Blazer Top - Need A Lil Help

[LUV2XCLR8]

Well I Am Fixin To Tear My Top Apart And Start On It, I Have
Talked To A Local Boat Shop About Doing Some Work On It 4
Me, I've Done A Search And Did Not Come Up With Anything On
Removing The Windows From My Double Wall Top, So How Do
You Do It, Is It Easy Enough A Idiot Can Do It, Thanks, Luv

[Alexis]

My guess would be the cut the grommet edges out and push the window out....i don't think you're going to be able to save the grommet, I'm sorry.

[LUV2XCLR8]

Somehow I just knew you would reply, I will say that is not what I wanted
to here, So basically you trash the seals to save the glass, that sucks.

[Alexis]

you're talking to a guy would trashed his top cause he was haven a bad day.........fck it.


i still have the glass in the fiberglass peices from the top and they don't seem to be OE grommet on them.

Once again, I'm sorry for the loss ..........i feel like a doctor saying that.

[LUV2XCLR8]

Hmmm, Just Was Thinking To My Self, How Do You Put The New Seals
And Glass In, Would It Not Be Close To The Same Way As Removing It

[Alexis]

nah...never works that way....or for me

but good question. Most grommets at first are soft and easy to work with, if they've seen the light of day and hardened up like the ones on my "pieced apart" top then I find no luck in trying to salvage them. goodluck.

[71RestoRod]

I got all three of my hatch windows out with the grommets intact... just worked them slowly from the inside out & had the wife standing outside to hold the glass. As far as I know the rubber was the original. I can't remember exactly... but knowing how I do things I probably soaped up the rubber first. (Of course when I got to the windshield it basically exploded on me...)

[teeitup]

I bought new rubbers for mine, to me they seem to look better, not weathered. BUT I'm not taking them out and putting them back in, my bodyman is doing that.

[LUV2XCLR8]

Thanks Guys, I Will Try The Soap Trick, If I Must Buy New Ones Then
So Be It, I Am Only Going To Run Top If I Go To A Show More Than 2
Hours From Home, It Will Stay In The Garage Most Of The Time.

[meathead95]

if you dont mind how much did the boat shop quote you? what all are they going to do?

[LUV2XCLR8]

Originally Posted by meathead95

if you dont mind how much did the boat shop quote you? what all are they going to do?

IT IS A OPEN ENDED QUOTE, IN OTHER WORDS, NO IDEA, THEY ARE GOING
TO REPAIR SEVERAL SMALL HOLES FROM WHAT LOOKED LIKE A ROOF RACK,
IT IS TRYING TO SPLIT A LIL DOWN THE SEEM, THEY ARE GOING TO FIX IT,
I HAV A SPARE HATCH, IT NEEDS GELL COATING, AND FROM THERE I'M NOT
SURE, THEY SAID THEY ARE DEAD RIGHT NOW & IT WOULD BE REASONABLE

[blazer1971]

When you replace the windows use the rope technique they use when repacing the windshield. Soap and rope, I have used it several times in the past.

[LUV2XCLR8]

Originally Posted by blazer1971

When you replace the windows use the rope technique they use when repacing the windshield. Soap and rope, I have used it several times in the past.

IS THAT ANYTHING LIKE SOAP ON A ROPE

J/K WITH YA, I HAVE NEVER USED THAT TECHNIQUE B4

[pound41]

If you are going to have the windows out replace the seals. Both of my blazers used to suck in the winter time to drive the windows always fogged up The sides and back were replaced with all the window seals. Nice clean windows in the winter what a joy. . The old ones were hard and they allowed outside air to come in and condensated on the windows

[meathead95]

i have a pretty nice dw top here for 100 if yah want it

[72CSTC5]

Fix the top yourself. I can walk you through it and tell you exactly what products to use and how to repair it. What do you mean by re-gelcoating the top. They will have to retexture the entire top again too if they do that. Do you want your top smooth or textured? Just a thought to save you money, plus from what I have read on the board of you, you are hands on like me. I don't want anyone else touching my Blazer. Selfish I know but......

[LUV2XCLR8]

Originally Posted by 72CSTC5

Just a thought to save you money, plus from what I have read on the board of you, you are hands on like me. I don't want anyone else touching my Blazer. Selfish I know but......

I am learning to be hands on, have never done this stuff before, I have a new
hatch and it was bead blasted , it will need to be re-gel coated and I
am not sure what is involved with that, the PO painted the top inside and out
black, OE was white, what is the best thing to take of the paint with

[72CSTC5]

If none of the paint is flaking off that the PO put on than you are okay. You just need to scuff sand the paint inside and out with a 3M scotch brite sanding pads so you do not remove the original texture off of the top. As far as the rear hatch is it smooth right now? If it is then you are going to need to re-texture the hatch. SEMS brand makes a good texture spray. Play with it a little bit and you can match your texture pretty darn close. It also comes in a spray aerosol so no need for additional equipment. The cracks you referred to inside the top you can use 3M's panel bonding adhesive. Sand both mating edges thoroughly and squirt in the panel bonding adhesive and smooth it in afterwards with your finger like caulking to smooth it out. You will need to buy 3M's gun however to apply the adhesive. You can go back over the caulk too with texture when it dries and voila! Now painting the top, if you have a spray gun you can do that too. Primer any areas needed, spray texture the area, seal the area with some sealer, spray your white basecoat and then topcoat with PPG's flat clearcoat so that you have some UV protection from the sun on the outside of the top. Inside you should be okay and save a step and some cost. If you have any other questions let me know and if you need exact numbers on products I'll call my paint store.

[LUV2XCLR8]

Thanks For The Advice, I'm Not Wanting To Repaint It, I Want It The
Oe White, But Thanks For All The Tips On The Other Stuff, Big Help

[72CSTC5]

Oops my bad. I thought you said it was black and you wanted it white.

[LUV2XCLR8]

Originally Posted by 72CSTC5

Oops my bad. I thought you said it was black and you wanted it white.

It was spray painted black, OE color is white.

[sganje]

how well does that 3M panel bonding adhesive work? My hatch is just about to fall off the hinges. Is it repairable? Somebody also mounted some sort of canoe rack or something and if I remove it then I will have some holes on top. Are they repairable? Any help would be appreciated. later

[72CSTC5]

Yup you can use 3M panel bonding adhesive for that too. We use it here in the Chevrolet Dealer I work at to bond quarter panels and rear body panels and roofs to cars but also works well when we bond on door skins on corvettes and camaros and also used to repair bumper covers. I have never had the product fail. I had a car return that we bonded both quarters and rear body panel and he got hit exactly the same at 50 mph and never broke loose. Let me know if you have and pics of your hatch and I can tell you how to repair it best.

[sganje]

i will get some pics this weekend and see if I can figure out how to post them.

[mister.freeze]

Might you have the first 10 inches or so from that top?

Originally Posted by Alexis

you're talking to a guy would trashed his top cause he was haven a bad day.........fck it.


i still have the glass in the fiberglass peices from the top and they don't seem to be OE grommet on them.

Once again, I'm sorry for the loss ..........i feel like a doctor saying that.