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Patrick67BJ8

Patrick67BJ8

Obi Wan
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I am purchasing a HardTop for my BJ8 and will be picking it up at the Conclave in San Diego. The Top is being made by a company in UK by the name of Nical Engineering and I'm saving a lot of shipping money since it will be coming over with other Tops and stuff. In addition to Tops for all Healeys the company has lot's of other stuff.
Please PM me for additional info.
Patrick
 
There's a website but no information on it.
All BJ7 & BJ8 Factory Tops were custom fitted because each car is different. I understand from other purchasers that it is not for a novice to try and fit, however if it's done correctly, it is the best fitting of all the Tops.
I have a friend who purchased a Top from another company in the UK and had problems with fit, etc, and had to make his own side window seals. The Nical Top is supposed to be the closest to the original from what other purchasers have told me.
Patrick
 
The Nical top uses the original molds (from what I know) and it is a very nice top. However, as stated it is NOT easy to get on. Mine has been on for about 5 years and my original plan was to have a hoist in my barn to take it on and off-it's never been off. The instruction manual I got with mine was less than satisfactory. The owner at Nical was good to deal with, and I got the opportunity to learn how to ship large objects into the US and introduce myself to the US Customs Service. Fortunately I imported mine prior to 9/11-I'm sure it's harder to do now. The end result is worth it!
 
The NICAL top on my BN2 required hours of fitting to the body contours. Getting the aluminum framed side screens to fit was whole large project in itself. It was very nicely finished in OEW gel coat & didn't even require painting.

The back light was shipped loose & oversized. A whole lot of tedious trimming & fitting to get it installed.

I ended up with a perfect top to body fit, no thick gaskets or weather strip.

Glad I did it ONCE, not so sure about doing it again.

Pic attached,
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"The Nical top uses the original molds (from what I know) and it is a very nice top."

There were no "original" tops for 100's--rather aftermarket ones that copied the low roadster roofline with corresponding small side curtain openings. The NICAL 100 top is taken from the original tops supplied for the two-seater 6-cylinder cars, shortened between the A and B pillars to reflect the shorter 100 doors. It uses a different side curtain (supplied by NICAL) and to my eye, gives a much more pleasant appearance.

A search in the archives under NICAL should pull up the rather extensive string that existed when Dave and I were fitting our tops.
 
Dave Russell said:
Nick Freeman - NICAL Engineering, UK has a web site. There is not much on it & nothing has been added for several years.
https://www.nicalengineering.co.uk/
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Click to expand...
PM me if anyone wants his literature and price lists. Very current! I pre-ordered my BJ8 HardTop and will pick it up at Conclave and maybe some other "got to have" parts too.
Patrick
 
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