What do you think?

[rficalora]

When Shelly & I went to Fredricksburg TX in the MG back in July, I decided I'd need a hard top for the A/C to be really effective.  I was thinking I wanted a Parrish top, but a member on the MGE site made me an offer I couldn't refuse --- he offered to send me a Snugtop he had in his garage for the cost of shipping!!

I've had it for a couple of weeks now, but just got a chance to set it on the car this evening.  Since I'd been thinking Parrish top painted body color I just assumed I'd want to paint the Snugtop body color too - and lose the chrome accents... but, now that I've seen it on the car, I think I like it black & with the chrome.  What do you think?


Now, assuming you guys agree it looks good & looks good in black, how would you go about restoring it?  I've founda  few links with info on the seals so can get them & replace them.  The glass (plexi?) is in pretty good shap; doesn't need to be replaced.  The two parts I'm less clear on are a) the chrime accents -- they're some sort of covered plastic & a lot of it is peeling off; and, b) the exterior finish of the top itself which is showing some cracking -- I always thought it was vinyl but it's not, it seems like it's a grain patterned gelcoat or something like that...

[DiDueColpi]

My #1 choice would be to cover it in convertible top material.
Black would look good, or the tan colour of your interior would look very sharp.
Trim it out with some 1/2 round polished stainless stock and you've got a winner in my eyes.
If it stays black, have the accent trim follow the top of the door glass as it does now. But instead of dropping down at the rear of the door window, have it go straight back across the top of the 1/4 window and follow it down at the rear of that. This would make the window area look much longer and give the car a leaner look.
Fixing that textured gel coat is not impossible. But it will be very tedious and prone to further deterioration.
If you want a painted surface I would grind it smooth and re-glass it if needed.
Gloss black would be ok or the silver colour from your wheels would knock it out of the park.
I'll bet that some of the body guy's will have better ideas.
But that's my 2 bits worth.
Cheers
Fred

[kstevusa]

Thanks Rob for confirming my choice.  The Snug Top on my car does great.  It has made most of the V8 meets I've attended.  Had it long enough that the guys still had some Oem gaskets.   Guess they all have passed on the other side now.  i'm sure you will like the comfort of the top.   the stick on plastic is kinda cheesey!

[rficalora]

Thanks -- I am thinking I'm going to sand it smooth & paint it black although I'm trying to play with a picture editing program to try & "see" a couple of other versions -- body color, sand color like my folding top -- and with Fred's suggestion, maybe a silver too.  Either I learn slower than I used to or picture editing programs have gotten way more complex.  I used to use Microsoft Picture It years ago & it worked fine for stuff like this.  But, the copy I have doesn't work with the newer versions of Windows.  I downloaded a program called "GIMP"... an hour in & I've not accomplished anything except getting frustrated!

[mgb260]

Rob, A Snugtop came with my Alpine. I plan on leaving it black. It doesn't have the side windows so I'm going to copy the ones like yours. I was going to touch up mine after cleaning with wax and grease remover and  sanding with 320. I will use the aerosol truck bed liner for filler where the scratches/cracks are and fog a thin coat over the entire top. Give kind of a spatter pebble finish. Sand down with 400 grit and use black Epoxy primer for the top coat. You can get the chrome strips from JC Whitney.

[DC Townsend]

Rob, here's a quick and dirty with your top in silver. If you send me a better shot, I'm happy to give you a couple different looks.

[WernerVC]

Rob,
I have the same hard top as in your picture. Didn't know it was called a snug top. Are you sure it is the vinyl pattern imbedded in the fiberglass ? Mine has the same look but it is covered sheet of vinyl. I know this because there is a hole in the middle of the roof. I struggle with the same problem. Remove the black vinyl and paint it in the interior color or paint it white for cooler temp. in the heat of the sun.
I'll post a few pics next time. Side windows are showing signs of aging. Small crack like signs . Where can I find new windows and seals ?
Werner

[rficalora]

Hi Werner -

I would think any glass shop could hook you up with either tempered glass or scratch resistant plexiglass.  As for the seals, there's a post on the MGE with some info.  That post has references to seals the guy says work for the base & the door openings.  Do a search on Snugtop there & you'll see it.  And, I've sent pics with measurements of the following:
     * Base to car body
     * Snugtop window seals
     * Door window opening seals
to Restoration Specialties & they're going to see what they have that matches or comes close.  

I think I see the seals for the windows -- and even the chrome strip too -- in their catelog.  That's the hardest one to match up as the base & door openings can use any of several different seals.

If you can wait a few days, I'll post my results here.

As for the exterior, I'll have to look again, but I'm all but certain mine is a vinyl partterned gel-coat.  I'm going to sand mine smooth and paint it, just have to pick the color.

[rficalora]

David - thanks for the offer -- the pics you did for color on Drew's Mustang were great, but I wasn't going to wear out my welcome by asking on this one.  But, since you offered, I've sent you some pics.  Really appreciate it!

[flitner]

If that is gelcoat, it is crazing, you will need to do what I had to do on my trike body, you will need to grind past the gelcoat to the fiberglass, then once you get all of the gelcoat off of it, use PPG, epoxy based primer system to seal the fiberglas in a good three coats, then do any bodywork to get rid of grinder marks and pinholes, follow that with high build primer and blocking it till it is straight as possible, prep for paint of color chouce.

[DC Townsend]

Here's rendering I did for Rob to help him decide on his top color (black). He was kind enough to send me some high resolution photos to work which made for fast work.

[rficalora]

David - You do great work!  Thanks again.  Definitely helped me decide on which color.  Now I just need to find seals that'll work to replace what was on it.  Pretty sure I found an exact match for the windows (even including the chrome strip that actually serves as a lock to hold the windows in).  Don't think the seals in the MG Experience post on Snugtop seals are very good matches but I've sent pics of the top base to car body & also the door window seal profiles, along with measurements, to both RestorationSpecialties.com and to SteeleRubber.com and both are looking for reasonable matches/alternatives in their offerings.  Hope to have options & even samples soon.  Will keep folks posted.

[DC Townsend]

Rob,

You might give Soffseal a try. They've been my "go to" outfit for hard to find rubber parts. Look under the Universal section. http://www.soffseal.com/store/main.aspx

[Med72]

Rob:

I like the tan top.  Whatever you chose, the car looks great.  i really the the color and the wheels.  The wheels look like something you would find a a cobra.  With the hardtop it looks like a coach roadster.

Art

[MGBV8]

The black was acceptable, but body color is the best.  Biggest problem is that the Parrish/Smoothline top looks soooo much better.  Especially with a car with lines as nice as Rob's car.

My dad once remarked, "If only they made a hardtop that looked as good as the convertible top when it is up." Well, they do. Sorry, Rob, it's not that one.  Paint it red.  

[DC Townsend]

Just for Carl...top left.

[MGBV8]

Nice!

[DC Townsend]

Have to agree with you Carl, I think the Smoothline looks more like it belongs on the car. I think it would great in either body color or black...just enough to setoff the paint color.

[rficalora]

Awe, now that's just mean!  Not sure if you guys knew, but I was looking for a Parrish top for a while before I got the top I have.  I like the Snugtop, but have to admit, I like the look of the Parrish top better.  The only one I know of is in NY, needs restoration, and the guy wants something in the neighborhood of $450.  By the time I paid to ship it, redid the seals & probably replaced the back glass, it's pretty pricey.  Haven't had any hits on my craigslist WTB or the Houston MG club.  I think I'm going to restore the Snugtop  and use it till I find a Parrish a bit more reasonably priced.  Wonder what a refurbished gloss black Snug top with reasonably fresh seals would sell for?

[DC Townsend]

Rob, before I found my Parrish through Pete at Motorcar Garage in NJ, I was actually talking with the Smoothline folks about a new top. When it was all said and done, they were willing to sell me one for $850 brand new + shipping. By the time I added up the cost of refinishing, new seals, back glass, etc., I felt their price was actually very competitive.

[MGBV8]

Looks like you just missed one.

http://www.mgexp.com/phorum/read.php?42,2480535

He mentions that he may have more leads.

[rficalora]

Actually I saw that one but $950 was out of my range...http://www.mgexp.com/phorum/read.php?42,2473131,2473131#msg-2473131.  It was definitely a beautiful one though.  I have reached out to him to see if he has other leads.

I'm still thinking new seals for the Snugtop  while I'm looking.  Not sure if I should sand and paint it or just clean it up - not sure if resale value is better with the original finish vs. gloss black.  What would you think?

[BlownMGB-V8]

Seem to be two schools of thought on tops, basically those who hate the Parrish Plastics design and those who love it. I fall into the later group but it is not without a few issues. Still I feel it compliments the looks of the car better than any other top out there.  To me the Snugline comes in second in appearance and while the factory tops might perhaps be the best in terms of quality to me they are pretty ugly. Some will say just the opposite of course so it's purely a matter of personal taste and you should get what you like the best.

Of course mine has sat on the shelf for years. Oddly enough I think the car is actually quieter with the soft top up. That might change the next time it gets painted and relined.

Jim

[DC Townsend]

Rob, I'd do what was minimally necessary to make the top functional and leave the vinyl. Don't think you'd get any more (or less) out of it for the effort of stripping, filling, sanding, and painting.

[MGBV8]

I have no idea, Rob. I probably wouldn't put a lot into it. Then again, I've had my B for 26 years & never considered buying a hard top for it.