injdinjn

Did/does anyone make a hardtop for the 3rd gen firebird ASC verts. glass or steel.

okfoz

Honestly, I have considered making them... I was thinking of taking a splash off of the top of a hardtop car I have... but that was 3 years ago and... well... it never happened.

Unfortunately as far as I know there is none on the market, but to tickle your fancy, here are some sketches I made a while back:








https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/conv...-hard-top.html

Of course it was a mental journey... I know how I would do it, but its one of those things that time is not on my side... If I had someone to do it for me I think it would happen quicker...

IF you ever find something, let me know...

John

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

Thats so cool! I would consider buying one if they were ever made available.

injdinjn

LOL
I like the top one, the middle is too T birdish.
Actually I was thinking of using a conv top for the mold, using all the frame work for frame work. Just have to design a quick connect for the pivot area behind the B piller. and just use aftermarket rear window.
Actually using the hard top for the top mold would look better then intragate the conv top frame work.

okfoz

When I was considering it I was considering of making the top slip down into the big holes (behind the doors where the top frame comes through) and then have it plug into the rear center hole and then have two clamps on the front where the factory clamps were, that way I am using the factory mounting points.

- Make from either Epoxy resin Fiberglas or carbon fiber ( epoxy has many advantages over polyester as polyester resins tend to warp and not hold their shape as well ) Take a splash off of a hard top car to start with ( I actually have a parts car I could use with a straight top ) A FIREBIRD hard top to take from would be better than a Camaro as the Firebird would sit better on the car than the camaro. If you ever look at the cars the sail panels are different enough for some issues to arise....

- Use the window seals from a Hard top, cut them off where they met the seals for the convertible... And use the factory hatch seal for the bottom seal along the tonueau cover...

- Rear Window would be made from Plexiglas (Aircraft grade) 3/16" thick, Clear would be the cheapest, but a light green or Gray or even a dark gray would not be out of the question... The Green is similar to the factory green windows in our cars, a little darker, but not much.

-Use a Factory headliner ( cut down of course ) as I thought about that aspect it may be better off to just make a different headliner out of cardboard and then cover it. Shaping the cardboard would not be hard as all you would need to do is steam it (to make it pliable) and then smash it down on a mold. Cover it with Black, Gray Red or brown materials... I considered leaving the board uncovered, and let people chose what color they wanted by taking it to a local upholstery shop. Sail panels would be made the same as the headliner...

- Even thought about extra lighting, you could plug in for a dome light

All in all it would be a pain, but not impossible, it would take time, and some effort, using a hard top car as a base for the mold would be the easiest way to start from, but you are talking about several steps to get there...

By the time I figured out the number of cars and the potential interest I would have to charge at least $1500 to $2500 for the tops... that pretty much put me in a pickle, I would like to have one, but then again I am pretty sure the market would be pretty small for something like that for that price... They would be made one at a time, it would take about a week to finish each one, as they would be hand made.

injdinjn

I agree, a lot of work and not enough demand to make any money off it.

Guess I'll look around for a 4 pt roll bar I can take in and out without too much hassle. Only want it for racing.

musclecar70sfan

iTrader: (1)

Hey I'd love to get a hardtop for my car. Didn't they make those for C4 verts? Has anyone considering modifying those hard tops for thirdgens or are the dimensions just way off?

And okfoz, I think the first picture looks best on your car and camaros. The peep hole on the 2nd one is out of the question and the 3rd one might look better with the curvier 91-92 birds. That's just my opinion. And hey, if the price would be right, I'd definitely buy one of those. I wonder how difficult it would be to have a defogger on the rear window of that hardtop?

rapid rods

Hey , you are exposing my next project , RAPID DESIGN ,will produce one of these hardtop verts ,with a radical twist . Then we can make them for sale ,cheapish but good. I think initially it will be a fixed hardtop !!!! (Page ONE in the gallery (1 RAPID 1)!!!!

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

The first top pic looks like a Buick Reatta's roof. Which is good since it is a nice looking car. Sortta like the Firebird is its "big daddy"

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Here is a pic of a Reatta's side profile I found on the net so you see what I mean.

musclecar70sfan

iTrader: (1)

Say what? For real?

TimeTraveller

When I first saw this thread, I wasn't too sure about the idea, but the illustrations have changed my mind! I like the bottom one, the lines just seem to work better.

TT

Iroctopless

For myself, if I ever drove my ride in a Canadian winter (which I never would), I can see it making some sense. But for all the other seasons the regular top does just fine. Also, if I had it and wanted it off, what would I do with the dang thing? Especially if I wasn't home and got the urge to remove it.
Also, no matter how light it could be engineered, I can still see it being a two person job to take it on and off. Even if you could lift it without busting your back, all it would take is one little slip to damage the body paint or worse.
In my personal opinion, it wouldn't be something practicle to take on and off unless it's only a couple times a year or seasonally. Much like most owners on the Jeep Wrangler's do.
Now if it was a retractable hard top!
Far more complicated engineering.

As for the rear defogger, that would be easy. I'd design it to have one multipurpose connection to link the roof to the car's electricle system. It may also need to carry a ground(s) as the roof/car connection wouldn't likely be a reliable path back to the battery's "-".
Multipurpose because then you could design a wiring harness to take advantage of some cool options like overhead map & interior lights, drop video screens, integrated power sunroof (on a vert!!!), plus tons more in addition to the rear defog.

injdinjn

For the 55-57 t birds and the vettes they made a lightweight hoist to lift the top that hung from the rafters in a garage or carport.

loneroad

iTrader: (3)

didnt the vettes have both? soft top folded down, and then the hard top went over it?

that would be the trick. leave the hard top at home, but if you run into rain, you can put the soft top up.

IWANNAROCAGAIN

I totally agree with you on that! New York winters can hit you with a mother load of snow, and unfortunately I do not have a garage at this time, so a hard top in the winter would be sweet!!!

watajob

iTrader: (29)

I think it's a great idea! I'd bite. I'm no engineer at all but I'm wondering if finding a wrecked hardtop with a good roof would be a good starting point. Slice it off where it needs to be, add on to lower rear for a window frame and Voila! I know there's enough talented people on here that could pull this off. Might be a little heavy but nothing the aforementioned chain hoist couldn't handle. Or 2 people. BTW, 1st pic gets my vote.

okfoz

I would think the steel roof would be too heavy, A fiberglass or carbon fiber with a Plexiglas rear window would be idea... Or aluminum... But Aluminum manufacturing would require more heavy equipment...

I think to take a hard top, take a splash and make a prototype from there would be a good way to go... All in all its a lot of work...

Fortunately I actually know how I would tackle it, I have thought about almost all of it, down to the seals, headliner and the rear windows... unfortunately I do not have the time or the overwhelming desire to do so... Maybe some day, but not now.

John