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Top frame removal and repair

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wkilleffer

wkilleffer

Jedi Knight
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Back when it was still pretty cold around here, the crossmember of my top frame that runs above the rear window came loose on one side. PO fitted the top too small, so shrinkage took place and the extra pressure was more than the joint on that side could bear.

Looks like it would be easier to make a repair if the frame was removed from the car. The car's a 1974 MGB, and the frame is of the folding type. Anyone know how to remove it?

Also, the crossmember looks like it was fastened onto the frame at some point with screws that would have had a countersunk head, but I don't know what was holding it together when it broke. It might have been brazed, but I'm not sure. How would the top frame have been put together when it was new, and what's the best way to repair it?

I'm preparing to put a new top on the car sooner or later. Several of the lift-the-dots on the deck have broken off. How do you put new ones on?

I really want to ask more about possibly swapping the folding top frame for the take-apart one, but I'll save it for later.

As always, advice is appreciated.

Thank you,
-Bill
 
Bill - 3 long bolts on either side right where the frame folds - & they are long!
 
Ah yes, in some ways easier than it should have been...
The gist of it is that mine was attached with short bolts that required an allen wrench to remove. Also, the holes for the bolts were a bit wallowed out like this sort of thing has been done before and done incorrectly at that.

So, it's going to take some work to set things back to rights. Might even require a new-to-me top frame when the time comes.

Thank you,
-Bill
 
Bill:

Just FYI...

~My Car~ needed a new top and I disliked the folding 'scizzors-type" frame on mine (a '69). So I changed both at the same time. Very pleased with the change.

After a bit of hunting I found a take-a-part frame for about $75 (on a Canadian craiglist site).
It's more of a "job" to drop or raise the top now, but the old frame was really rough on the top material (sqeezing and folding it into tight spots).
 
Hey aeroncast,

I am leaning toward replacing this top frame with a take-apart frame. Seems they allow for more room inside the car. I don't have the top up all that often anyway.

-Bill
 
Remember, guys, the top frame that comes apart & goes in the trunk has a different top - its just a little higher than the folding top so the folding top doesn't exactly fit.
 
Tony,
I was wondering about that cause I'd seen how the tops were categorized in the Moss catalog.

My folding top frame is alot like certain other aspects of the rest of my car. It's been neglected and abused.

Sad thing about the top that's currently fitted is that it's not a cheap flimsy top, but a rather substantial canvas-seeming top that had to have been pricey when new. I'm trying to figure out how the PO managed to do such a poor job fitting it. Did they perhaps fit it on a really hot or really cold day? Either way, it was too tight and was already destructing when I got the car.
 
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