Tired of my top and ready for a new one

T

thekevin

Member
Joined
May 18, 2020
Messages
90
Location
Branson, MO
I have an 03 with a Smittybuilt top on it that has been on there about 18 months and I absolutely hate it. It doesn’t leak, the top of it flaps like crazy at highway speeds and it is a legit 3 person job to get it back up when you take it down. I have owned a lot of Jeep’s through the years and this top is terrible. It almost seems like it’s too small to fit. To put it up you have to have one person on the back pushing up on the frame, one person in the front pulling down on it at the window channel and one person inside to latch it.

Now for the replacement I want to go frameless. I am leaning toward the Rampage I think. This isn’t my daily but does get a little over 10k miles a year on it through all types of weather.

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Yeah it’s crazy what it takes to get it on. My other TJ buddies laughed at me until they tried it. I really think something is just wrong with the top. There is weird pressure on the frame in the back and it looks like the previous owner who put the top on tried a c-clamp to get it down and broke it.

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Bestop is your answer. I had a Rampage once. It wasn’t new. It came with the Jeep. I ended up burning it.
 
I must have just gotten extremely lucky. My 03 came with a smittybilt soft top and it is a less than 5 minute job to take the top and doors on or off by myself. Fits like a glove and doesn't flap or leak.
 
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In the first 8 years of owning my TJ I have purchased two Smittybilt replacement tops for it and they were both pretty decent. No more flapping or other nuisances any worse than the factory top they replaced. The first one was only replaced because of the usual wear and tear on zippers, windows and such…
I actually sold the second one, complete with my factory frame, so I could make the move to the Bestop Trektop NX. To do it over again I would have stayed with my factory frame and ran the Smittybilt until I replaced it yet again. The factory style tops are just so user friendly. I never had any issues. I only made the switch because I was chasing a certain look…
 
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To be blunt, you went the cheaper route with the Smittybilt top instead of the Bestop, and you've regretted it ever since.
Now, you want to go the cheaper route with a Rampage frameless top instead of the Bestop.
Time to break the pattern.
 
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No, the Smittybilt top was brand new and on it when I bought the Jeep in April 2020. Every new top I have ever bought for any of the CJ’s or YJ’s I have owned in the past were Bestop. I just liked the way the Rampage tops looked and was wondering if there is that much difference between them. To be honest if it wasn’t for the fact that something is off on the top I have I wouldn’t be replacing it. The zippers work fine, it doesn’t leak a drop even in a car wash and even though I do tight trails and have scratched the windows up pretty bad the top itself is still in really good shape. I just want something I can easily take up and down and since I don’t know if it’s a problem with my frame or top I have now I wanted to go frameless and remove it all.
 
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Some people (1) have had great luck with the Rampage frameless sailcloth tops, I wasn't one of them. My Bestop Trektop NX was the best top I've ever had. I like the 2 minute flip back sunroof option, over lowering the factory top, for days when you know it's going to rain while you're driving. If I hadn't had 18 Jeeps and a soon to be 4th ex wife, I'd buy another one. ;)
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I recently bought a twill top to use with factory hardware and mine fits quite loose. I just emailed Bestop and hopefully they take care of it. Twill is supposed to be the quietest but with the way mine fits the flapping is so violent that it is actually quite louder than my factory sailcloth top. Another member here recently had the same problem. If/when I get my my replacement I’ll share if the fit is indeed better or the same.
 
TheBoogieman said:
Some people (1) have had great luck with the Rampage frameless sailcloth tops, I wasn't one of them. My Bestop Trektop NX was the best top I've ever had. I like the 2 minute flip back sunroof option, over lowering the factory top, for days when you know it's going to rain while you're driving. If I hadn't had 18 Jeeps and a soon to be 4th ex wife, I'd buy another one. ;)
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Dang, 18 is a lot. I’m only on number 10 but still the same wife. I had skipped over the TJs before this one. I have had 5 CJ5’s, a CJ2B, a JK, a JKU and a CJ7 and now this 03 TJ that had zero dents or rust and only 105k miles when I bought it and it might be my favorite on the trails so far.
 
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Illustrative of Smittybilt: I gave them the benefit of the doubt and bought seat risers from them.

All of the bolts were the wrong size.
 
TheBoogieman said:
Some people (1) have had great luck with the Rampage frameless sailcloth tops, I wasn't one of them. My Bestop Trektop NX was the best top I've ever had. I like the 2 minute flip back sunroof option, over lowering the factory top, for days when you know it's going to rain while you're driving. If I hadn't had 18 Jeeps and a soon to be 4th ex wife, I'd buy another one. ;)
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Dude, have you ever had an ugly Jeep? Nice, but I like your red one better as far as looks go.
 
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Bestop Sailcloth, forget about twill.

I'm on my fourth top and had decided to go twill since it was the only option for Dark Tan and it was a major downgrade. Very loud despite it being tight.
 
HornedToad said:
I recently bought a twill top to use with factory hardware and mine fits quite loose. I just emailed Bestop and hopefully they take care of it. Twill is supposed to be the quietest but with the way mine fits the flapping is so violent that it is actually quite louder than my factory sailcloth top. Another member here recently had the same problem. If/when I get my my replacement I’ll share if the fit is indeed better or the same.
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The year old Supertop on our LJ fits like a tarp over farm equipment. The nearly ten year old Supertop NX on my TJ is still tight as a drum.

Not sure if just an LJ thing, or if Bestop is really just phoning it in lately. Flapping, hardware of dubious quality...
 
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