i want to take my vinyl off anything i should know about could you possibly just write up a short step by step on how to? it would be greatly appreciated thanks alot!
Well, let me attempt to describe how I removed the vinyl top off my "73" Comet, and what I ran into: 1st. I had to remove all the roof molding. Be careful when removing this, you do not want to "kink" or bend the molding. It is difficult and may be expensive to find replacement. So, be very careful, take your time. Once removed, be sure to place it somehwere out of the way where you are not going to, again damage it (it bends or "kinks" very easily). You will probably have to replace the old molding clips, they usually are rusted or will break when you attempt to remove them from the body. 2nd. If your vinyl top has a rip or is torn somewhere, start there, if not just make a nice cut with a sharp razor knife. To remove the top, I used an adhesive remover, a stripper I bought at the body shop. Can not think of the name of it, there are many out there and all work well. A little at a time. You want to get the remover up under the vinyl, let it sit, do it's thing, then remove, repeat, remove, repeat..you got the picture. 3rd. Not knowing how old, or the condition your vehicle is (vinyl top), but I am going to guess that you may be shocked once you remove the top. You may find rust and pitted metal. If so, this is where the work begins. Once the top was removed, I again went over the entire top with the adhesive remover to ensure that all the old glue was off. This took time, and the pitted areas really held the glue and little pieces of vinyl. A scraper, and steel wool help. 4th. I then went over the entire roof with a grinder / circular sander, attempting to smooth the area, pitted areas as good as possible. Heavy grade first, then lighter towards the end. Typical body / pitted metal prep. Be careful when doing this. The roof metal is somewhat thin, and many of those pitted areas will be weak. Now I don't know how bad you will find your roof, but my roof had a few areas where it was pitted through. I actually had to remove the inside liner to see the "see through areas", and repair them. 5th. To repair the pitted area, and the "see through areas" I used a combination of "New Metal" filler, and then went over the entire roof with a very ligh, cream filler in a tube (again the name escapes me, but it was like a toothpaste). This last filler really smoothed out the roof, and was easy to work with. 6th. Final state, sand, wet sand, primer, sand...ready to re-vinyl or repaint. That's it. Summaraized tips: 1: Take your time and be careful in removing the molding. 2: Use the glue/adhesive remover, one area at a time. 3: Repair all pitted areas and check for weak, see through areas. 4: Body filler, sand, paint...there you go. Oh, one more tip I forgot. When sanding and prepping the top, be carefull with the roof "tits" that hold the molding clips. You don't want to damage them. You will learn a few new words as you sand and hit those little tits with your knuckles. Hope this help, let me know, good luck.
thanks a ton man you have no idea how much this is gonna help im gonna see if i can do it this weekend. as for the molding i do not want to replace the vinyl just take it off ii still wont need the moldings right?
NO. You want to keep the molding even if you decide not to replace the vinyl. The molding outlines the roof line and looks great even if you paint the top....plus, if you don't replace the molding you are going to have to grind down and smooth all the roof molding "tits". They are tack welded into the roof itself. A lot more work. Keep the molding. If you really don't want to replace it (but you should), and you keep it in good shape, there are tons of buyers out there, so you can re-coop some of your repair money..................BUT...my suggestion, keep the molding and replace it.
alright ill keep it how did you take yours off? could i just take mine off by kinda poppin it out with a flathead screw driver or is there somethin better?
They sale a "clip-molding" remover tool at any restoration or auto shop. It is a thin tool, similar to the tool used to remove door handles. I would use one of those so as not to damage the molding. They're cheap. Good Luck.
If in a bind for a clip remover you can sacrifice a putty knife and grind a "V" in the center of it---that'll spread the force out. I've learned to work mine pretty good.
The roof rail molding is a bigger diameter than a non-vinyl roof car. So you can't reinstall it after removing the top. It will be way too loose.
I have heard this before......but.......that is exactly what I did with my orange car and I had no problems.
This is going to be a nasty job, so don't feel let down if you can't complete it in a weekend. I did an experiment with various adhesive removers and other chemicals (including gasoline, acetone, lacquer thinner, WD-40, etc) and applied each to a marked area on the roof (so the chemicals would not mix or interact) to see what would remove the adhesive best. This was all after peeling the vinyl off, and luckily, finding no rust anywhere. Anyway, after putting a bit of each chemical on a different part of the roof, and letting it sit over night, scraping at it all first after a few minutes, then an hour, then the next morning, the best remover ended up being a dual-action sander with light to medium grit paper. Nothing else worked for me. It took lots of paper, since the adhesive just gums it up pretty quick. So be prepared to go to the metal, prime, and paint it.
Hey. Since I have sold my last Comet, looking another Comet, preferably a 302, so if anyone has or knows of one for sale, let me know. I am in Ohio, so don't want to drive to far, or pay to much for shipping., Thanks.
