making your own soft top.. because lets be honest.. you've built everything else

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Softtop Success

This thread is so exciting. I am impressed by your initiative with the entire process. It truly looks great! :D:D

I hope you can post up so measurements and/or a plan with everything you need. I will be taking it to a local upholsterer and having him to it professionally - still better than a year wait!

Wahoo!!

Thanks,
Jeff -Sno Dawg
 
Might get sticker shock when you get a quote. Looks good wish I had a machine with a walking foot right tool for the job of course you got the skill to use it. Keeping it straight isn't easy even after gluing when doing multiple pieces excellent work
 
I am very interested in the final outcome with materials, measurements and costs. I apprieciate the efforts.

:beer:
 
That looks great. You have given a lot of us FST guys some inspiration. I have thought about doing the same thing, but lack a nice machine like most of the guys. I think you are doing an awesome job with it. Love the color too.
 
antFJ said:
actually no i didn't.. and I didn't wash the material before either.. however I found out why it's so small. my pattern for the rear two pieces is about an inch short for some reason.. i just lined up my sides to match the bottoms of the rear pieces and lost a lot of material on either side.

still.. not too bad for my practice attempt

the sides and the zippers are by far the hardest pieces.. i really need to slow down and take my time to make sure everything stays lined up properly before I sew.
Click to expand...

Do you find your slow speed it faster than you want, and full pedal is insane? Contact your local shop that services Industrial machines and get a smaller pulley for the motor... it'll give you more torque also (or take off that 3" pulley and find a compatible one that's 2.5").

Also, don't be afraid to use pins, tape, or ??

I've also seen a "strap" rigged to pull the reverse lever with your left (spare) knee so you don't have to take any hands off your project. Students will resort to all sorts of things when the project is 6" square, and a missed stitch (or out of place stitch) could cost you 5-15% of your mark, and a pass is 70%.
 
Do you find your slow speed it faster than you want, and full pedal is insane? Contact your local shop that services Industrial machines and get a smaller pulley for the motor... it'll give you more torque also (or take off that 3" pulley and find a compatible one that's 2.5").

actually i don't mind the slow speed but i love the fast speed when i get everything lined up.. on the straight pieces it's nice to rip through that stuff. As far as more torque - i haven't had problems of the machine struggling to go through multiple layers but i will definitely check that out

Also, don't be afraid to use pins, tape, or ??

I'm wicked bad at pinning that's how the zipper got all bunched up - but i might look into using tape more often.. is there a tape that will hold seams together specifically for sewing?
 
You may already have a smaller one... some of the machines I've used were stupid fast even with a smaller pulley. They'd sew quite a distance after you let up the pedal... The wheel on the end can be used to raise the needle or as a brake. As a rule, don't turn it backwards (unless the needle is going through your finder)... it cause messy snarls of thread around the bobbin. (If you already know this stuff, please accept my apologies.)

Not that I know of... masking tape would likely work. Zippers are a pain. If pins are perpendicular to the seam, you can usually just sew over them. Stitch Witchery might also be handy in some places (kind of like hot glue for sewing)... although I'd still sew it as well. For tough spots, you could tack it together by hand (kinda like welding).
 
Last edited:
bikersmurf said:
You may already have a smaller one... some of the machines I've used were stupid fast even with a smaller pulley. They'd sew quite a distance after you let up the pedal... The wheel on the end can be used to raise the needle or as a brake. As a rule, don't turn it backwards (unless the needle is going through your finder)... it cause messy snarls of thread around the bobbin. (If you already know this stuff, please accept my apologies.)

Not that I know of... masking tape would likely work. Zippers are a pain. If pins are perpendicular to the seam, you can usually just sew over them. Stitch Witchery might also be handy in some places (kind of like hot glue for sewing)... although I'd still sew it as well. For tough spots, you could tack it together by hand (kinda like welding).
Click to expand...


ahh nice i like the sew it by hand idea... like tac welds and yeah i saw some hot glue type stuff on my OCD bimini - i only go in reverse with the wheel like you said.. but didn'jt know why so I appreciate the advice
 
antFJ said:
ahh nice i like the sew it by hand idea... like tac welds and yeah i saw some hot glue type stuff on my OCD bimini - i only go in reverse with the wheel like you said.. but didn't know why so I appreciate the advice
Click to expand...

Stitch Witchery is available at Walmart, and a million other places. "Patchers" are the cat's meow when it comes to sewing in difficult places... shoe makers use them lots. I'm not recommending anyone go buy one though.

I figure if I spew out enough useless facts floating around my brain, something might help someone.

And remember of oil frequently... although for tops, once or twice a top may be enough. Just wipe it down afterwards... a practice a bit of sewing on scr@p afterwards.

For the Rich tool Junkie... just ship it to me when you realize you don't use it.
singer_patch_sewing_machine_800_denver_7587724.jpg
 
I work with Para Loft guys on my base! I will be paying in beer for them to make me a top when I get around to it...


coleman2347 said:
AntFJ, I was noticing you are at Columbus AFB, try dropping your para loft and checking out what they use. My grandmother ran a alteration shop for 50 years and I remember to mark cloth she used a white thin square of a kind of chalk/wax stuff to mark almost everything...I bet the para guys can point you in the right direction. Another thing I remember her doing is making patterns out of brown paper, then when she was finished she would roll them up and label them to keep for later use. This is a cool project, thanks for putting it up...
Click to expand...
 
alright here it is... the final proof of concept that I can actually make a soft top.. now to just get the measurements right (honestly i didn't measure anything at all this last time) and I should be good to go.
2012-03-03_12-36-46_999.webp
2012-03-03_12-37-55_626.webp
2012-03-03_12-38-13_995.webp
 
here are some weak areas on my last soft top and again on this one especially with the cheap walmart canvas... i reinforced some of the areas but didn't on others because I wont be using this top. when I do my actual top I'll make some cleaner looking reinforcements than just the quick cut out patches I made for this one
2012-03-03_12-38-31_484.webp
2012-03-03_12-38-41_825.webp
2012-03-03_12-39-18_822.webp
 
last trouble area.. this corner is pretty sharp and on my ehsan top it ripped here. I think OCD puts some leather underneath in this area
2012-03-03_12-40-05_281.webp
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Back
Top Bottom