One of the many Cam vert owners chiming in claimed a new top put on in 8 hours. I mentioned this to my work buddy who offers his services for cash. He says he thinks it's less time and thought that was odd. Also still curious if you did it as a one-man job, for real!
Bill

 

did your work buddy take in to consideration the amount of time it will take to remove all the old glue off of the frame work? yea i could have done the top in less then 8 hours ,but in my opinion, to do the job right you just can't go tearing off the old top,there are alot of things you actually have to dissasemble, to get to even that point. and unless you want to buy new weatherstripping, you have to be gentle taking that off to.i thought i did pretty good getting the top done in 8 hours,by myself, but don't let anyone rush the job,because you could actually put the thing on to tight,you have to trim the very fornt of the top (ie ) over the windshield, you also have to cut it so the corners look right and the top close's , as i said this was my first attempt ever at a convertible top install, bu t some things i don't think you want to rush, take your time and in the end the effort will show.

 

I do have worn weather stripping but no money for that refurb job, I'd likely reglue the tear back together for a quick fix as it's still intact. The rear bow's contact point has no plastic protection so it's worn from rubber to metal/paint contact. I'm generally surprised you did this w/o assistance as my top being 50 inches was debatible (sp?). How'd you manage pulling ends taut?
BILL

 

i started in the back, the top had kind of a pocket that slid over the bottom bow ,i think they call it bow 5 in all the insturctions, but i started in the back,glued it , i actually had the frame like it would be as if the top were up ,but not latched once you glue the back, i had some plastic squeeze clamps and clamped about 5 across the back.the top itself at this point was laying over the frame.the next step was where the top attached on the sides behind both doors,be really acreful when you pull this weather stripping loose,mine was really fragile. its not only glued its in a track.once you have the weatherstripping off theres a meatl brace with three screws,take the screws out and the brace off ,then you can peel the top away from the side, on bow i believe 2 and three there are 4 screws , unscrew them, there is a flat bar they attch to that is supposed to be in a pocket in the top.but getting back on how i got it snug, was after the back i did the sides once the glue on the back .it;s kind off like baby steps, do the back,then go to one side,then the other, then the next bow in line,its a good idea to get some plastic clamps ,to hold the top as the glur dries,i actually waited to the next day to do the very font above the windshieid,i belive if your friend from work dry fits the top it will all come together,you will see basicly where the top should be.you will have to punch some hols on through the top three on each side and on the two bows where the flat bar is. i used a sharp awl, also for glue napa recomended vinyl top adhesive, it worked great but it came in a spray can,so i got a small plastic tupperware container and sprayed it in there and applied the glue with a parts washer brush ,to get the old glue off i simply used goof off, it worked great,just make sure your in a well venalated area.i don't know if the article is still there or not ,but in the tech section there was a guy who showed a step by step instruction,with pictures and it was a firebird,he also did it himself, check the teck section on this board,i also printed the whole article out and kept it close by as i did my top for a reference. good luck with your install,and by all means post some pics when you get it done.

 

Thanks, man!
Some insightful advice. How'd you manage the old glue removal?
I don't have a rivet device either but the spring clips sound good
I know that's where my problems started. I had a couple holes internally patched on the pass. side 'sail' panel as well.
I had duct tape used to tape to the last bow and it's still stuck to the metal. Rather then work over that, should I remove it somehow? I imagine some fun with that!
Bill

 

...I notice you mention Goof Off? is it. I know of a Goo B Gone type product, but instructions state a heat gun used to remove and/or loosen orig adhesive.
I have the drivers side stripping half on/half off (stuck in the rail of the metal guide but it comes out on it's own, towards the bottom. I took a few shots of the inside top frame people have seen here too
BILL

 

This might help as well:

http://sethirdgen.org/convertibletop.htm

 

I'd have to inverse the black but hopefully can print that out. Very helpful, but I have no headliner I'm aware of
BILL

 

thats the tech article i went buy, the one frobozz posted for you,the adhesive remover i used i bought at wal-mart and it is called goof off, it was like $3.00 for a 16oz can, that should be more than enough, and you do not need a heat gun to activate it i just used an old parts washer brush and brushed it on and then wiped it off with a damp rag, time consuming ,but it worked really well, my top old top looked just like yours does now,it took me alot of saving to get the new top everytime i thought i had the money,something else came up, i really could not afford to pay anyone to do it,thats why i did it myself,your car is going to look great when you get the top on.i don't know about firebird verts, but i did not have any kind of rivots at all in my old top, just alot of old glue and screws.if i lived near you i would help you put the top on for free, but as it stands now, i probaly have to take my vert off the road for a while, my rear main engine seal is starting to leak and i need to replace it.

 

I found Goof Off at ACE Hardware as well, That was a surprise. Also bought some flexible primer for my Firebird nose, a hardened squeegie for stickers and headliner project of mine (Cadillac as well) I got three small rubberized metal spring clips, though I suspect I may need more. For the glue, I still need to look... What are some extra choices. I have a NAPA at the far end of town
Bill

 

i don't know what part of minnesota you are in ,but our corporate offices and customer service dept are in burnsville mn. i work for northern tool and equipment, they have stores all over minnesota, i am also fortunate they have stores all over the south as well in my home town, i work out of the distribution center, but i got my plastic clamps, 20 off them in a container ,two different sizes, for under five bucks. at one of the northern stores.

 

AWESOME link.

Thanks for that info! Righteous car pictured in those instructions BTW.

 

heres a pic of the finished 8 hour install, the thread in the above post is what i went by, very informative. the tech board on here has some great articles, there was also one on how to redo door panels, again i followed the article and i redid my door panels and they turned out great. thirdgen.org rocks

 

Any more angles and closer pics?
BTW, I got three clamps, Can you pin point clamp locations...unless I missed em in the article, I have to print out yet


I'm not sure how I can edit that whole article to print it, don't want to print it in black as I need my ink reserved
-B

 

My firend is still 'booked solid' so I may try to tackle on my own, but no luck with glue, what alternatives are good/known choices? I'm actively looking and the spray I picked up for repair a saggin headliner (3M spray-glue) is not actually the right spray for the intended job I needed, but sounds similar to the spray glue in question. It was $12.70 locally, and the only thing they had on hand.
I looked in the other close parts store, they had exclusive selection of Permatex brand adhesives, not sure if anything there is right, or glue-all alternives I looked at while in Target. They have a close out on those items.
I'd like input on this, thanks!
ALSO, where are those holes I need to punch?, next to rivits and glue, those are the most worrysome aspect for me, the novice! I can't figure a way to print the article yet, but have new ink on hand. Help requested there as well
BILL

 

hi bill, for glue i used 3 m vinyl top adhesive. i bought it at a napa auto parts store. the holes i had to punch are on the two bows , there are two pockets on your new top that a small flat bar fits inside of ,there is also a channel in the bows that the bar slides into, its not as bad as it sounds, there are 4 screw in each bar, the picture below is not that good but it is of one of the bows and you can see the screws im talking about, both pockets in my old top were rotted away, therefore when i drove down the road the top bubbled up several inches , i actually had little kids pointing and laughing , but the purpose of the pocket and and flat bar is to keep your top from bubbling up and have little kids laugh at you.

 

there is a metal piece on each side that has three holes in,attached with screws, your weather stripping slides into a channel on these,after you carefully remove the weather stripping you will see the screws , after you glue the top here, you will have to punch three new holes through the top, again not as bad as it sounds, i did it by feel ,you can feel where the holes are drilled thriugh the car, i used a big sewing needle to find the holes, i still cant think of any rivots though unless your talking about the the two wide straps that are attached to the number 4 bow and run the the front of the top, you don't have to remove these to put your top on , but i remember now that thre is a cable that runs through them, when you take the plastic trim of on the front where the two top release handles are you will see the screws for the cables, again thet was fairly easy ,you just have to feed them through the side pockets in your new top, the below picture is the side pieces right behind the doors i was talking about where your going to have to punch the three holes.

 

mods , if i am breaking the three pic rule please let me know, i am keeping my pics as small as possable. bill the hardest part i had was at the very front of the top, you have to trim the top to look right where it goes over the windshield ,you have to trom around the hold down latches as well, again take your time ,its not that bad. i have a pic of mine below for you . i did not know how long it would take me ,because i took my time . i did mine on my vacation so i did not have to rush. forgot to add the pic , i better wait to see if its ok as i have already posted three pics on this post.

 

I've been waiting for some decent weather, while we had three days above 60, now been nixed with rain for 48 hrs and cold air returning...UGHHH
I did get pics of my most recent project, adding 350 Formula decals to my car... as I mention over in the History/Rest. section
I checked NAPA as well as two other stores in my 'town', as mentioned, products for things like convertibles are VERY hard to locate. I might try GM dealer as well for suggestions and qoutes. There are bigger NAPA stores a further distance. Part of my problem is the rear decklid being hit back. I took some shots showing it as it lies, not latched, though I think it still can... I just use the natural tension of the supports, not an issue having it locked down (it's been parked for a time)
BILL

 

Another view...
BTW, I've looked the new top over, I'm curious as to white pencil markings, but I see the sewed in seam/pocket, to which you refer. There was actually some string tied to my second bow! Seemed a make do fix previously tried. Notice here too, where the spoiler ends has come off. I started another thread for advice on these...
-B

 

I did mine in about three hours, that included stripping the old roof and glue. It is quite easy to do. I bought contact adhesive from Home Depot.

Would quite happily do another one.


Alex

 

The 3M stuff I got for my headliner problem was spendy, at at the time, the only thing this place had (Champion Auto, IIRC) and I'd like a name of product or products as alternives, if you can provide
Bill

 

Bump for a neat thread.

 

Advise on tips before bumping, dude. I'm encouraged to try my hand but when it comes to glue, especially on a top you need to hold intact down the road, who knows how fast, there's not much room for error!
I'm glad I don't need to worry about rivets, but am still 'glueless' hehe
We got on and off rain now in the immediate forecast, but great temps for the week. It doesn't help me much with no garage, however. I did notice some squeeking behind me, I put it down to the top separating to the extent it has, leaving the frame in back w/o reinforcement. If I can deal with my lid/trunk hatch problem, it will certainly aid my repair. I'll be examining that and taking shots along the way. I did buy a set of spring clips to use again, a bit smaller, but a good deal at the Target store here (closeouts)

Bill