Splicing the front of a fulltopper with a half topper???My search to find a fulltop with the year specific stiffer rear corner section is failing and I can no longer stand the squeek of mine...Any thoughts on this???
CK5
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Hard top conversion, anybody ever think about this???
- Thread starter chevyfumes
- Start date
Have you tried to re-inforce those areas back there?
I stood mine up on end with the rear on the ground. TO re-inforce the back corner areas back there, I lag bolted in some strips of carefully hand contured plate steel and then fiberglassed over the whole bit, essentially thickiing the whole corner piece by 3/4" or so and blending it into the roof.
Can't even notice it. Hasn't budged since.
I stood mine up on end with the rear on the ground. TO re-inforce the back corner areas back there, I lag bolted in some strips of carefully hand contured plate steel and then fiberglassed over the whole bit, essentially thickiing the whole corner piece by 3/4" or so and blending it into the roof.
Can't even notice it. Hasn't budged since.
I thought about that too but was wondering aswell if anyone has actually tore one of these things down???
I would do what you did before I considered the splice....I have too many tops and one is gonna have to get diced up to see and photo whats in there...
I would do what you did before I considered the splice....I have too many tops and one is gonna have to get diced up to see and photo whats in there...
I just want a complete carbon fiber top made for my 73', then I will be happy. 
Well while you do that make a write up...
Our tops are inner and outer type construction, IIRC. If you cut it, there's a hollow section inside. Could make splicing it a little more challeging.
I thought there was a metal skeleton inside???But then again I've never cut one open to find out...
blazin_blazer
1/2 ton status
please dont hack a full top, i've been looking for one for about 1 1/2 yrs. now, still haven't located 1. think i may go ahead and fulltop my k5 and just run topless 4ever or untill 1 turns up,
but i'm scared if i do the a &b pillar cuts without a top on hand during the cutting, that when i do get a top it wouldn't fit......some1 should make a set of templates for people in my position...that way we could go ahead and go topless and know the top will fit once you find 1........
guess i could run a softtop, but would still have to be cut at right spot..... i know i could get the A pillar real close by windshield fitment, but the b pillar is different, they aren't level with the top of the ''bedrail'' the top sits on
i have a set of pre-75 doors maybe they can show where to cut b pillar and help fitting the top of windshield frame,... but then what?.....use sheetmetal and just cap the B post?
but i'm scared if i do the a &b pillar cuts without a top on hand during the cutting, that when i do get a top it wouldn't fit......some1 should make a set of templates for people in my position...that way we could go ahead and go topless and know the top will fit once you find 1........
guess i could run a softtop, but would still have to be cut at right spot..... i know i could get the A pillar real close by windshield fitment, but the b pillar is different, they aren't level with the top of the ''bedrail'' the top sits on
i have a set of pre-75 doors maybe they can show where to cut b pillar and help fitting the top of windshield frame,... but then what?.....use sheetmetal and just cap the B post?
Have you searched "full top conversion" yet? there is a really nice write up that explains everything. Also I have a full top that has come apart in the back and is pretty banged up so I may hack into it to see whats in there anyway...
When I bought my 75 parts K5 it had a top with the front part cut off on it. At first glance I though "thats no 75" since the front part was on the truck. But the guy wouldn't give it to me with the truck, only the full top. Before I got my soft top, I thought of the two-tops-together thing. He told me he just left the front half in the back of the truck incase it rained.
It's just two sections of glass, hollow in the inside. With it hollow, you can make a plate for the rear half to bolt to (aluminum?) and on the plate have a insert that goes into the hollow part of the front half.
Would you be able to cut the renforcments out of a half top, and glass them into your top?
What year top are you looking for? I might be getting rid of my 75 top.
It's just two sections of glass, hollow in the inside. With it hollow, you can make a plate for the rear half to bolt to (aluminum?) and on the plate have a insert that goes into the hollow part of the front half.
Would you be able to cut the renforcments out of a half top, and glass them into your top?
What year top are you looking for? I might be getting rid of my 75 top.
blazin_blazer
1/2 ton status
so the b pillar is cut flush with the bedrail and just capped!?! he also reccomends using the fulltop to check fitment, and he also states that the tub is strong enough to support it, but i would like to see some of the different ways that people have reinforced under the floor and how they anchored it.
i've read where some1 used a rod from the firewall to the radiator support, sounds good, but i was thinking maybe 2x4 tubing stich welded to the bottom of the floor and angle it up the firewall abit.
i've read where some1 used a rod from the firewall to the radiator support, sounds good, but i was thinking maybe 2x4 tubing stich welded to the bottom of the floor and angle it up the firewall abit.
rod, tube, either way it should not be welded in. The body has flex on the frame. I've done the full top, like many on here. Made good rocker boxes. And search the other threads, I alone know that I posted in 3 or more full top conversion threads in the past 3 months. There was alot of good info in them, from alot of people, with alot of different options.
blazin_blazer
1/2 ton status
looking for any year fulltop 73-75, although in 75 the fulltop was an option, they called it a safari top, so a 75 can be full or 1/2 tops, i've seen (2) 75 1/2 tops my whole life and i know for a fact that 1 of them was factory as my uncle bought it new and still owns it as a fishing/hunting vehicle. has told me he was going to will it to me because i raised such a fuss over a 75 halftop and researched it and found that was standard in 75, but there was a safari top option that was the fulltop.....kinda like '67 truck came stock with small rear window and an optional large rear glass that was standard on 68's, and no option for small glass, speaking of small rear windows......
i would like to find a mid-late 70's grain truck cab with the little rear glass!
just to be different!
i've also heard tail that chevy made(not sure of year) a blazer with a full non-removable metal topped k5. only full metal top type vehicles that i've ever seen was a ram charger, haven't even seen any pics of a full metal top k5, but have been told that they made a small number of them as a fleet truck for the u.s. forestry service,....any1 verify this or has seen one?
i would like to find a mid-late 70's grain truck cab with the little rear glass!
just to be different!
i've also heard tail that chevy made(not sure of year) a blazer with a full non-removable metal topped k5. only full metal top type vehicles that i've ever seen was a ram charger, haven't even seen any pics of a full metal top k5, but have been told that they made a small number of them as a fleet truck for the u.s. forestry service,....any1 verify this or has seen one?
JIM88K5
1/2 ton status
I think expanding urethane foam sealer may be an option. What do think about that ?
blazin_blazer
1/2 ton status
now do what
fill the a&b pillars with expanding foam while they are open?
JIM88K5 said:
fill the a&b pillars with expanding foam while they are open?
blazin_blazer said:
As for your first point, note that many states register vehicles by year of manufacture, so a vehicle made in 1975 as a 1976 model year ... would be called a '75 by some states, even though it's a '76 model year.
Also figure that GM stopped making the full-convertibles at some point and switched over to the half-cab, so both would be available at dealers until stock was depleted.
In other words, one didn't order a truck with or without a half-cab or full-top; one just bought whichever one wanted as both were around for a brief period.
I would bet if you ran the VIN for this one your uncle has that it would come up as a 1976 *model* year truck, regardless of what the registration says.
Now, the full-metal, i.e. non-removable top Blazer is a bit tricky. Obviously 1992+ models are like this, and were not named "Tahoe" until '95, so 92-94 fullsize "Blazers" would fit your description and were used by various government agencies.
Alternately, some foreign subsidiaries of Chevy made/sold all kinds of weird stuff, including the 73-87 body style through the early 90's, particularly in South America. There was a thread about this at one point, with some really odd iterations of full-size trucks with the 81-87 body style but with 90's grilles, etc etc.
-- A
Hmmm that is an interesting thought. I think I'll start there and add some additional bracing inside and out...JIM88K5 said:
