Conditioned Our Tops and MAN THEY CAME OUT AWESOME!

[xmicro_Redline]

Well about 2 weeks ago when it was a nice 85 degrees and sunny, my father and myself decided to condition our tops. We noticed during the rainy Mecca tour weekend that the top was barely repelling water.

I got RAGGTOPP cleaner and conditioner from the internet.
I got plastic drop cloth material from Home Depot with the Blue Painters Masking tape.

I washed the top thoroughly with the cleaner exactly as specified on the directions, using a terry cloth towel to rub it in. It was amazing HOW DIRTY the top was (and I just washed the car).

I had one adhesive spot on the top from where the rubber stopper on the top of the trunk came off once and left a mark! I rubbed in some more cleaner with a plastic nail brush and Bammm off came that damn adhesive I have been staring at for months.

I washed the rest of the car, so to not cause any damage with the cleaner to the fresh coat of wax I had done the week before. I dried the top with a super absorbent microfibre cloth, then proceeded to dry the rest of the car.

We went out for breakfast at this point and let the top dry 100% in the hot sun!

When we got back we used a california duster to take any possible abrasive debris off the paint that may have fallen on the car sitting outside for a couple of hours and began laying the plastic drop cloths over the top of both cars.

I taped it down under the front and rear bumper so that it did not blow off and went in and got the razor knife. I CAREFULLY AND SLOWLY, pulled the plastic about 10inches away from the car and cut out the shape of the top.

At this point we just used the blue tape to get nice and tight around and up and under the top at the side windows and under the humps covering any exposed area of the car (except the top of course). We also used the blue tape to seal off the back window to avoid having to scrape.

I took out a sticky roller to roll off the dust and particles that landed on the top, BEING VERY CAREFUL TO NOT LEAVE MARKS FROM THE EDGE OF THE STICKY ROLLER!!

We then shook the can of sealant VERY WELL and proceeded to spray in sweeping motions like we were trying to paint a car. Now on the can they say to stay 18 to 24" away from the top while spraying, well maybe the wind was stronger than normal, but if we did that, NONE of it would even hit the top. So from 10 to 12" away we sprayed and covered each area twice. We left about 10 minuted and did it again 3 times! That is a grand total of 6 even coats with 3 dry spells in between.

It came out awesome! The tops, especially the Tan Top, looked better than when we picked the cars up from the dealer. The water repels right off that top now. I was very happy with the results of this process and plan on doing this every 1 to 2 years.

Here is the product:
We used the spray bottle cleaner:
RAGGTOPP™ CONVERTIBLE/SOFT TOP CLEANER AND PROTECTANT - JCWhitney Auto Parts
and the spray can Protectant:
RAGGTOPP™ FABRIC PROTECTANT - JCWhitney Auto Parts

We used about 1/8 of the cleaner bottle and about 3/4 of the Protectant PER CAR~!


See pics below!

[xmicro_Redline]

The finished cars!

I forgot to mention, that we also sprayed the part of the top that goes down into the trunk after we took the plastic off and used a piece of cardboard so that it did not get on the paint!

[buckeyenuts]

looks good!! how long is that suppose to last?? do you have to re-apply in a couple of years??

[Skip]

You went to elaboraite. I just sling an old towel under the lip of the top and over the windows and let it rip. Takes about ten minutes. Then dry and once again. It lasts for about 6 months and then a redo is what I do. Iffen it gets on the paint which it has not... I wash off with a wet cloth...Skip...

[|V3nom|]

what kind of antenna are yall using?

[xmicro_Redline]

Originally Posted by Skip

You went to elaboraite. I just sling an old towel under the lip of the top and over the windows and let it rip. Takes about ten minutes. Then dry and once again. It lasts for about 6 months and then a redo is what I do. Iffen it gets on the paint which it has not... I wash off with a wet cloth...Skip...

Come on Skip that is way too easy and besides I take no chances with my paint!

[xmicro_Redline]

Originally Posted by buckeyenuts

looks good!! how long is that suppose to last?? do you have to re-apply in a couple of years??

It depends on how often it is out in the elements. Outside cars should be done at least in the beginning of the Spring and at the end of the fall.

For us garaged people, it took 1 1/2 years for it to need a hit and you can bet I applied WAYYYYYY more than the factory. So I will let you know when I need to re-do.

[xmicro_Redline]

Originally Posted by |V3nom|

what kind of antenna are yall using?

B-series Stubby Antenna - Carccessory.com

[|V3nom|]

so do they extend?

[Jeff Donald]

I apply a single coat every two months or so to protect against the strong UV rays in Florida.

[xmicro_Redline]

Originally Posted by |V3nom|

so do they extend?

Yes, they do, manually of course!

[marlboromike]

Paul...not only does the top look good...but your car looks better than when it came from Wilmington. You can tell it has never been left alone.

[BSRL]

Hey, top looks great and you really take care of it there is no doubt about that. I have to say I would go with Skip's method. I don't have the patience to do what you did. Not knocking you though, great job!

[MidniteBlues]

Originally Posted by Skip

You went to elaboraite. I just sling an old towel under the lip of the top and over the windows and let it rip. Takes about ten minutes. Then dry and once again. It lasts for about 6 months and then a redo is what I do. Iffen it gets on the paint which it has not... I wash off with a wet cloth...Skip...

Way to elaborate and time consuming IMHO XR.. I also just lay towels all around it like skipper doz & if some spray gits away, I just use my handy-dandy micro-fiber towel that I keep handy just for that.. I ah, have gotten pretty good at this hardly EVER over spray any more.., I think you also over did it with that many applications IMHO.. The can recommends 2 good coats, down here it lasts about 2 months, garaged or not, with the sun, heat & rain down here, 2 months is about right.. However, it is your car, your time AND your money..

[xmicro_Redline]

Originally Posted by MidniteBlues

Way to elaborate and time consuming IMHO XR.. I also just lay towels all around it like skipper doz & if some spray gits away, I just use my handy-dandy micro-fiber towel that I keep handy just for that.. I ah, have gotten pretty good at this hardly EVER over spray any more.., I think you also over did it with that many applications IMHO.. The can recommends 2 good coats, down here it lasts about 2 months, garaged or not, with the sun, heat & rain down here, 2 months is about right.. However, it is your car, your time AND your money..

Believe it or not it took only about 1/2 hour to mask both cars, with my old man in tow. The can recommended 2 to 3 applications, but since it dried so fast I did 2 passes between drying. Since I garage it I only need to do this about once every 1 to 2 years so the time and money will still be less than those of you that leave it out in the elements!

And yes, if I had to do it every 2 months, and left my car out in the weather and it was a daily driver....I too would just use a towel

[skyhigh22]

Very nice job,thanks for your play by play and photo's,what ever time you took ,it was worth it!!!,Hah l have to ask you,the rims on the gray(looks like Gray)sky there not stock are they,can't really make them out,they look sharp!!!!!!...I hope you sat back with a cold one after you were done and enjoyed the view........cheers.

[Jeff Donald]

Originally Posted by xmicro_Redline

And yes, if I had to do it every 2 months, and left my car out in the weather and it was a daily driver....I too would just use a towel

Florida has great weather for driving with the top down. Unfortunately June, July, and August aren't it and with the UV index very high nearly every day it's hard to keep the top protected. Unless of course you don't drive it.

[|V3nom|]

Originally Posted by xmicro_Redline

Yes, they do, manually of course!

just like our roofs lol.

[xmicro_Redline]

Originally Posted by skyhigh22

Very nice job,thanks for your play by play and photo's,what ever time you took ,it was worth it!!!,Hah l have to ask you,the rims on the gray(looks like Gray)sky there not stock are they,can't really make them out,they look sharp!!!!!!...I hope you sat back with a cold one after you were done and enjoyed the view........cheers.

Thanks, It is a SIlver Pearl SKY, and they are Foose Rims. Here is a thread I did a while back about them, Enjoy!

New Foose Rims and Caliper Decals