Hardtop fix

[Thepepenator]

I have seen some posts about fixing hardtops but all are cracks.

my too broke from a corner... any recommendations on how to fix it or what kind of shop to take it to? I have 0 experience working with fiberglass

 

[mrblaine]

I have seen some posts about fixing hardtops but all are cracks.

my too broke from a corner... any recommendations on how to fix it or what kind of shop to take it to? I have 0 experience working with fiberglass

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And when you get done with that repair, you will still have 0 experience working with fiberglass since it is SMC and not fiberglass. Look up SMC repairs to see the differences.

 

[tworley]

I repaired several cracks in an old hardtop using USC SMC Repair which was pretty easy to work with (Ive never done any sort of body work before). Your damage doesnt look bad

 

[OHFIVETJ]

Take it to a guy who does Corvette repairs / restorations, if there is one near you. They probably know how to work that stuff better then anyone even though it's not glass the technique is most likely the same or very similar.

Been there, done that !!!

 

[JEEPCJTJ]

From 10 feet away that Jeep looks very good, if not great.

The close up picture shows the body armor with tight radius corner (maybe they're all like that? IDK) and some blue overspray on the hinge covers. I think Gorilla Tape would fit right in and save some time and even more money.

Don't take me wrong, I'm not putting your Jeep down, just saying what I'd probably do if it were mine.

 

[jscherb]

Take it to a guy who does Corvette repairs / restorations, if there is one near you. They probable know how to work that stuff better then anyone even though it's not glass the technique is most likely the same or very similar.

Since the 1968 C3, Corvette body panels have been press-molded using SMC similar to the TJ hardtop. The basic difference between SMC resin and ordinary polyester resin is that SMC resin contains mold-release, which means that after molding, ordinary polyester resin won't reliably bond to it.

Repairs to parts made in SMC and parts made in traditional polyester resin fiberglass are the same except for the resin and filler used. Non-structural repairs to SMC parts are best made with SMC-compatible polyester resin and structural repairs are best made with epoxy resin. In both cases ordinary fiberglass mat or cloth can be used. SMC-compatible body fillers should always be used.

Some people do repairs to SMC using ordinary polyester resin and depending on the particular SMC compound the original part was made from these repairs can be successful, but they are generally at risk of separating from the underlying SMC part, so SMC-compatible polyester resin or epoxy resin should always be used instead of ordinary polyester resin.

 

[Fouledplugs]

Since the 1968 C3, Corvette body panels have been press-molded using SMC similar to the TJ hardtop. The basic difference between SMC resin and ordinary polyester resin is that SMC resin contains mold-release, which means that after molding, ordinary polyester resin won't reliably bond to it.

Repairs to parts made in SMC and parts made in traditional polyester resin fiberglass are the same except for the resin and filler used. Non-structural repairs to SMC parts are best made with SMC-compatible polyester resin and structural repairs are best made with epoxy resin. In both cases ordinary fiberglass mat or cloth can be used. SMC-compatible body fillers should always be used.

Some people do repairs to SMC using ordinary polyester resin and depending on the particular SMC compound the original part was made from these repairs can be successful, but they are generally at risk of separating from the underlying SMC part, so SMC-compatible polyester resin or epoxy resin should always be used instead of ordinary polyester resin.

Wow.

 

[Chris]

Here’s a great article on hardtop repairs:

https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/jeep-wrangler-tj-hard-top-repairs.8684/

 

[jscherb]

In general, this is how repairs to a TJ hardtop can be done:

Here's an example from a JK modular hardtop repair I recently did, it's not that different from the repair you'll need to do.

The damage:

The joint between the inside and outside skins was broken but I opened it up a little more for better access to the inside of the panel.

Using SMC-compatible resin and fiberglass mat, I reinforced the crack from the inside:

I then rejoined the inner and outer skins using SMC resin.

On the outside I sanded a recess along the crack.

And filled that with SMC resin plus narrow strips of fiberglass mat.

Skipping ahead a bit, I sanded the crack repair, smoothed it with SMC-compatible body filler, and here it is primed:

Repair complete:

I can show other repairs with more extensive damage if it will help people; I posted this one because it's closest to the repair you'll have to do.

 

[Thepepenator]

Since the 1968 C3, Corvette body panels have been press-molded using SMC similar to the TJ hardtop. The basic difference between SMC resin and ordinary polyester resin is that SMC resin contains mold-release, which means that after molding, ordinary polyester resin won't reliably bond to it.

Repairs to parts made in SMC and parts made in traditional polyester resin fiberglass are the same except for the resin and filler used. Non-structural repairs to SMC parts are best made with SMC-compatible polyester resin and structural repairs are best made with epoxy resin. In both cases ordinary fiberglass mat or cloth can be used. SMC-compatible body fillers should always be used.

Some people do repairs to SMC using ordinary polyester resin and depending on the particular SMC compound the original part was made from these repairs can be successful, but they are generally at risk of separating from the underlying SMC part, so SMC-compatible polyester resin or epoxy resin should always be used instead of ordinary polyester resin.

Thank you!! this is exactly what I was looking for!

 

[Thepepenator]

From 10 feet away that Jeep looks very good, if not great.

The close up picture shows the body armor with tight radius corner (maybe they're all like that? IDK) and some blue overspray on the hinge covers. I think Gorilla Tape would fit right in and save some time and even more money.

Don't take me wrong, I'm not putting your Jeep down, just saying what I'd probably do if it were mine.

Nah, I didn't take it like that. For some reason JCR's corner armor is made like that. I was not the only one to complain about it. The over spray was lousy rushed work on my behalf. I was trying to leave my jeep "completed" before I deployed to Afghanistan. I had a limited time so I just bought spray paint and painted it outside my house. I was a very windy day too.

I should be home soon, will be doing a better paint job