96 Blazer soft top idea

I own a '96 blazer 4x4 that i recently rolled over and just trashed the
roof and a quarter-panel that needed replacing anyways. It cranks up
and runs just fine and i absolutely refuse to take it to a junkyard so
i got the idea to have the roof cut off and have someone put a roll bar
from kinda like in a jeep but suited for my blazers frame and then have
a friend of mine make a soft top that just snaps onto the bars and side
of the vehicle. I was wanting to get some ideas from you guys on
whether or not this would be worth it, i personally think it would be
awesome to take the top off in the summer and just drive around in the
sun being that I live in Georgia and all. If i went through with this i
would also look at having all the carpet taken out and just rhino line
it. Any ideas/comments would be cool guys thanks.

sounds like a great idea


"Invictus" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I own a '96 blazer 4x4 that i recently rolled over and just trashed the
> roof and a quarter-panel that needed replacing anyways. It cranks up
> and runs just fine and i absolutely refuse to take it to a junkyard so
> i got the idea to have the roof cut off and have someone put a roll bar
> from kinda like in a jeep but suited for my blazers frame and then have
> a friend of mine make a soft top that just snaps onto the bars and side
> of the vehicle. I was wanting to get some ideas from you guys on
> whether or not this would be worth it, i personally think it would be
> awesome to take the top off in the summer and just drive around in the
> sun being that I live in Georgia and all. If i went through with this i
> would also look at having all the carpet taken out and just rhino line
> it. Any ideas/comments would be cool guys thanks.
>

If done with taste, it could work. If You plan on cutting all the down way
to like a Ramcharger, You would have to fab something to cover where you cut
the body, as well as new places for your seat belt shoulder harnesses.

If you plan on just cutting the top, you would still need to cap off the cut
areas.

Also, if Your Blazer is a unibody vehicle, it depends on the body as much as
the "frame" for the structural integrity of the vehicle. You'll need to
install some "frame" braces, such as sub-frame connectors, ect. I'd also
advise two roll bars. One for the front seats, one for the rear seats. The
bars should be tied into the body as well, to add to overall structural
integrity of the truck.

The last thing is how to seal that top from leaking in the rain/snow/wind,
ect. My only idea is to put the snaps about 1" down the side of the truck
from the top, with, a rubber seal running along the top to seal. The snaps
would hold the top stretched against the rubber seal, to prevent air/water
from entering. If You get heavy snow the top may collapse.

Not to mention any inspections that may/may not be required by your
city/count/state.

Sounds like if it is well planned it could be a very cool project!

HTH, let us know what you end up doing with it!

Carl



"Invictus" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I own a '96 blazer 4x4 that i recently rolled over and just trashed the
> roof and a quarter-panel that needed replacing anyways. It cranks up
> and runs just fine and i absolutely refuse to take it to a junkyard so
> i got the idea to have the roof cut off and have someone put a roll bar
> from kinda like in a jeep but suited for my blazers frame and then have
> a friend of mine make a soft top that just snaps onto the bars and side
> of the vehicle. I was wanting to get some ideas from you guys on
> whether or not this would be worth it, i personally think it would be
> awesome to take the top off in the summer and just drive around in the
> sun being that I live in Georgia and all. If i went through with this i
> would also look at having all the carpet taken out and just rhino line
> it. Any ideas/comments would be cool guys thanks.
>

"Invictus" <[email protected]> writes in article <[email protected]> dated 10 Jan 2005 09:56:43 -0800:
>I own a '96 blazer 4x4 that i recently rolled over and just trashed the
>roof and a quarter-panel that needed replacing anyways. It cranks up
>and runs just fine and i absolutely refuse to take it to a junkyard so
>i got the idea to have the roof cut off and have someone put a roll bar
>from kinda like in a jeep but suited for my blazers frame and then have
>a friend of mine make a soft top that just snaps onto the bars and side
>of the vehicle. I was wanting to get some ideas from you guys on
>whether or not this would be worth it, i personally think it would be
>awesome to take the top off in the summer and just drive around in the
>sun being that I live in Georgia and all. If i went through with this i
>would also look at having all the carpet taken out and just rhino line
>it. Any ideas/comments would be cool guys thanks.

I removed the roof from a number of beater cars in my day, so I feel
well-qualified to advise on the subject.

You "should" weld something pretty solid across each point between doors.
For a 4-door model that's 1 bar between the front and back doors and 1
between the back door and "bed", if you even remove that part of the roof.
If you're going to continue your off-road adventures you might even consider
an X somewhere in there to make triangles. If you're just making a sunroof
above the front seats you don't need to add anything.

If the cover has any flat parts, they will turn into pools of water in the
rain. I used to cover my chop-tops with a tarp secured by bungee cords and
park it facing uphill so that the water would run down off the back.

Once I got trapped at work by a very heavy rainstorm. I waited a while but
it didn't let up, so I closed the front doors on the 2 front corners of the
tarp, which held it pretty solidly, and left the back bungee cords in place.
You would think that I couldn't use the rear-view mirror with a tarp behind
me, wouldn't you? As it turned out, when I got the car going there was an
updraft. At first the tarp flapped a lot, but when I got it up to 40 MPH
the back end was just stretched as high as the cords would let it, and I had
a clear view out of where the back window used to be.

The best tool for roof removal is probably a reciprocating saw with a
long-enough metal-cutting blade. I have also used torches and circular
saws, but they tend to do more collateral damage (hot metal raining down on
the interior).

Vacuum thoroughly before driving. You don't want metal shards in your eyes.
I'd actually recommend enclosed safety glasses for the first 100 miles, just
in case you missed some.

-- spud_demon -at- thundermaker.net
The above may not (yet) represent the opinions of my employer.