Well All, I just tore off my vinyl top to get at the crunchy sounding spots. What a mess!! But good thing is no holes! Anyway my question is have any of you installed your own vinyl top? How bad is it? Should I attempt it myself or get a pro to do it? Are there any tips or pitfalls you guys can tell me about? I hate to let anyone else touch my car as the quality of workmanship is rarely there if you dont do it yourself so.........??? thanks Bill

That's is one of the few things, along with paint, a headliner, and a convertible top, that I would leave to a pro. The trick is finding a pro that cares enough to do a good job and not mess up your car in the process.

Putting the top on my '70 wasn't near as bad as I thought it would be.I did mine in a couple of hours,with a little help from my wife.They come way too big,so just make sure you have it stretched out with no wrinkles and take your time.Lay it out in the sun for awhile and then measure your seams real good to get it straight.Make sure you don't cut too much off around the windows,you can always go back and cut more.In my opinion it was a cakewalk compared to putting my headliner in.I'll never do that again.

My dad used to install vinyl tops in his garage back in the 70s/early 80s. I must have installed a thousand of them in my day. They aren't too difficult to do. What year Chevelle? The reason I ask is on the 66/67s it's kind of tough to get the vinyl cleanly around the sail panel. Use a heat gun or a hair dryer to make the vinyl more pliable. Let the vinyl sit in the sun for a couple hours before you start to soften it up and make the job alot easier. Its a doable job, but it takes a little patience and if you cut it too short its ruined and you have to start over.

I did mine and it was not as bad or hard as I thought it would have been. Comments above are very true, measure twice cut once.

I was very happy with my results.

What glue are you guys using and how much is needed?

Mike

My father and I installed mine. Wasnt hard at all. We used 3M super trim adhesive(about $12 a can), just follow the directions on the can and make sure you spray both the top and the roof and let them sit as directed before putting the two together. Measure the roof to find the center point and make sure you seams are spaced right from that center point. Use masking tape to mark all your measurements. Do one side at a time and make sure you keep the seems straight. I dont remember exactly how many cans we used, probably about 2 1/2 cans per side but I think we used a little too much. We used a wall paper roller to roll it on and work the air out. Once the two parts go together its hard to pull them apart and you will most likely stretch the top when trying to pull them apart so be careful and take your time.
Tony

Not to bad just measure alot.

I understand your concern about having the top installed on your baby. I had only one top installed by someone else. I asked them not cut the top on quarters and sail panels, when I went to pick up the car they had cut the top and the paint which is why asked them not to cut the top. I tried to brush in some clear in the razor cut in the paint to prevent it from rusting; I must have missed a spot because in about six months I had rust coming out from under the mouldings. That was about 25 years ago, since then I’ve done all my own vinyl tops. As suggested let the top sit in sun to help remove any wrinkles and make top easier to work with. I would suggest that you put the top on the roof of the car in the sun so it can relax to the shape of the roof, with the top on the roof of the car fold top in half lengthwise seam to seam, cut a small corner of the fold off at a 45 degree angle to create a V (tailor mark) in the top when unfolded. This will be the center of your top, now measure and find the center the roof in the front and the back, put some tape on the windshield and back glass and mark the center of each window with a marker. Now that you have the center located you can tape the top at the center of each window, tape just off the center of the V, so top can be folded over on itself. Now you can apply the adhesive to the top and roof as directed, let it set up as directed. Now you can fold the top back over the glued area pulling firmly at the center area, start at the center of the roof attaching top to the glue on the roof pressing top firmly to the roof, pull and press top down onto the roof. Pull to top to align seams, pressing firmly down onto the roof. Apply additional glue as needed around window openings. As someone else pointed out the 66/67 roof can be difficult around the back window, most of the tops that I’ve installed on the 68 to 72 Chevelles are not sewn or seamed at lower portion of the rear window, you’ll need to fold the top in manner similar to the seams on the top and gluing top into place. Just don’t rush it. A little word of caution regarding the adhesive, it will attack fresh paint and lacquer paint; mask off the painted areas where you don’t won’t glue to protect the surface. Excessive glue on the glass can be cleaned up with mineral spirits or something like GooGone. Good Luck.

A little word of caution regarding the adhesive, it will attack fresh paint and lacquer paint; mask off the painted areas where you don’t won’t glue to protect the surface.

I forgot to mention this one....very important. I learned this the hard way. use good tape also, not the standard yellow/beige masking tape. The glue seeped through the beige tape. Lucky for me the quater molding covered the spot this happened to and I was able to touch it up without it being visible
Tony.

Thanks man I appreciate it. Guess I'll give it a go.

I forgot to mention this one....very important. I learned this the hard way. use good tape also, not the standard yellow/beige masking tape. The glue seeped through the beige tape. Lucky for me the quater molding covered the spot this happened to and I was able to touch it up without it being visible
Tony.
Is the 3M blue "painter's tape" tape OK?

I would probably use the 3m green tape. I think the blue tape is more for house painting jobs.
Tony

A good quality automotive grade masking tape (tape designed for automotive refinish) would be your best bet. If your car has been repainted you may want to touch the adhesive side of the tape to your shirt before to place it on the paint to help reduce the tackiness of the tape. This will help reduce the chances of pulling off any paint in the areas were the tape is attached.

The first one I had done , I took down to a pro shop. I had already done all the prework, sanded , primed , painted the top. Had all the window trim removed, all the clips installed and had my top in hand. Two young ladies did the job in a very short time and I got to watch the whole installation. They charged me 75 bucks. So , after watching them I decided to do the next one. Took my time, got my daughter out to help when it was time to strech, and was quite pleased with the results. BUT, spent 45 bucks on the glue alone.......could have had a pro do it for only 30 bucks more. Will prolly let them do the next one.

Guys, I am going to tackle the vinyl top this coming summer after I spray on the strips. 70 SS. The car was original vinyl top, so I have the metal studs and holes already. I keep hearing about clips that go on the metal studs. I can find them in any catolog. Any suggestions? Also, does the top wrap around the rain gutters, then the chrome goes over it, or is it cut just prior to the rain gutter? Same question with the metal studs, does the top go over them, or cut just short? Thanks. Ohh, my car was oringinal SS, vinyl top, and the strips are fully painted prior to the top going on. I have pictures of the oringinal strips going up to the rear window.

Thanks!

Well All, I just tore off my vinyl top to get at the crunchy sounding spots. What a mess!! But good thing is no holes! Anyway my question is have any of you installed your own vinyl top? How bad is it? Should I attempt it myself or get a pro to do it? Are there any tips or pitfalls you guys can tell me about? I hate to let anyone else touch my car as the quality of workmanship is rarely there if you dont do it yourself so.........??? thanks BillSome pics and tips in this thread: http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?p=3014142