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rkitect
03-03-2012, 10:12 PM
So we're starting to have more top down days than non top down days here in the midwest, and I've decided to pull my hardtop off. This was the first season I've had it on and seeing as it's a Kirklin I kinda guessed as to whether or not it was fitting right. It stayed on at highway speeds, so I'm guess it was good enough, but could have fitted better. So I have a couple of questions for some hardtop veterans and some veteran mechanics.

The first is, does anyone know if there is a Kirklin installation or fitting guide? I'd like to know if I'm even remotely close to fitting this thing properly.

Secondly, When removing the top, I noticed a sloshing sound, and sure enough it appears as though I have some water entering the top. As you can see from this pic I have some tinting needing replaced.
http://gibsonhh.info:8081/photos/cache/Carl_and_Joanna/Cars/miata/Hardtop/DSC03930_w640.jpg

The white are is the area where the seal has failed and pulls freely from the top. Would it be as simple as replacing the seal here or would the entire sheet of glass need to be pulled to complete this job properly?

Thirdly, I noticed some microfractures in the fiberglass on the interior of the top. Should I be concerned or is this normal wear after 20 years of use (manufacturing date is 92 on this top). Seen in these pictures:
http://gibsonhh.info:8081/photos/cache/Carl_and_Joanna/Cars/miata/Hardtop/DSC03929_w640.jpg

http://gibsonhh.info:8081/photos/cache/Carl_and_Joanna/Cars/miata/Hardtop/DSC03928_w640.jpg

Lastly, I would like to replace all of the bolts on the top as they are undergoing the good ol' Kirklin rusting process. One, however, has frozen and the head has stripped. Any recommendations on how to replace it without ruining the embedded threads.
http://gibsonhh.info:8081/photos/cache/Carl_and_Joanna/Cars/miata/Hardtop/DSC03931_h640.jpg

TIA,

The Driver
03-06-2012, 07:35 AM
Oh, now you pulled the HT off... I had no idea about any of this, guess I got to check mine!


BTW, to Okies, this isn't the Miwest, but the Southwest... You won't find rodeos in Iowa or Wisconsin! :mrgreen:

psulja
03-06-2012, 10:11 AM
For the stuck bolt:
I had this happen to 2 or 3 of mine when doing my hardtop brackets. What I did was take a dremel and cut a slit in the head of the bolt so I could get a flat head screw driver in. Then I used heat and a lot of pressure to slowly back it out.

This didn't work for one of the bolts because I accidentally made the cut too big so there was too much play and the bolt head just got even more messed up. This is when I switched to vice grips. Eventually I got it out after the head fell off and I just used vice grips on the threads that were backed out with a lot of heat.