TROA soft tops and parts, Q&A thread (3 Viewers)

[RevISK]

The folded over corners look good on yours, when I tried that the doors would catch when opening/closing. I see you double your straps over too that helps a bit. I put the turn buckles higher on the quarters than you did and raised the bows up an inch or so. I think Troa makes the tops with a little extra length all the way around because then they will be acceptable-if they are short anywhere they will get more returns

Mine was certainly a bit baggy but since I was putting it on a non-FST truck I had some leeway to go a bit farther down.
You might be right about sewing them a bit large as opposed to a bit small, covers more bases as it were.

One thing I will caution everyone to do is maintain your strap ends. Both making sure the nylon is good and tight on the melty end and applying an occasional helping of UV protectant like 303 Fabric Protector spray.

Also, only use a soft cloth and water (with a little dish soap if you must) to clean your vinyl windows. Cheap micro fiber cloths can scratch and certain chems can melt. This is the case with all clear vinyl.

Carry on...

 

[Buffchief]

@Camotubebender thank you for your input and experience, that’s what this thread is for.

My loops were actually sewn a bit aft so it stretched out the front section a bit.

As for the wide front, I’ve spoken to them about that, hopefully they are fixing it. I solved it by folding the corners over and putting a grommet through both layers, see below.

My straps hold fine but I see what you mean, it’s like both the straps and hardware are smooth. I was concerned about this but it hasn’t been an issue.

To be clear, I don’t work for or represent TROA. I actually became a distributor after many back and forth conversations about how I felt they needed to improve. I have some reviews coming up on some of their body parts, stay tuned.

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Those twist locks seem to be mounted lower than they should be! I believe they were originally on the side of the upper lip where the hard top sits when it's installed. Removed of course. Based on what Ive seen. Great looking tops regardless

 

[RevISK]

Those twist locks seem to be mounted lower than they should be! I believe they were originally on the side of the upper lip where the hard top sits when it's installed. Removed of course. Based on what Ive seen. Great looking tops regardless

Oh yeah, I went all rogue installing my top... partly because there were no instructions and I was in the mountains with no signal.

I will be doing am instal instruction series, specifically for those installing on non-FST rigs, but that will apply to all.
While the tops are not perfect, I am impressed with the general quality of the tops and the stamped metal components as well.

Ian

 

[OGBeno]

@Camotubebender thank you for your input and experience, that’s what this thread is for.

My loops were actually sewn a bit aft so it stretched out the front section a bit.

As for the wide front, I’ve spoken to them about that, hopefully they are fixing it. I solved it by folding the corners over and putting a grommet through both layers, see below.

My straps hold fine but I see what you mean, it’s like both the straps and hardware are smooth. I was concerned about this but it hasn’t been an issue.

To be clear, I don’t work for or represent TROA. I actually became a distributor after many back and forth conversations about how I felt they needed to improve. I have some reviews coming up on some of their body parts, stay tuned.

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View attachment 3836611

As the distributor, you are going to be the front facing person for anyone who spends their money buying these bits and baubles.

Hope you have a good customer service strategy in place. I've seen lots of these movies before in the LC community.

Good luck.

 

[RevISK]

As the distributor, you are going to be the front facing person for anyone who spends their money buying these bits and baubles.

Hope you have a good customer service strategy in place. I've seen lots of these movies before in the LC community.

Good luck.

Thanks?
or
Thanks.

 

[RevISK]

Mr Onur's post got me thinking, while I can't say for certain what his intentions were, he did bring up a point...

My "customer service strategy" is that if you buy something through me, I intend to see it through with you and do what I can to correct any issues that may arise. However, at the end of the day I am at mercy of someone in a different country with a different idea of what customer service is than me. That's all I can do... my best.

I am a small distributor, not THE distributor. I've sold a handful of tops and some body parts. I am certainly not in this to make a living. You can find these tops and parts in quite a few places. I'll even point you to your other options.

One of the main reasons I agreed to do this was to better the channel of communication for the end user and hopefully help make the product better along the way. The gang in Colombia is really passionate about what they are doing and they have some good tooling and crafts people to do it. This thread is for an open discourse about the products and any constructive input to help bring quality parts, or "bits and baubles" to our community.

So, if you have been around the LC community for awhile and have "seen a lot of these movies before", let's prop each other up and do what we can to keep these rigs and our passion for them, alive.

Thank a bunch,
Ian

 

[OGBeno]

Mr Onur's post got me thinking, while I can't say for certain what his intentions were, he did bring up a point...

No intentions beyond exactly what I said. Your interpretation is your own.

And good elucidation of your plans on being a distributor of these products. Seems like a good starting point.

Good luck.

 

[RevISK]

No intentions beyond exactly what I said. Your interpretation is your own.

And good elucidation of your plans on being a distributor of these products. Seems like a good starting point.

Good luck.

Thank you sir,

Perhaps we'll share a beverage and a view sometime down the road.

 

[nabbasi]

I’ve seen conflicting comments that the bows align with hard top doors and that they are a match to the originals, so they align with the soft top doors.

Are those both possible/ true?

 

[RevISK]

I’ve seen conflicting comments that the bows align with hard top doors and that they are a match to the originals, so they align with the soft top doors.

Are those both possible/ true?

I can say that the TROA B pillars aligned surprisingly well with my hard doors. There was however some massaging that needed to happen in other areas to get the B pillars and the windshield to play nice but almost exclusively on the driver side.

Here is a picture from a few weeks ago, bonus points if you can guess what I am drinking…

 

[nabbasi]

Okay that helps. I don’t mind bending if necessary. I need to get a few things knocked out on the red ‘78 I picked up first, then my wife has suggested moving forward with a soft top on the ‘67. She wants the doors off and sides and back to be rolled up for the summer.

 

[RevISK]

Okay that helps. I don’t mind bending if necessary. I need to get a few things knocked out on the red ‘78 I picked up first, then my wife has suggested moving forward with a soft top on the ‘67. She wants the doors off and sides and back to be rolled up for the summer.

If you know for sure you are going to get a soft top and bow/frame kit you should consider getting it sooner than later. I'm concerned about all the trade war stuff going on and I've already been warned that prices will be going up at some point.

To be clear, I am not trying to scare you into buying a top from me, get it from eBay or off the TROA website or one of the other vendors... I just don't want to see anyone have to pay more for something they were going to get regardless.

Feel free to PM me with any questions regardless of what you decide.

Ian

 

[RevISK]

On the topic of Soft Top and frame kits, I have one that may be available that is here at my place in central Texas.
A local LC builder/mechanic had a customer who wanted one then changed his mind back to a hard top. The top and frame kit were already ordered.

It is a black top with a roll up rear window and no tinting. Still in crate and plastic wrap. PM me for details soon otherwise he has someone he can trade some horses with or something...

 

[nabbasi]

PM incoming (might be after my son’s soccer game.

Going to need a hint on the beverage. I see the red top of a can.

 

[RevISK]

PM incoming (might be after my son’s soccer game.

Going to need a hint on the beverage. I see the red top of a can.

I don't drink Coke

 

[thatcabledude]

I don't drink Coke

 

[koccm]

Got my TROA top via Ian a few weeks ago - it came out of Columbia quick, then spent a few days in customs in Miami. Maybe a week from origin to destination. The TROA folks did a good job packing it up, lots of "do not open with sharp objects" signs on the box, and a notice inside to the customs folks on what it was, how to unpack/pack it, and saran-wrapped the entire top. My guess is they learned it the hard way at least once in the past. Doesn't look like anyone ever opened it, but if they had, TROA did everything they could to keep something stupid from happening assuming the customs folks paid even the slightest attention.

Didn't get a chance to test fit it until this past weekend, and so far, so good. My bow kit is from Real Steel, ordered back in 2022 when I ordered my top from Julie and thought it was only going to be 6-months. My FJ40 is a September 1970, and while I don't know if it ever had a soft top on it back before I got it out of the used lot at the Anchorage Toyota dealership in early 1993, it had all the holes for the twist locks drilled in the tub and the holes in the windshield frame had nuts welded in them from the factory and lined up perfectly for that part of the top. I'm running hard top doors, and so far it all fits. I'll wait until there's a good warm sunny day to make sure everything is positioned before I start cutting holes and installing the twist-lock pieces in the top.

Ian didn't hesitate to offer helpful advice, and communicated through the entire process. Absolutely no complaints from me.

Thanks, Ian!

- Chris
TLCA #5215
Acworth, GA

 

[RevISK]

Got my TROA top via Ian a few weeks ago - it came out of Columbia quick, then spent a few days in customs in Miami. Maybe a week from origin to destination. The TROA folks did a good job packing it up, lots of "do not open with sharp objects" signs on the box, and a notice inside to the customs folks on what it was, how to unpack/pack it, and saran-wrapped the entire top. My guess is they learned it the hard way at least once in the past. Doesn't look like anyone ever opened it, but if they had, TROA did everything they could to keep something stupid from happening assuming the customs folks paid even the slightest attention.

Didn't get a chance to test fit it until this past weekend, and so far, so good. My bow kit is from Real Steel, ordered back in 2022 when I ordered my top from Julie and thought it was only going to be 6-months. My FJ40 is a September 1970, and while I don't know if it ever had a soft top on it back before I got it out of the used lot at the Anchorage Toyota dealership in early 1993, it had all the holes for the twist locks drilled in the tub and the holes in the windshield frame had nuts welded in them from the factory and lined up perfectly for that part of the top. I'm running hard top doors, and so far it all fits. I'll wait until there's a good warm sunny day to make sure everything is positioned before I start cutting holes and installing the twist-lock pieces in the top.

Ian didn't hesitate to offer helpful advice, and communicated through the entire process. Absolutely no complaints from me.

Thanks, Ian!

- Chris
TLCA #5215
Acworth, GA

Thanks for the review Chris, appreciate it.
If you have any helpful tips you come up with along the way, please share them here and as always, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Post pics when your done too!

Ian

 

[renazcoracing]

I'm on the hunt for an OEM set of soft top bows. I heard of the Real Steel bows but don't have any hands on experience with them, any input would be appreciated.
I made a soft top for one of my 40's some years back, that truck is long gone now and I'm working on another 40 that I'm converting into a soft top.
Couple pics attached.

 

[RevISK]

I'm on the hunt for an OEM set of soft top bows. I heard of the Real Steel bows but don't have any hands on experience with them, any input would be appreciated.
I made a soft top for one of my 40's some years back, that truck is long gone now and I'm working on another 40 that I'm converting into a soft top.
Couple pics attached.
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From what I’ve seen all the aftermarket bows are high quality and generally pretty similar. AFAIK Reel Steel is out of the game? I can set you up with a set of bows, DM if you want current pricing.

Prices just rose, shocker I know.