will_warne Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 OK, I'm very close to buying a double cab roof for a small fortune and to try and save others a few £££ and to recoup some of the expense I'm looking at making some copies of the rear section in fibre glass. The front section of the double cab is standard hard top, its just the rear setion that's unique. I'm looking at making up a kit that'll allow you to create either a double cab or a king cab of the length of your choice. The design isn't finalised but fitting would be fairly straight forward and, once painted, the new roof would look identical to the factory from the outside. At the moment I don't think a roof lining would be provided BUT I might look at it again if there's demand. Before I go ahead with this I'd just like to know if there's any interest. Ideally I'd be looking to produce between 5 and 10 to make it worth while..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Brock Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 Will, I'd have one depending on the cost ! what is the ballpark figure ?, might give you more of an idea how people would get one if they knew how much they were commiting to Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minivin Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 aiy, ditto that as trying to contact my Plymouth friend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_warne Posted July 17, 2006 Author Share Posted July 17, 2006 Probably arround the £200 figure, maybe less with more people. I know its still not cheap but it is quite a big thing to mould. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minivin Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 that's a very reasonable price for the size of the item Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Hiatt Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 I'd definitely have at least one at that price Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_warne Posted July 17, 2006 Author Share Posted July 17, 2006 OK, that sounds like its probably a go-er. I'll keep you posted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 In simple terms the real problem is with a "Real" roof a tree "Smacking" it produces a dent, with a fibreglass roof you have a shattered broken mess.... I lost count of the number of Ali wings I may for bowlers who got fed up with the fibreglass ones, when drew stopped making ali ones.......same reason, now due to demand the ali ones are availbale again (and no, not from me PITFA to make- Oh and I sold the former I made to make them at Sodbury, just kept the former for flaring arches - eh tonk JW ? ) If you buy the proper roof, and use it off road, its just a matter of time till you gain a dent or 3 and a look on yer face, use a fibreglass one and the face will be worse Nige Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minivin Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 I've thrown my bike up the road and scrapped the gel coat off the edges of the fairing and the panniers, and three people I know have not fastened their panniers on correctly and had them overtake them on the motorway at 70mph with only chipped corners. All depends on how well the manufacturer goes into making them IMHO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Brock Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 Will, I take it this will just be the rear section, people will need to source a front bit off a hard top and make up the side panels as well ? I've got Si's side panels and front off the my "old style Hybrid Roof" ....which is now all over the garden Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nicksmelly Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 If the glassfibre is laid up in woven cloth it won't shatter like the crappy sprayed chopped strand. The woven cloth is very strong. We've made a full metro 6r4 shell with woven cloth, only two layers, and it's been banged and bashed a few times, and not even a chip or scratch yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 I've thrown my bike up the road and ............................ Remind me not to go pillion with you Nige Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest diesel_jim Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 And fiberglass can be repaired quite easily too.... we've got 3 tow-a-van trailers at work, and they're always getting smacked about. there is a boat repair yard near to Malmsebury (yeah i know.... nowhere near water!) and they do a great jot at sticking it all back together again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_warne Posted July 17, 2006 Author Share Posted July 17, 2006 Les, yes, its just the rear section; this is the rare bit. The rest of a genuine roof is simply a hard top roof. So, yes, you could do what you're thinking about. Nige, I totally agree. This is one of the reasons why I'm only making the rear section. The other thing to think about Nige is that these roofs cost a fortune for the genuine article and are hard to get hold of. On the construction side of things, the guy who's building it spends his life building fibreglass conponents (including body panels) and he knows how to make them strong. He will be using fibreglass matting rather than sprayed strand. It should be easy enough to repair if its damaged badly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 Nige, I totally agree. wot, Ali vs Fibreglass or not being a pillion with Minivin ? Nige Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_warne Posted July 17, 2006 Author Share Posted July 17, 2006 wot, Ali vs Fibreglass or not being a pillion with Minivin ? Nige Ali vs Fibreglass I don't trust anything you can't fix without hitting with a big hammer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 Will, I would have thought that if you got a full crew cab roof made in fibreglass, you could sell a good deal more than 10, after all they are very sought after and a bolt on and forget roof would appeal to the weekend mechanics. pennysworth Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minivin Posted July 17, 2006 Share Posted July 17, 2006 Remind me not to go pillion with you Nige I don't take Pillion's these days, the screaming un-nerves other road users as I'm over taking them on the rear wheel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_warne Posted July 18, 2006 Author Share Posted July 18, 2006 Will,I would have thought that if you got a full crew cab roof made in fibreglass, you could sell a good deal more than 10, after all they are very sought after and a bolt on and forget roof would appeal to the weekend mechanics. pennysworth Mo Mo, I'd thought of this BUT most people will be onverting from hardtops/CSWs so already have most of the roof. Also the bulkhead needs moving to do the doublecab which makes the job a little longer. Plus the cost of production would at least double making the roof quite a bit more expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 Me mate dave has chucked his Ibex into a few trees against the wheel arches and commented on the lack of breakage, each time it went crunch he was expecting the worst but each time the tree lost Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_warne Posted July 20, 2006 Author Share Posted July 20, 2006 There might be annother development. I've been speaking to a guy who may be able to get entire double cab roofs made of fibreglass and at a very good price. He's a bit busy until after Billing but he said he'd make enquiries after the weekend. I'll let you know of any news. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minivin Posted July 20, 2006 Share Posted July 20, 2006 If he can make a mold for a whole roof, it should then allow to make rear portions, so should be a win-win scenario Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JST Posted July 20, 2006 Share Posted July 20, 2006 Will The design isn't finalised but fitting would be fairly straight forward and, once painted, the new roof would look identical to the factory from the outside why would you want a roof that looks identical to a factory? sorry, just bored at work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_warne Posted July 20, 2006 Author Share Posted July 20, 2006 If he can make a mold for a whole roof, it should then allow to make rear portions, so should be a win-win scenario Its not that simple, the roofs I'm looking at are made in South Africa and are based on the Santana design. That means single peice, double skinned. As I say, I'm going to wait for info on availability and shipping plus talk to my fibreglass man about the viability of cutting and shuting these roofs. The main thought behind these roofs is that shipping in 3 or 4 won't cost significantly more than shipping in 1. With them costing approximatly £250, add some shipping and tax and you could have a roof of £350 - £400. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minivin Posted July 20, 2006 Share Posted July 20, 2006 hmmmm..... interesting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.