Making a fiberglass hard top for my T-top?

A

alamosaddles

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Jun 9, 2008
Messages
104
I'm interested in replacing the canvas cover on my T-top with a fiberglass hard cover/top. Is this something that anyone here has made/done before? Am I looking at a monumental task? I have some exp. with fiberglass, I re-did a boat floor and some stringers before, but that was some 5 or 6 years ago. Any comments?
 
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jonesg

Admiral
Joined
Feb 22, 2008
Messages
7,174
Re: Making a fiberglass hard top for my T-top?

For a T top I'd use blue extruded foam , either glass it directly with epoxy/cloth or sheet with formica and trim edges with wood, embed ply hard points for mounting inside the foam.
A soldering gun with shaped wire (coat hanger works) is a quick way to make cut outs, use a wooden former to prevent the hot wire sinking too deep.

Blue foam a bit heavier than the pink stuff but more rigid and resistant to flutter at speed when sheeted.
I lean towards the formica type covering, no sanding needed.
 
erikgreen

erikgreen

Captain
Joined
Jan 8, 2007
Messages
3,105
Re: Making a fiberglass hard top for my T-top?

Note that folks have said elsewhere that the blue and pink foams are too low density for even minor structural work, and will delaminate from the glass they are attached to (see KnottyBuoyz' work here and on boatdesign.com).

I personally am using a thin plywood core, but you could use polyurethane sheet insulation too. Or go with a non cored design... use MDF and filler to make a mold, smooth and fair, coat with wax and PVA, then pull your own custom molded fiberglass top out. It's a relatively simple shape, so it should be a relatively easy mold to make. Just big :)

Erik
 
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jonesg

Admiral
Joined
Feb 22, 2008
Messages
7,174
Re: Making a fiberglass hard top for my T-top?

erikgreen said:
Note that folks have said elsewhere that the blue and pink foams are too low density for even minor structural work, and will delaminate from the glass they are attached to (see KnottyBuoyz' work here and on boatdesign.com).

I personally am using a thin plywood core, but you could use polyurethane sheet insulation too. Or go with a non cored design... use MDF and filler to make a mold, smooth and fair, coat with wax and PVA, then pull your own custom molded fiberglass top out. It's a relatively simple shape, so it should be a relatively easy mold to make. Just big :)

Erik
Click to expand...


I guess glassing straight onto foam would be a problem, unless you lay out flat sheets of cloth/resin, then after it cures stick that to the foam with contact cement (water base), that wouldn't come loose.
 
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