R.White Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 As anyone can see from the photos, the roof on my '26 DB tourer is sagging. It was like this when I got the car and I suspect it has been made wrong. If I stand behind the car and pull it down towards me, the irons raise up to nearer where I think they should be. Also, in original photos I have seen, the rear of the roof slants backwards or is vertical, where mine slopes forward. Can any, more experienced than I, suggest a D.I.Y. solution? Re - attaching the roof further down at the back perhaps? Over to you tourer experts. Many thanks,Ray. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idrjoe_sandiego Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Ray, it looks like you may be missing some support straps. On my 1929 Dodge DA Phaeton, the entire top is supported by these straps. See attached photos. I have also seen them made out of leather, almost looks like a belt for your pants! Personally, I like the look of the fabric version. Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickBrinker Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 My 25 does the same thing and it has the straps,never really thought about fixing it used tie wraps to hold it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R.White Posted November 5, 2011 Author Share Posted November 5, 2011 Jo, I can't thank you enough for that info. I should be able to make some straps to do the job. It will never look as good as yours, (which is obviously a class act!) but it is the solution to the problem. The back cloth will still need reducing but with straps in place the top should be able to be tensioned to a better line both at the back and sides. Great stuff! Great forum!!Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idrjoe_sandiego Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Thanks for the kind words Ray. Here are a couple more pics I took during the top bow setup. You may find it useful to employ a couple of ratchet straps to set your top up in the desired position. Stand back and check the top profile from a distance before you commit! Then, measure the exact strap length needed. Allow for a bit of stretching. I imagine the reason one would use the leather belt strap method is that you could alter the strap length easier. And Rick, I know what you mean about the tie wraps-see theses pics! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 It's not just the straps that position the bows, although if you're doing a top from scratch that helps. You also need reinforced pads, the two strips about a foot or so wide that go on each top side of the top. These help hold the bows in the right position with the right tension (which is why the irons are sagging on the sides, there's no "pull" to the back of the car to make them go straight, which only happens when the bows are in the right position).The pads also keep the top from looking like the ribs on a starved horse. One mistake "newer" trimmers make is to use foam in the pads, foam collapses too much, and then the bow pokes into the top material. Cotton batting, the firmer the better, should be used, per original.Good luck with rework of top, if you have any specific questions I'll be glad to help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idrjoe_sandiego Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Thanks for adding that David. It helps to hear from the pros. Ray, the pads David refers to, can be seen in the second photo post #2 above. The passenger side pad is seen in the upper left corner of the picture. We used the cotton-no foam. David, one comment: It seems that with this particular Dodge Phaeton top, when I was setting up the bows, the straps really did the work of keeping the bows from sagging. But without the pads, you would definitely not get very smooth roof lines. Is it possible there are different type of irons/bow setups? This one Dodge advertised as a "one-man top" which is a joke, unless that one man happens to have at least four gorilla arms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idrjoe_sandiego Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Ray, I took a second look at your pictures. I think one other item is missing and that is the straps that run from the front to the rear bow to keep the "field" of the top from sagging. You can see a couple of these in my second photo in post #2. David maybe can add to this. Also Ray, any chance you could post some detailed photos of your side curtains both inside and outside? Thx, Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R.White Posted November 5, 2011 Author Share Posted November 5, 2011 (edited) David, thankyou for the info. on reinforced 'pads'. I have read about these before but if you have any photos that would help me fix my sagging top, it would be most useful. The more details I can get, the more confident I will feel about tackling the job. It is often the case that putting right what is wrong can be more of a headache than starting from scratch and I should imagine that this is no exception!And Joe, I would be happy to oblige with side curtain photos but I don't have any at present - should be able to take some when I get a chance to next go to the car, which is at present in storage a few miles away. Cheers, Ray. Edited November 5, 2011 by R.White (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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