John,
I just purchased a snap Installation tool from a retail outlet in
Bremerton, WA called Pacific Fabrics, but I believe that such a tool should
be available in any complete fabric store that has a good selection of
upholstery fabrics and tools. The tool is a Dritz Heavy Duty Plier Kit #24P
which includes the pliers, an adapter for different size snaps and some
assorted snaps and studs. It was $16 and I used it Saturday to put a new
snap on a repair on my top cover and it worked great!
I put a new Robbins top on my 69 TR6 last year and I am impressed with
the top. But, of course the "secret" to a top installation is the prep
work, i.e. installing new webbing at the correct dimensions, installing new
Velcro on the frame side pieces, making sure that the top frame is clean and
straight and all the movable joints are tight and work properly. I pulled
off my top frame and sanded it and painted it before installing the top just
to make sure that the frame looked as good as the new top. I think that the
AMCO top is good also - both companies have been around for many, many
years. Be prepared though, as the Robbins top contains no instructions
whatsoever just a recommendation to have it "professionally" installed, so
you will have to watch the disassembly process carefully when you remove the
old top. Also, I found an article on TR6 top installation on the VTR
website which was very helpful. The channel which holds the
weatherstripping on to the front header is attached with pop rivets inside
of the channel. I couldn't find a pop rivet tool with a nose small enough
to fit inside of the channel so I bought the closest one to what I needed
and ground down the nose until it would fit! Other than that the process
was pretty straight forward.
Regards,
Rex Townsend
Its topless time on Bainbridge Island (for sports cars at least!)
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