John M Posted September 29, 2011 Report Share Posted September 29, 2011 My car has been at the upholsterers getting a new top. He/we have worked out some small problems, I had to make a bracket that was broken. He is putting the top on and the back bow is not straight. This is the bow right above the rear glass. It seems to be bent, I say it is designed that way. my man says it was bent somehow. It is bent forward more than an inch. I don't know. His concern is the back seam will not be on the bow like most verts. Are these like most....or not?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MemphisMan Posted September 30, 2011 Report Share Posted September 30, 2011 The bar is directly under the seam on my vert. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John M Posted September 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2011 And it looks straight too. It would take a lot to bend that steel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaxie500XL Posted September 30, 2011 Report Share Posted September 30, 2011 Looks more to me like he started at the front, and worked his way back....and the seam now doesn't meet up with the bow. I'm no expert here, but my understanding is you work from the back to the front, to avoid an unfortunate alignment problem. It COULD be bent, but that seems much less likely than the explaination I gave...if you could give a measurement, say from the center of the large bolt, back to the front of the bow, we could always compare with the measurement on our cars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MemphisMan Posted September 30, 2011 Report Share Posted September 30, 2011 I would hope that his shop would know to start from the back. I can't think of a reason to start from the front on any top install, regardless of make/model. Could the new top have been cut/sewn incorrectly? An oversized Prom Queen riding in a parade might bend the bar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOT2B GM Posted September 30, 2011 Report Share Posted September 30, 2011 hahahaha oversized prom queen nice. Yeah the way the tops go on, you start at the #4 bow and work forward. If it IS bent, I would go ahead and try and bend it back before dismantling anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOT2B GM Posted September 30, 2011 Report Share Posted September 30, 2011 I put this top on myself, seam lines up with #4 bow which appears straight Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John M Posted October 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 Just now getting to check in( long days on Fri.). My man has started from the rear and is concerned about the alignment. Which even when stretched tight it will be at least an inch short from bow or below bow from back. Supersized PQ would not bend it up. Unless there were one on each side with something sturdy in middle in trunk. The bar is bent towards the front of car. Because finding a replacement or straightening a hollow tube will be hard I am going to tell him to finish the install. And if things are bad we will work them out later. He also thinks the top had already been replaced. What would happen if the top opened at speed??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MemphisMan Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 Yeah, didn't think about the bar being bent forward (vice back), so a lot of weight couldn't have caused it. But wouldn't the top opening at speed bend the bar the same way as a prom queen? I can't say for sure, but if that bar was bent like that because the top opened at speed, you'd have weaker points on the top that would've been bent or even broken. You'd also have serious alignment problems...like where the top frame and windshield meet. There are several pics on this site where people have done top installs and you can see portions of their top frames. You might be able to do a comparison to your frame and possibly spot any issues. It might not be the bar is bent, but something else is bent somewhere else on the frame that's causing the issue. Who supplied your new top? Could it have been cut wrong? Good luck with it. I'm glad you're on this site...I had semi-serious thoughts about buying your car when it was on eBay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White93z34 Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 I know nothing about convertibles but could it be that that bar is installed backwards? it looks like it just bolts in, so maybe remove it and flip it around? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MemphisMan Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 John, did you notice if the old top was the same way? If it wasn't, then it could be that the new top was mis-cut. That would be a case where the top shop would blame it on a bent top frame so they don't have to eat the cost of a defective top. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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