Rarely drove any of them with the top up, kind of defeats the purpose of having a convertible.
It's the look, the experience..and as the saying goes.."if I have to explain it, you wouldn't get it anyway".
I wear a hat, use sunblock, and can't hear worth a shit anyway, so that's a non-issue.
I can't make a comparison to a true roadster, as I've never owned one, although all of the above I'm sure applies also to roadsters.
These cars obviously are "fair weather" cars, if it's raining, drive something else.
I doubt any of us buy these cars for practical reasons.

 

Yep, I got that same screw loose Danny, have had a roadster (32/33/34) for over 45 years and driven in all kinds of weather from 15 degrees to 115 degrees, rain, snow sleet fog U name it, and still love em. Nuttin like shootin rooster tails .

 

Thinking about Roadsters this AM I have story about one of my good friends RIP, and his 36 Ford Roadster, Beautiful car. He was a builder/fabricater/hard core Racer/hard core Hot Rodder/very talented man. He got me back into car hobby when I left racing as he always had a Hot Rod besides racing. He was a die hard, got to drive them guy, he gave me no end of crap for trailering my Roadster to the big far away shows, we all go to Back to the 50's thinking 02/03, I talked with him night before about weather forecast, he stated, rain or shine show, So..... off we go, it rained Thursday all the way there, rained all day Friday, rained with a few breaks on Saturday and we go home on Sunday a nice day finally. His wife who was a real trooper, rode home with me ( a long ride as she was unhappy ) she told him buy a trailer or you're traveling alone to these shows, I was curious how this would shake out, the next big show we all traveled to, there's Tom with his Roadster on a trailer, (had a little fun with him over this subject) a few more of our group bought trailers, now we had a caravan going down road, I was the only trailer in group to 6 trailers in our group. NEVER underestimate the power of a woman is my point if I have a point to my rambling this AM. LOL

 

The best things about a convertible is the top goes up easy(as long as it is power) you have windows instead of side curtains. You still have an open car, but if the weather changes quick you can put up the top and roll up the windows. Theresa and I can take it for a summer evening drive, and when it cools off put the top up and still enjoy the drive.

 

I built a stock '55 Chev rag top.......loved it and living in SoCal at the time top down 95% of the time.
I now have a '29 roadster with a top. In stock form it was fun but way to slow for todays driving. It then became a full fender AV8 flatty powered, then a high boy version but the roads here with dirt and crap didn't work to well so, back to full fender.
Our driving season is short and sometimes wet so, top down as much as possible and top up if to hot or I hit rain on the drive. I love the roadster.
I am now building a '28 Tudor for the days better suited to top on driving to extend my Hot Rod driving time........best of both worlds!

 

Yeah, you get it.

Roadster are impractical, noisy, hot, cold, wet depending on the weather but when the weather is perfect there is nothing better.

Your ether a roadster guy or not, they are not for everyone but I am going to have another one in the future, I really do miss my old roadster. HRP

 

I've never owned a roadster, but had a CJ5 Jeep which was close, and a OT Mustang convertible and a couple of Vettes with the lift off roofs. Never again. In Bama, there are about three days a year perfect open car weather days......the rest of the time it's too cool, too hot, too wet or too windy. I loved the unrestricted view, but hated the sun bearing down on me {and I always wear a cap}, the hot or cold wind blowing on me and in my ears so I couldn't hear a thing. I don't care much for riding with the windows down except early morning or late evening, either. I've become a pussy who loves A/C and heat. Over three million miles in a truck will do that to you.

I've often thought about building a 27 T roadster, track modified style like Neicamp's, but get to thinking I'd probably never drive it much, it would sit under a shelter most of the time.

 

I drove the Vicky for over 25 years with no air. After 140k+ miles I decided on an upgrade. At the time my wife would say, let's take my OT convertible instead of the rod. Of course my answer was no!
So now dad has air and a drop top. I have the ultimate gentleman's rod, Dearborn Deuce highboy.

Phil

 

Converts and roadsters aren't much different from bikes. (except it's a bit harder to fall off and get road rash) I have an off topic brit sports car, in 4 years I never had the top or windows up. Top was shot so I removed it. Love to drive it when ever possible. Living in Wisconsin, summer weather isn't often too hot, but one does have to watch for thunder storms. Weather radar websites are your friend, giving you plenty of warning about foul weather approaching. (I consider the car to have a 2 hour leash) Some dry clothes in the trunk can come in handy also.

 

After reading this thread it appears that you that are not alone.

 

I've never had a roadster but I have always had a convertible. Bought my 41' Ford convertible when I got out of high school in 62'. Bought a 59' Chevy convertible in 64'. Had it till' I went into the army in 66' . Got a 62' Ford Galaxie convertible when I got out of the army in 68'. Had it for about six months and traded it in for a 66'Shelby Mustang. But I still have my 41'Ford convertible.

 

I've had more deuce roadsters than I can count. They've came and went. The one top down car my wife and I wish we'd kept was a Dearborn Deuce highboy I built about 10 years ago. Best of both worlds, top down with windows, and air, a convertible. Alas, someone with more money than I could resist came along so it went to Japan!