STC Full top frustration

[kohldad]

Two weeks ago, I received the top and got it installed without problems. Have ridden around a little with the top on and don't really like having the top on. With the top completely off, the hardware and bows really make the Scrambler look trashy (okay, trashier than it is), so much so I don't like it.

Been getting ready for Oak Ridge so started seeing where to store pieces of the top when its not installed. Can roll up the windows but that takes a lot of time for the towels and then creates a roll thats 56" longs (not folding the windows in half). Have a tube that they all slide in, but that's takes up room I don't have. Knew they needed to be rolled up with something between the windows to prevent scratching, but had been thinking they could roll up short ways, didn't realize about the plastic catches with the fast trac.

If I do take the top off on the trail, then I'll have to fold it up and find a place for it where it won't get messed up. Because of the gasket material and plastic in the front piece, it doesn't fold very tight or compact. This means it will be laying on top of the cooler and tool box so I'll have to move it everytime I need something.

Doors aren't much of a problem, because I was expecting and prepared for those.

Biggest problem down here is the rain and pop-up thunderstorms. It doesn't get very cold except at night. Plus with this being an extra vehicle, usually since I'm driving it as an option, don't even really notice the cold. Just prefer not to have a top on 95% of the time.

Am I being too picky/careful on how I'm storing the pieces? Will it just take time to get use to a top? I ran for 1-1/2 years without one but put on the old top this summer which I enjoyed because it was real quick and easy to put on/off (benefit of snaps), didn't have to worry about messing it up, etc.

I'm starting to wish I had saved the money and not gotten the top. Thinking about selling it but would my wife would kill me for spending so much on it and then losing money on it almost immediately.

Aaargh. Maybe I'll feel better tomorrow after driving it to work with the top on. It'll be hot tomorrow afternoon, so I'll have try with it with the back window rolled up and the doors off. Took me 30 minutes to put the windows in. Old top I could put the whole think on in less than 5 which made it feasible for thowing on with a pop-up shower.

Edit: corrected bad late night grammer/spelling.

[2K1TJ]

Sorry to hear about your problems.

I don't think you're being to anal about storage of the top. You paid a pretty penny for it, you'd be a fool not to take care of it.

Are the windows really that big of a pain to remove/install? Are they different in design than the Bestop ones?


If you do decide to sell, I'm interested. I've been trying to decide weather to buy one or not. Let me know.

[SandJeep]

Thanks for you post, I'm interested in what others have to say as well. I live in So Cal, and my Scrambler is a 3rd car, same as you. But, I haven't bought a full soft top yet, and now I'm questioning whether I will buy one or not. I've only had the Jeep for 3 months, so I haven't had a need for a top yet. And winters out here are very mild... Your experiences are the things that I have been wondering about before spending $700, so I really appreciate your comments.

Does anyone make a full length bikini top for the Scrambler? That's probably all I will need for shade on the hot summer days.

Bill

[2K1TJ]

Originally Posted by SandJeep

Does anyone make a full length bikini top for the Scrambler? That's probably all I will need for shade on the hot summer days.

I have one, but I can't remember who makes it though. I'll have to check. It's made for a cj-7 or early wrangler, the type that don't have the full family-style cage. The will fit a Scrambler though with a little tweeking. The straps are made to go to the rear of the tub but they won't reach on an '8. I just put 2 footman's loops on the fenderwells to attach the hooks to.

It comes with a vertical bow that attaches to the rollbar to hold up the rear of the top. Don't drill the holes where the directions say, the math just doesn't work on an '8. You'll have to fit it up to see where they need to go.

[acorbacho]

I've had the full hard top for about 6 months now...and living in MA, one day its sunny and beatifull...and the next its raining and cold. So you have to come up with a solution.
Ive changed my configuration around at least 5 times since Ive got it...from removing all but the back bars and rolling the top when not in use... to leaving the bars on and simply removing the canvas. In the summer I dont keep up alll the support bars...this makes the chore of putting it up and down much easier.
I guess its just gonna take awhile to find out the best solution. I find that the damn top has so many quirks in relationship to the scrambler...that you cant simply use it stock. Trial and error will be your best bet...
sorry if my troubled experiances havent helped you out much....but trust me I KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN.
Best,
Alex

[scrambler jimmy]

I really like mine, but I don't have the removable side windows. And, I'm not worried about scratching/hazing up the windows as mine is a wheeler and no beauty queen.

I get a ton of attention when I have the doors off and the sides and rear window all rolled up. I had people taking pictures of it left-n-right at Paragon one day.

Maybe that's 'cause Scramblers are sexy.

On this past Saturday, I unrolled all the sides to give it a good bath and to reattach the top to get it back into shape from the sides 'n back being rolled up for a couple of months. Since it was only the second time I had reattached the top to the fasttrack rails, it took a few minutes to accomplish. I was gonna remind myself on how STC recommends it be taken completely down, but like Kohldad said, it'd be in the way of all the cargo in the back which I have a tendancy to get into a lot when on the trail. So, I decided not to bother folding it down at all and stick to rolling up everything.

There's no quick way to button a Scrambler back up - it's a labor of love. When you own a Jeep, you're bound to get wet at some point.

Kohldad - what about putting the windows in the tube and attach it to the roof of the softtop? I'm reaching for ideas here to get those side windows out of your way. It's the only place I can think of to hide them. Good luck with whatever you decide.

[kohldad]

Thanks for the help and suggests, would love to hear more. Drove it to work today with the everything in place except zipped down the drivers window. Had some flapping that I didn't like but will get use to the noise, after all, its a jeep.

At lunch time, took the rear window off and laid it in the back on top of the tool box with a towel underneath. Took the doors off and put them in the back seat with some towels between them. Then drove around lunch time doing some errands and lost track of time so had a long relaxing lunch.

This evening, took the top off and some hardware to set the half hard top on to see what it felt like again (brown with thick dust). Didn't like the idea of having to leave one of the kids home and the junk in the back exposed so put the hardware and top back on.

Have decided to run it at Oakridge and see what its like. Will be picking up some cheap material from walmart and making some bags for the window. This will speed up the removal and installation time on them, plus take less room. For this trip, will just put the doos in the back with some towels or blankets between them, but will probably do some bags like for the windows plus a box to help protect them.

I just have too much junk to carry with me on the trails (toolbox, 40 qt cooler, and large snack box). All of this problem storing stuff and this is after putting the spare on the swing out and having an 8. How in the world do the CJ-7s and Cj-5s do it?

[CJ-8_Jim]

My sentiments exactly! I also thought that with the top down, all that hardware made the Jeep look trashy.

Lucky for me, the STC half cab soft top I bought (a few years back when STC had just acquired the business) had the zippers sewn on backwards so I was able to return it. I didn't get a replacement -- My 8 is an optional vehicle and I rarely use a top (even in NE Illinois).

Here is what I did do and I couldn't be happier...

I bought a used YJ soft top pretty cheap of Ebat($75 including shipping.... I think it's a Bestop Supertop... but an OEM should work just as well).

Then I made some modifications to cover the top and back:
- cut off and hemmed 80% of each C-pillar (rear corner pillars) so that now the top extends back over the roll bar to the bulkhead. The C-pillar "stubs" now wrap around the base of the rollbar at the bulkhead.
- attached 1.5" web straps to each c-pillar stub with a buckle (like the style on backpack waist belts) so that I can buckle each c-pillar stub together inside the cab at the top of the bulkhead.

The beauty of this arrangement it is that I can also use it as a bikini. When used as a bikini, the top rolls over the rollbar and comes back towards the windshield frame. I added two footman (sp?) loops to each upper corner of the inside windshield frame (just like the center footman loop, but now on each corner). The staps (each with a "buckle halve") used up above now run through these new footman loops to an additional corresponding "buckle halve" that I sewn to each C-pillar stub.

Let me know if you're interested in pics and I'll post (right now I'm in Australia and New Zealand on business until mid-October).

Jim

[bigjeepnfool]

I assumed that the bows folded down similar to the unlimited and cj'7 tops.Can you guys post some pics of what the top looks like when the fabric is removed....or when the windows are up. .I want to see how it looks. Any pics would be appreciated...WIsh i saw this b4 i placed an order for one
thanks
-Will
bigjeepinfool@comcast.net

[Randyzzz]

Jim- I'd like to see some pics of that. I just bought a new/uswd sunrider top with the intentions of making a shorty top just behind the roll bar. I was using a full CJ-7 top, looked ok but I don't use the back seat anymore so I'm going back to the pickup look.

I have the same frustrations with the STC top. I think they are doing the best they can for such a big top...it's just a pain in the rear to use! The hardware is ugly, and the fit is "so-so". I've got mine adjusted super tight to take out all the slack, and i can still see wrinkles at the segments of the side k-strip. It takes a good 20-30 mins to put it up or down...not the kind of "up on the way into work, down on the way home" top that I am used to. A CJ-7 or Wrangler top, especially the factoty tops, could be put up or down in minutes! And, the tailgate seal/velcro deal sucks. The rear window never really seems tight.

I was hoping the removable side version would be better...but I guess not in all the areas I'd wished for.

[kohldad]

Here are some pics I shot this afternoon. It seems that the top is sagging a little bit more than it should so I'm going to push the windshield forward about a 1/4" and see if it helps. If you want more details of any one spot, just ask and I'll take them when I get back. Did notice while looking at the pictures that on the passenger side, I didn't tuck the top of the window in under the drip edge after I put the top back on.



















Have driven it around a little and found that with taking the doors off and the rear window out, the entire space gets a good breeze.

I'll take some pictures this weekend of the hardware with the top down, how I roll up the windows for protection, and the problem with folding the top (assuming I take it all the way off). It would help if there was provisions for rolling up the side windows, but evidently when you get the removable windows they dont include the loops.

[bigjeepnfool]

THe bows that support the fabric do fold down...Right??? Is it just a matter of taking off the side and back windows and folding the top down as is the same with bestop or other soft tops? By this I mean the bows fold down to the sides and to the back and the fabric tucks between the bows when put down. As far as fit that looks extremely baggy on top and to be quite frank (like crap). Is this the same with every one of these tops? If the bows do fold down how involved is the process? I should have asked these questions before ordering but i assumed it was similar to folding down a besttop or or factory tj top or almost every softtop for that matter!
Any help would be greatly appreciated,
-Will

[2K1TJ]

Kohldad,
Is the fabric vinyl or denim? And have you driven it in the rain? Just wondering how weather-tight it is?
I know you're at Oakridge right now, just thought I'd ask while I'm thinking about it.

[kohldad]

Back from Oak Ridge and will give some more info now and hopefully get some new pictures up tomorrow. The top is the black denim.

Pushing the window forward slightly did help a little. It made the 430 miles each way at 60 mph and doesn't seem to be any worse for the trip. The pictures of the side windows doesn't really do the top justice as the top of the windows weren't properly tucked in under the rain flap. Haven't seen any rain yet but will have a partial test when I rinse all of the Oak Ridge dust off but feel that it will be pretty good.

The wind noise with the top all zipped up is minimal and acceptable without any noticeable drafts (at least from openings in the top).

The rear bows fold down to the back and the front bow folds down behind the rear seat. However, because of the door support pieces on the front bow, found it best just to leave in pace.

The top took a number of branch rubbings and one minor tree bump without any noticeable signs. The tree bump was from leaning over into a tree and was hard enough to push the bow over about 2". The bow returned to its proper position. Until its washed, won't know for sure, but it doesn't seemed to have any been marred by the bump.

If anyone would like a picture of anything tomorrow, please let me know so I can snap a shot of it.

[kohldad]

The top with the side windows properly tucked into the drip flap.





Two rear bars in latched position and then unlatched. By placing the bars in the unlatched position, it is easier to install the side windows ant top. Have not found it necessary to unlatch the rear bar to install/open the rear window.