Hey Paul, I love this idea! I've thought about making a Carson top for my car maybe this will get me started! How much does the top weigh? Can you lift it off by yourself?
Chris
Chris you can see in his pictures that Paul is using a sky hook to remove the top.
the top is actually extremely light. i can easily lift it up. i built the jig so i can raise and lower it quickly and evenly.
i would not try to remove or install this by myself though.
WOLFGANG posted:Mango - When done make a mold and flash some fiberglass ones. I'd like mine with bubbles over front seats or full canvas sunroof, high mount 3rd LED brake light, and opening rear quarter windows, gull wing side windows. Black gel coat would be fine.
holy crap that is a great idea!! high mount 3rd brake light. I really like that idea and will look into it.
stopping at the vw dealership the afternoon to rummage through what they have. i want it to look classy and not bolted on.
That is what I had on my 912.
IaM-Ray posted:Have you seen the audi tt's rear third brake lights? They have a simple strip of LED on the top edge. Very nice
Here is the link
Interesting location for the Audi light. I was under the impression the federal requirements stated it had to be at eye level. I wonder if there is one in the rear window like every other coupe or sedan. If I were driving my Speedster the Audi brake light would be at eye level but not in anything else I drive.
hmmm, with the angle of the roof, i'm not sure i am going to find an off the shelf light option that will work.
thinking about something like this:
MangoSmoothie.ca posted:hmmm, with the angle of the roof, i'm not sure i am going to find an off the shelf light option that will work.
thinking about something like this:
After seeing what you've already done that should be a piece of cake.
Your skill is off the hock. The breaklight idea is pretty clean.
That is a cool setup. But, have you seen the guy who did a third brake light by installing a plexiglass or lexan piece flush with the body on the top of the cab area, over the top and then painted it so that the light only shows through the paint when the brake is applied. When your not braking you just see paint.
Someone posted it on this site a few years ago. It was a purple or dark brown rodder truck. I emailed the builder and it was a pretty cool set up done flush and it was impossible to see the edge of the light when it was painted. Anyway maybe someone knows the builder on this list.
Hey Mango here it is Hidden third brake light
dammit - another cool idea. 
i am going to order a roll of those 5630 led's. while i'm in there, i might as well add two more circuits for turn signals.
you guys are not helping me finish this thing. LOL 
It's coming together...
Yeah, man!
You are so lucky you didn't have me volunteering to do all those spot welds for yah.
Some mess THAT would have been.......... 
The only problem I can see with the top is RUST... just kidding.
The rear window angle might help to keep the lights from the cars behind you from bothering you as much.
It's looking good, Paul. Really, really good...
Alan Merklin posted:I once did a beetle chop top it took three different roof sections to make it look right, cant wait to see this one !
so far, i had to cut the lower window frame into 7 pieces to get it to look right. you were bang on Alan!
MangoSmoothie.ca posted:Alan Merklin posted:I once did a beetle chop top it took three different roof sections to make it look right, cant wait to see this one !
so far, i had to cut the lower window frame into 7 pieces to get it to look right. you were bang on Alan!
I have to say, I come on here just about everyday to just be enamoured at the abilities a lot of you have (today being no exception as we witness more progress on this beautiful hardtop).
I really don’t think a day has gone by where I was not taken back by something (in a good way).
Awesome work Paul
third brake lights a good idea as most people will driving be that close to your rear to look at roof they wont see your other lights maybe you could sneak a light behind your rear window or in the rubber seal ? Think you've got the lines just right 
deffo paint same cool colour what about a black roof liner ???
A 2016+ Mazda Miata 3rd brake light would blend in above the rear window. It is designed to be near level. I thas multiple LEDs. I added a motorcycle-syle flasher unit ($8) to mine - 6 quick flashes, 3 shorter, then steady to get followers attention.
That mazda one looks really nice. complimentary lines, etc, but the 5630 RED high wattage LED roll is already on route!
I am pretty sure i am going with a flush mount/stealth lens with a boatload of LEDs behind. (like the PDF i linked above).
so i taped the top on with painters tape and rolled it out into the sun to have a better look. i wasn't happy with how it sit on the car. minor stuff at this point, but i moved the top 1.25" forward and 3/4" down at the back. i tested the headroom and it's getting close for me. it was ~1.5" before adjustments.
in terms of metalwork - lots, but un-glorious stuff. lots of paint stripping, trimming and weld grinding. cut off the weatherstripping lip[ on the whole side / both sides.
i wear a full face N100 resperator and ear muffs.
before adjustment: a bit too far backwards...
before adjustment: a bit too high...
post adjustment:
you can see how much more forward it appears after trimming the front and rear bottom. should also note, that i needed to tweak the front line a little to fully hug the windshield/windscreen frame.
I also made several relief cuts on the lower rear part of the side window opening. i will add on some remaining metal i cut out to make this look as OEM as i can.
weather stripping on order - along with the LED's. i've been thinking about that rear brake light. i think i may go with what Oly suggested - behind the rear window. i'm going to mull this over a bit longer before cutting. it's a pretty easy mod
(welds all look like this now
that is all for now.
another round of trimming... i decided to lower the top a bit more (~1cm).
planning out the lower blends:
weather stripping arrived:
next up.... Welding and metal work to finish up the rear window, then the front support and blends.
i have some time blocked off this afternoon to get on this. 
window metalwork done!
You mentioned loosing some head room. When I did the beetle chop top. I remember I would take a bit off the rear bottom and "geometry" would raise it's ugly head :~)
MangoSmoothie.ca posted:window metalwork done!
Amazing, beautiful work in a home shop. Thanks again for sharing.
I have followed you with total amazement Mr. Smoothie !! This is the first top I've ever seen that actually looks good (perfect is better !). The lines and shape look as though this top is a natural for your car. All steel too, and from a VW bug ! I have seen a lot of superior craftsmanship in my life and this project rates at the top of my list for seemingly impossible one to accomplish. It's obvious that you posess a superior list of skills coming into play here. That list is a long one considering what you're doing.
I think you've got the shape down. I am certain you will continue to show and demonstrate your skills even more when you start joining and blending the top on to your car, working towards the final fit and finish. I am certain there will be no shortcuts taken to get to that finish either.
I really look forward to your posts and progress. Please keep them coming........Bruce
thanks Bruce. i enjoy building this kind of stuff. my day job is brain, my hobby is using my hands. it's a good balance.
minor tweak to window opening and a closer up shot of the side lower blend
stripped the upper side front blend and welded it partially in place. lots of measurements
i really feel i would benifit from a night class in photography. 
but you get the idea
truck canopy weather stripping. sticky on one side
and this is what is left from the beetle roof (so far)
and for those curious, i weighed it last night. 14.7kgs (~32 #'s)
and i really need to thank Oly again for the inspiration on this. your speedy is top shelf brother.
oh ya, and i've been thinking about the brake light setup. i have decided not to weld one into the top. not that it wouldnt be fun to do, but i feel like it would be too much (i don't want it to look like a spaceship from the rear)
i have the 4 x beehives, 1 x '32 ford STOP light, 1 LED brake light behind the grill and last winter i added two more (stop AND turn) LED's - mounted vertically behind the grill.
Looking pretty awesome, Paul! Love the way you've finished around the windows; I know how much work that is...
Damn impressive all the way through. Doubt I'll live long enough to get as good as you are now but I'mma try.
not a ton of progress this weekend. other priorities.
i did start on the front support. I modified the top front clips:
and then continued on the main support. i fabbed this up in 2 pieces and needed to add a 0.9mm extension in the middle. it's close:
i then heated the parts up that are right where the clips will mount and banged in two flat spots to allow for more clearance for the clips.
some really solid progress today.
the fit on the front windshield frame is down to 5mm along the whole thing. perfect for the weather stripping i bought.
i made three more rounds of trimming. each one slightly less than the one before.
round 2:
very minor trimming at the front
i took out the foam truck canopy seal and went with 3mm smooth pure rubber. i bought a role of it and glued it to the base plate.
anyway - pictures! (current state: round three trimming today.)
i have 1.25" of headroom without any seat adjustments.
i am so tempted to just weld and be finished with the try/remove/adjust/repeat... but it's worth waiting a day to two get it 100% perfect. once i get the base plate welded and the latched installed, it'll be downhill (good) fast!
i'm mulling what to do with the headliner. i am thinking about something totally off the wall as nobody will really ever see it as the car is stupid low and you'd essentially need to get on your knees to look up under the top.
thinking about having my (young) daughter design and paint me something.