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New Soft Tops for 1st Gen.

1971 GMC Jimmy

1971 GMC Jimmy

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Hey folks, I'm new here and while I have been searching I found a company willing to make 1st Gen Blazer/Jimmy soft tops if there is enough interest. And from reading old threads I believe there is.

But first I want to ask the authorities here if this type of thread is OK.
Please let me know.


Michael Palmer
 
Yes, they are going to make others and I'm not exactly sure if it will be the "2nd Gen" to start with, they actually didn't know the year of the Blazer they are getting next week, and I honestly didn't know what "1st Gen" even meant a few days ago before I started searching/reading the Blazer/Jimmy forums.

I would love to see others come forward with interest before I say much more. I will say this company is in Colorado and I've sent them many links to the threads from this board and others who need a source for the "1st Gen" soft tops.
 
I would be careful if its a company in Denver. STC was in Denver, they kept my money and I never got my soft top. Gave me the run around for weeks
 
Thats good, wouldn't want anyone else to go through that. And I did finally get one, got it about a month ago. The tonneau style one, just have to make some supports for it. Got it used
 
is it just me, or is there something REALLY fishy about this thread?
 
Why? Just because I haven't revealed the company is softopper out of Boulder, or have you been eaten fish tonight. I'm sure a 4 year forum vet can find his way to there site and when you do pick up the phone and call them and ask for Larry. I may be new to this forum, but I know how to search for something I want.n

Oh and I've only owned my Jimmy for a few days
 
1971 GMC Jimmy said:
Why? Just because I haven't revealed the company is softopper out of Boulder, or have you been eaten fish tonight. I'm sure a 4 year forum vet can find his way to there site and when you do pick up the phone and call them and ask for Larry. I may be new to this forum, but I know how to search for something I want.
Click to expand...

:haha::haha::haha:
 
As I said it sure would be good to get the first ten orders together and have them interested in suppling these tops.
 
No offense, but this is sort of a "chicken and egg" question.....


There is plenty of interest in a 1st Gen softtop, the market is wide open for anyone who wants to invest the time to create one.

The immediate problem is:

1. What does it look like
2. How does it attach (most guys refuse to drill a million new holes into their 1st Gen)
3. Will it work with an existing rollcage
4. What is the quality of construction (zippers, plastic windows, tubular frame structure)


You can't really get an accurate estimate of interest until you build one, and most people aren't willing to spend the money to develop one until they have some orders in place. Once you build one and post photos, you'll find out in a hurry if it's a style and construction that people want....or not.


:usaflag:
 
I agree with Greg72. I will be waiting to see what they come up with:D
 
IMO it is a very fair question as there are no other manufactures in the game.

Let me add your comments as questions too.

What if any previous supplied soft tops have the right style?

How will it attach? I have already informed them that drilling to many holes is not going to be tolerated.

Will it work with an existing roll cage? This I assume depends alot on the style. My question to this is how many roll bar styles are higher than the windshield roofline? IMO the style should be a flat roof from the top of the windshield on back like the STC I have only seen pictures of.

Construction? Here is a quote from there website.
"Welcome Chevrolet truck owners! The Softopper is a versatile canvas truck cap that comes with heat-sealed, vinyl windows, heavy-duty zippers and thread. Built to last and easy to use."

These are great questions Greg72 and I don't take offense. It is my intension to have a nice soft top like others here have.

So here are my choices, I could wait for someone else to do something about it or I could get involved. Your help would be great too.

Michael Palmer
 
The conversation I had was, "what ever you want we can build it". I will say they have innovative and creative ideas and if you go to there website you will see a collapsable "camper shell" that is pretty cool.
 
WHO's website?!?!??Is this some secret government operation that is on a need to know basis?
At least give us a name.
 
I think the single most "cool" feature of a 1st Gen soft top would be to design the bedside rails to work with the factory holes for the hardtop. This would prevent anyone from having to drill new holes for the top.

The challenge is that there are both single-wall and double-wall tops, and the holes are NOT in the same places on the bedrails... ideally the frame would have a pattern for each. Now THAT would be a slick solution, and would finally resolve one of the largest concerns most people have with installing a soft top in the first place.

I'd imagine that the "style" would be another factor. I'd like a top where the sides could somehow be either unzipped or folded up underneath the top roof area for some "open sides" wheeling... it can get hot with a full soft top, so a little breeze would be nice especially while getting some relief from the direct sunlight overhead.

Tightness of the top is another huge factor. There is nothing worse than a top that makes a ton of noise on the highway because the wind is making it flap all around. If there was a way to add a tensioning system to keep it tight (even after the material relaxed over the course of several months) that would be sweet too.

I'm sure I could come up with a lot more ideas, but those are some quick ones off the top of my head.


:usaflag:
 
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