Yes it is in the right site!!  It is just I don't think anyone has removed the top that far before that I have seen on here.  But I have only been here for a year and half. I guess if I was doing it I would leave about 2 to 3 inches of the top to maintain the strength for the windshield and for the door frames to butt up to the top for a better seal. Then attach the soft top to that area and then to the normal attachment points. I see no problem doing it that way!! I have heard some people talk about removing it as far as they could to match the 70x RC/TD so they could use one of those years top. Did that help?!! puttputt56!!

I here ya spider, I am also concerned with tweaking the windshield frame as for  the shade,with the top I have you can roll the side windows and back windows up and just have a flat top or you can leave em snapped down if thats what ya need at the time.

lookin good!! thats the same top that i had on my 76 RC. any more pics?

Here is another shot while working on it. This has been a course in try and try again test fits!!

Thanks spider! As for the bedsides, after several test runs, I had to cut 
the part where the side windows were at off. I done this by cutting the inside where the lip is tied in together. On the outside I cut it where the window bottom was at. This left me  about  2" higher on the outside sheet metal. The RC floorboard (inside the bedsides) comes up and forms a lip which is like the top of a pickup bedside. So I took the out side sheet metal and bent it down to meet this lip then trimmed it off and tack welded it.I know this may sound confusing but I actually have pics of this whole process but not on the PC yet.

Yeah, I thought you would know, cause after the post I clicked on your "my junk" link and noticed it when you were trimming your top.(BTW you have a killer project there!!)This lip in there puts the soft top about where the height is on a 70's RC/TD,so it will fit correct over the doors. I still have to modify the metal arms though that go around the door tops to get the sides of the soft top  right. Most of the trial and error on this project happens over the windshield.

Yeah,I have actually thought about that but pop tops are very rare around here. I actually found one to get some measurements for this project but  it is pretty rotted from sitting so long. You never know what can happen though. I have  had a few of the poptops but due to bad judgment they are not around anymore Oh any way I have some pics of the top of the windshield area but I have to get them put on the PC.

I believe you said you were thinking of doing a How-To on this top removal project. I think that is a great idea as many have asked this same question about removing a fixed top like yours. I believe the membership would greatly appreciate a How-to on this project!! We love pictures!! puttputt56

Guy's I really am sorry about the lack of  detailed pics,I know the thread is useless without pics! (I was actually waiting on that )My only problem is that I didn't have my digital cam handy when I done the most "surgery" so the detailed pics are on a 35mm that I need to get put on a CD or whatever so I can post them,but they are good shots that will help anyone interested in doing this. I am trying but I have a very busy schedule right now so trust me the time away from the shop is killing me as well! Please stay tuned and I appreciate the patience, as well as the interest in this project.

Yeah,the bedsides seem to be really stable right now. I mean you can grab the taillight area and shake the truck without the side moving and shaking,its really no different than my old TD. I plan on putting a truck tail gate on it for winter runs (or doing the mod that spider did with his liftgate) and a tube gate for the warmer times. I have noticed that this could mean more cutting and welding on the insides of the liftgate area because it goes down in an angle,but I have not checked it with the parts truck gate. The structural area that needs the most attention is over the windshield but right now we are in the process of boxing it in with some 1/16" plate on the edges right over the doors. I made a slight mistake on mine on the inside of the cab when I cut the roof line and I WILL address this when I get those darn pictures on here (there are three layers on the roof area over the windshield). I will also say right now that you  CANNOT use a sawzall over the windshield area you must use a cutoff wheel on a die or electric grinder. The area is to weak and will bounce (I only went about 4" and said "uh wait a minute dude!") Anyway it's really not a big deal and only because I wanted to run the softtop did I have to do a lot of extra  test fitting/cutting/welding.
                                         Brian

OK Heres a picture of the bedsides after trimming the uprights off the front and back. This was one of the first test fits, and if you look close you will see a hole where the upright was at. In the hole you can see the edge that ultimately forms the top of the bedside.



Now this is a pic of the sides after it was determined that mounting the soft top rails  on the lower window sill areas was not going to work.You can see how the inside was trimmed flush with the bedside floor  top edge,and how the outside was trimmed at the bottom of the window area to leave it higher so that it can be folded over and trimmed/welded to the bedside top edge.



In this photo you can see how we bent the outside edge in  and trimmed it so that it could be welded to the edge of the bedside. We done this by trimming the outside edge into sections about 12" long,so it would be easier to work with.



OK,now we will go to the front,over the windshield. In this pic you can see how I cut it long and kind of jagged,this was kind of a
confusing section to work with because of the layers inside the roof.My advice is to make it long and make multiple cuts. I thought that I was saving time when I first started and I cut the interior roof about 2 1/2" shorter than what I should have done . In the pic you can see how the Gray painted area is shorter than the rusted section,this now has to be tied in with a metal section when all I would have had to do was push it up and tack weld it if I had cut it longer. The rusty part needs to stay to support the roof line and the soft top area.



Now,this is the top roof line where the front of the softtop snaps at.
The outside edge of the roof is the Gray painted area with the yellow paint mark on it , and it had to be trimmed down considerably in order to get the softtop to fit right.This gray area will be tied into the rusty part by tacking metal across the two sections.

Thank you for the pics i think i can swing it now.

First of all thanks for the pics this will help out a ton for when i do mine, VERY SOON !!!
can i ask a few questions?


So there are 3 layers to the roof ?
1. where the snap are screwed in just above the gutter.
2. That rusty piece that was left long.
3. the gray part int he first pic above the mirror.

What are the measurements from the gutter to where you cut the outside layer of the roof ?
What are the measurements from the gutter to where you cut the center layer of the roof ?
Do you remember how big the space was between the inner roof and that center layer?

Thanks again,
Mike M.

  i can wait it wont be for atleast another month before i get the saws all out and start slicin and dicein    .

Look I'll leave the concrete blade at work, I'll just use the metal cutting blade. Or i could get on the trackhoe  and just peel it off but then there would be to much clean up.

Ok yes there are 3 layers.
1. exterior roof layer (the one I cut down to screw in the snaps)
2. inner support layer (the rusty one)
3. interior ceiling layer (the gray area above the mirror)

A.Here is a pic of the dimension for the roof where I put the snaps.The tape measure is butted up against the gutter.  The snap section is the one with the yellow paint mark on it.



B. Now I'm not sure what you mean by " center layer of roof",but if you are talking about the rusty piece I did not cut it, I left it the factory length and just tied the interior roof and the exterior roof into it for support You can see in the above photo where it ends at.

C. I don't know what the space was in between the interior roof and the middle ,rusty,layer if thats what your asking. I made a mistake when I cut the interior but you can look at the following photo and see where I made the first cut, where the rusty layer ends at, and the distance I had to fill with metal from the original interior after cutting. I would recommend cutting this long and you should be able to slice it and push it up to the rusty layer and tack weld it. Any cuts made should be at least a couple inches or so longer than the dimensions in these photos,then work your way down. The tape measure is pulled tight against the edge of the gray layer where it goes down to the windshield.



Hope this helps, any questions,just ask.

                                      Later,
                                        Brian

One more question and i'll leave you alone  maybe LOL in the pic below the cut on the door frame was at the joint yes?

UH, I'm not sure about a joint right there. I cut it long at first and then I trimmed both sides back for the metal arms that go around the door to hold the soft top up.  Which will be the next step that I have to do for the top to be complete (except for the body filler). I will get you the dimension that I used for a reference. Feel free to ask all questions you want, I think its cool that your interested in this. Remember not to use a sawzall on the roof, you need to use a cut off wheel, I used a 4" or 4.5" electric grinder and a die grinder. The sawzall will grab , shake, and generally mess things up in other words!!  Nahh, your not a pain!!

That thing is looking awesome. Good job

I have been thinking of removing the  pillars around the door windows and I am up for suggestions on how to fill in the gap between the soft top and the windows. Any Ideas?? (I want to keep my air-conditioner ,AKA wing glasses!)

I would make soem caps out of sheetmetal and weld them on and grind the welds smooth. You may even get lucky and find the stock rubber weather strio to put over the caps you make.

Looks killer.

since you have a soft top on it, i don't think the different taper on the gate will matter much. love watching your progress, great looking truck.

Awesome job man  looks super!

I can move it if you want