mesh windjammer? - Page 30

Brew461 · 07-25-2008, 09:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poobah

...in fact, a case could be made that

1. Brew paid for his full price (and perhaps got a rebate check for a measly 10%?), and

2. If he had more money, he would buy more products like the PSC roll cage and not make them himself...

thus:

3. Brew is not, by his own arguments and admissions, a real Jeeper!

Ok, so curiosity got the better of me and I went back to figure out why his statements are so contradictory. I will hear no more testimony today - court is adjourned.

Now you're digging!

I like my SW2. I stated that I would have been mad if I would have paid for it because I could have made my own for 1/3 the cost. Spiderweb sent me one to test, and I like it. If I would have spent any money on this top I would have been mad.

I could have spent $350 on my front bumper. I built it out of scrap and paid about $20, same idea. Your logic is inherently flawed, your honor.

the mad hatter · 07-25-2008, 10:05 AM

Those tops look like the screens you can get from the garden section at Home Depot to put over your patio cover...only smaller.

Edit:
This is the material I'm thinking of, only without the metal rings
http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100537794&N=10000003+9 0029&D=super+screen

buellwinkle · 07-25-2008, 01:43 PM

OK, I'm at wits end, there are no decent bikini tops for the 2005 TJ. It appears as though they changed the design after 2002 so the bestop channel for my car will not really hold the bestop bikini in place. Even if you had the time and energy to put the top in the channel, as soon as you cinch the straps it just pops off. It's going back. As for the Spiderweb, just too ugly with brass grommets and bungees and if they figure it out by next summer I'll get one, in the meantime I'm just going to have to wear a cap. If I can find someone in my area that can sew, maybe I'll get one custom made. If someone here has sewing skills, just make it and it will sell, just make what Spiderweb does but with cinch straps.

In the meantime, this mall crawler is going to have to park in the mall's indoor parking area.

buellwinkle · 07-25-2008, 02:17 PM

I just had an idea. If I can get someone to cut off the header strip along the front of the bestop mesh bikini, fold it over and sew in some webbing for strength and then sew in a small strap to the middle of the front to attach it to the middle strap from the rear for a complete loop, I may have the ultimate mesh top. It would still wrap around the side roll bars and use cinch straps at the back to hold it all together. They have a clever way of attaching to the one screw on each side -

buellwinkle · 07-25-2008, 06:13 PM

Folks, I have a winner. I just need to go to a seamstress and have her take in the front about 2 1/2" and sew in a strap. Once tension is on the front from a small strap that ties into the rear strap as a loop, it will look perfect. Here's some pre-pics. When it's perfected I'll see if I can get someone in China to make them for us cheap if there's interested. This would be a headerless bikini top with straps (no bungees or grommets) and tie into the side above the door like the factory top and tie into the tops of the speakers on the speaker bar. Very clean look.

Pardon if the front is bunched up, that's the fabric I have to remove.

**GIJOE** · 07-25-2008, 08:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by buellwinkle

Folks, I have a winner. I just need to go to a seamstress and have her take in the front about 2 1/2" and sew in a strap. Once tension is on the front from a small strap that ties into the rear strap as a loop, it will look perfect. Here's some pre-pics. When it's perfected I'll see if I can get someone in China to make them for us cheap if there's interested. This would be a headerless bikini top with straps (no bungees or grommets) and tie into the side above the door like the factory top and tie into the tops of the speakers on the speaker bar. Very clean look.

Pardon if the front is bunched up, that's the fabric I have to remove.

What if we don't use door surrounds???

**JBWood05TJ** · 07-25-2008, 10:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by buellwinkle

OK, I'm at wits end, there are no decent bikini tops for the 2005 TJ. It appears as though they changed the design after 2002 so the bestop channel for my car will not really hold the bestop bikini in place. Even if you had the time and energy to put the top in the channel, as soon as you cinch the straps it just pops off. It's going back. As for the Spiderweb, just too ugly with brass grommets and bungees and if they figure it out by next summer I'll get one, in the meantime I'm just going to have to wear a cap. If I can find someone in my area that can sew, maybe I'll get one custom made. If someone here has sewing skills, just make it and it will sell, just make what Spiderweb does but with cinch straps.

In the meantime, this mall crawler is going to have to park in the mall's indoor parking area.

Before you send it back or modify it as yo suggest below, try this -

In stead of putting the plastic part in the rail on the header, and then tightenting the straps - put the top in place and draw the center strap enough so that the plastic tabis about an inch or so away (toward the rear of the Jeep) from the rail where you tuck it in. Then tuck the plastic tab into the rail. Then go about securing and tightening the rest of the straps.

I went through the same thing that you're going through with my safari top. Had my two sons hold the plastic piece in place, while I tightened the straps, the plastic tab would keep coming out - drove me nuts. Then someone posted the method above on here and I tried that. Pure gold.

jeepwave · 07-26-2008, 07:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GIJOE

What if we don't use door surrounds???

So what if you need to put your soft top up? You need to detach the mesh top from the door surrounds in order to attach your soft top, right? Will there be enough tension to keep the top from sagging or becoming loose?

**GIJOE** · 07-26-2008, 08:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeepwave

So what if you need to put your soft top up? You need to detach the mesh top from the door surrounds in order to attach your soft top, right? Will there be enough tension to keep the top from sagging or becoming loose?

Actually, in the summer, I just run with the top and full soft doors to keep the rain out of the front, which is why the original design of the SpiderWeb works so well for me. BUT you are right, if I put the whole thing back together, I use the door surrounds. I guess what I was referring to was if you needed to use the door surrounds, that puts the screen over the roll bars, which eliminates the ability to keep both the screen and the soft top on at the same time. Not knowing the product, is there a way of fastening to the side bars without using the door surrounds? Eliminating the header is a definite plus though...

buellwinkle · 07-26-2008, 08:28 PM

The Bestop gives you both options, you can use the door surrounds with the plastic tab sewn in and it also has a flap with velcro that you wrap around the side roll bar. So if you are concerned about putting the top soft top back on, then just wrap it around the roll bar instead of using the door surrounds, but I would guess that you maybe able to put the factory soft top door surround tabs over the Bestop's. Here' the instruction that explain what to do with if you have surrounds and if you don't (or don't want to use them) and it explains how to attached if you have speakers on the rollbar or if you don't. Look at it this way, $50 for the top, $10 to get a seamstress to sew up the front and you have a great top that you can put your soft/hard top over. Same prices as Spidertop but no brass grommets, no bull bungees pinching the foam rollbar covers and has more customized attachment options. I just want to use it without the header bar, that way I can close the softop over it, like when I want to wash the car I can quickly throw the soft top over, no header bar to remove.

http://www.bestop.com/installation_guides/52528.pdf

**GIJOE** · 07-27-2008, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by buellwinkle

The Bestop gives you both options, you can use the door surrounds with the plastic tab sewn in and it also has a flap with velcro that you wrap around the side roll bar. So if you are concerned about putting the top soft top back on, then just wrap it around the roll bar instead of using the door surrounds, but I would guess that you maybe able to put the factory soft top door surround tabs over the Bestop's. Here' the instruction that explain what to do with if you have surrounds and if you don't (or don't want to use them) and it explains how to attached if you have speakers on the rollbar or if you don't. Look at it this way, $50 for the top, $10 to get a seamstress to sew up the front and you have a great top that you can put your soft/hard top over. Same prices as Spidertop but no brass grommets, no bull bungees pinching the foam rollbar covers and has more customized attachment options. I just want to use it without the header bar, that way I can close the softop over it, like when I want to wash the car I can quickly throw the soft top over, no header bar to remove.

http://www.bestop.com/installation_guides/52528.pdf

Thanks for explaining this to me!

Now I understand where you are coming from. Sounds like you may be really on to something here...

**ImaginaryFriend** · 07-27-2008, 12:42 PM

If the Bestop mesh top is anything like their safari in regards to installation of the header and sides (and the install instructions seem to point to this), then you cannot run the top fastened to the sport bars and have the door surrounds on (without modification like cutting the top). The flaps that wrap around the sport bars extend slightly past where the surrounds mount on each end.

Plus wrapping around the sport bars also interferes with folks that use grab handles.

The grommet system eliminates all these issues. Make the top (SW) a little wider and black out the grommets, and I think you have a winner.

fromme · 07-27-2008, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by symbiont7

Make the top (SW) a little wider and black out the grommets, and I think you have a winner.

buellwinkle · 07-27-2008, 04:44 PM

If I use the tabs on the door surrounds, what is that, 1/2 second to pull them out and put the soft top on, no biggy and it's still strapped to the front and back so it's not going anywhere. I would sell the TJ before I would put a tarp with ball bungees and brass grommets on the jeep, afterall, it's a mall crawler, can't have the people at Nordy's think I'm a real Jeeper

**SpiderWeb** · 07-28-2008, 03:19 PM

I am afraid some of you guys are missing the point. The SpiderWeb top does NOT use the header or the door window channels because when the top "floats" between the roll cage flapping is NOT possible. Plus you can throw all of your other tops right over it.

The additional grommets in the rear really help the SpiderWeb top to hug the contours of the roll cage and provide 3" of headroom for backseat riders.

Did I mention that if you actually buy the top and are unsatisfied for any reason I will refund your money. We make this offer confidently because we have NEVER had one come back: knock on wood!

Checkout what our eBay buyers have said, 100% of them:

http://feedback.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewFeedback2&userid=pvb2734&ftab=Al lFeedback

Please keep the input coming, we love it!

Thanks Jeepers.