ROOF CAP RESTORATION: Who has used the CCOT drip rails with the Classic Cruisers LLC fiberglass cap? (1 Viewer)

[mrjordann]

Hey All! This is my first resto project, and I'm sort of an amateur... so this roof cap is really testing my skills.

I was wondering who else has done this with the Cool Cruisers of Texas rain gutters and the Classic Cruisers LLC reproduction roof cap. I'm almost finished with the metalwork on the main 7 pieces of the CCOT drip rail. I attached some pics for reference. I guess my next steps are to remove the metal, lay it upside down on the fiberglass cap, then weld on the front 2 pieces which overhang the windshield, then primer the metal and reinstall onto the forty to rivet the fiberglass on.

I'm posting because I haven't found many people who used these parts to build a new top, it seems like everyone just patches their old one. But mine was beyond repair so I had no choice. The main thing I am not sure about is the front piece which bolts onto the windshield frame. (here's a link for reference) How does this piece attach to the fiberglass cap? And how should I fit it?

All advice is very appreciated!! Please follow the thread if you've done this and you don't mind answering questions if any come up. And please share pictures of your project! That would be so valuable to someone trying to do this on their own.
Thank you God bless

 

[DangerNoodle]

The inner cap piece should be riveted onto the cap. I would drill holes and rivet off the vehicle on the ground, just center the cap in the space. It may need some pressure down to flatten and even out well when you drill and rivet, especially if there is more than a 1/2 gap from the edge of the fiberglass to the metal. I would fully prime everything, then use some self-leveling seam sealer on all the drip rail.

 

[Pierps]

CCOT calls that part the "windshield cap", but I believe the more common name for it is the "visor". and +1 that it gets riveted to the fiberglass.

Since you're working with so many aftermarket parts, I would use your truck as a jig. Looks like you already did that with the drip rail. Here are the steps I would follow:

1. Bolt your drip rail down to your truck
2. Loosely bolt your visor piece to the top of the windshield (there's some adjustability in the hole location.
3. Place your fiberglass cap on the drip rail and visor. Position it appropriately, and clamp it to the drip rail.
4. Push our visor up, so it's in contact with the fiberglass top. Tighten the windshield/visor bolts down once you're happy. Fingers crossed for you that the CCOT visor and the Classic Cruisers fiberglass roof match up well. If they do, mark the rivet holes for the visor-to-roof connection. I just did mine the other day... I THINK there are 9 holes total, but you should fact check me on that.
5. Drill the visor holes through the fiberglass roof
6. Mark where you want to drill your drip rail rivets to be around the whole perimeter
7. Take the fiberglass cap off, and drill all of your gutter rivet holes
8. Put the fiberglass cap back on the truck/gutter, position it, and clamp it to the gutter. Make sure your visor holes are aligned. I recommend using lots of clecos to do this- you're going to need them for the riveting process anyway.
9. Use an appropriately sized transfer punch to transfer the rivet hole locations to your gutter
10. Take the fiberglass cap and gutter off, and drill all of your rivet holes in the gutter.
11. Take the gutter and visor off the truck, prep and spray with a few coats of epoxy primer.
12. Rivet your visor to the fiberglass cap (be sure to put some seam sealer between the visor and fiberglass)
13. Rivet the gutter to the fiberglass cap (lots of tutorials on here for this, but use clecos to align everything).
14. Spray the gutter area with epoxy primer- no need to prime the whole top yet.
15. Use a good quality 2 part epoxy self-leveling seam sealer to seal your rain gutters to the fiberglass. I really liked 3M 08307. One tip here- don't do what I did and lay the seam sealer by going in a single circle around the truck. The seam sealer was already pretty set up by the time I got all the way around the top to where I started, so the beginning and ending sections of sealer didn't really meld together as much as I would've liked. Instead, start in one direction, and after maybe 5 feet or so, go back to your starting spot and put seam sealer down in the other direction. That way you have a chance of there not being an ugly joint between where you start and end.
16. Epoxy prime your seam sealer and maybe the rest of the top, do the rest of your paint work, etc etc.

Hope that helps! good luck.

 

[Pierps]

Also, one thing to point out. Maybe you already know this. But the OEM drip rail uses welded nuts on the top of the drip rail for your bolts. Your pics show that you've used bolts and I assume some nuts and washers, with the bolt dropping in from the top. I'm not totally sure about this, but I would practice installing the bolts in that fashion with the fiberglass roof resting in place (but before you rivet your fiberglass roof to the gutter). You might find that it's tough to get the through-bolts in because you'll hit the fiberglass cap. That would be a bummer to find out after riveting, seam sealing, etc.

If I were you, I'd weld nuts on the top- if nothing else, it'll make installing your roof much easier.

 

[samc2447]

But the OEM drip rail uses welded nuts on the top of the drip rail for your bolts. Your pics show that you've used bolts and I assume some nuts and washers, with the bolt dropping in from the top.

Just did this with these exact parts. There already are captive nuts on the CCOT gutters. The rear part does not have them and does require bolts with nuts.

The steps outlined above are what you want to follow. Assembling the gutters on the truck is the best advice as they are all different. When you go to install the final product, loosen the side panels to allow some movement and it will make installation much easier.

 

[Pierps]

Just did this with these exact parts. There already are captive nuts on the CCOT gutters. The rear part does not have them and does require bolts with nuts.

Ah, duh. Yeah I failed to note that the pictures above are of the rear section.

 

[OhioFJ]

I just finished applying seam sealer in the drip rail on my hard top re-do. I used 3M fast'n firm - the stuff that CCOT sells. I think this was a mistake and wish that I used the 2 part product. The fast'n firm lays down like caulk, not self-leveling at all and ended up looking bad after trying to smooth it with my finger. If I can't sand and smooth it I'm considering hacking it out and doing it again with 3M 08307. Bummer.

 

[Pierps]

Sorry dude, that really sucks.

Overall I'm not terribly impressed with the roof restoration parts CCOT offers... crappy seam sealer, incorrectly sized rivets with a weird recommendation to use rebar and a hammer to buck them (when an air hammer is WAY faster, easier, and less prone to damage)... and from what I've read, poorly fitting gutters that require lots of massaging to fit.

 

[rickpaw]

I just finished applying seam sealer in the drip rail on my hard top re-do. I used 3M fast'n firm - the stuff that CCOT sells. I think this was a mistake and wish that I used the 2 part product. The fast'n firm lays down like caulk, not self-leveling at all and ended up looking bad after trying to smooth it with my finger. If I can't sand and smooth it I'm considering hacking it out and doing it again with 3M 08307. Bummer.

One thing I learned with 3M fast n firm, is to wet your finger (with glove of course) with paint thinner while smoothing it out. The paint thinner helps smooth out the seam sealer much better (almost like glass if you're smooth)

 

[OhioFJ]

I wish I knew that before!