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Vinyl top glue....what do you prefer.....

bandit67

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Guys, the couple of vinyl tops I have glued on in the past, I just bought the spray can adhesive , 3M 77 I think it was. But in watching several installations on you tube the pros all seem to be using something in a spray gun....what is it and does it work better. Of course I do not need to buy a 5 gallon bucket of glue and that may be what they use....thanks...
 
I used the DAP as well.
Get a cheap siphon feed gun with a 2.0 tip and shoot it.
 
20201217_064907-1.jpg

I used this. Works great!
 
Super77 with the ultra high strength if you only have on job to do. There are a couple versions, you gotta get the super high bond stuff. Last time I did one they had it at the AA parts stores. Top has been on for 8 years now, no problem.
 
I used the DAP as well.
Get a cheap siphon feed gun with a 2.0 tip and shoot it.

I use my good gun. The cheap ones splatter and shows under the top. The good gun with a 2.0 tip sprays it nice and even and is no harder to clean up than epoxy primer.
 
Thanks all, the super 77 is what I used before and worked well. But, at 10 to 14 bucks a can would be not much difference in 53 bucks a gallon for the Dap Wildwood glue. I do have the gun for it already. My first top install cost me over $50 for the glue and my local shop was only charging $75 if all they had to do was stretch , glue and trim your top on. But now no shop close by, and car is not drivable yet.....
 
3M was used by the factory.
There are still some cars with original tops around.
It lasts.
 
Thanks all, the super 77 is what I used before and worked well. But, at 10 to 14 bucks a can would be not much difference in 53 bucks a gallon for the Dap Wildwood glue. I do have the gun for it already. My first top install cost me over $50 for the glue and my local shop was only charging $75 if all they had to do was stretch , glue and trim your top on. But now no shop close by, and car is not drivable yet.....

please don’t use that. Got to do my Coronet a second time. It can’t take serious heat and will fail eventually. Once you use the DAP it will be obvious. I use it for all fabric gluing now.
 
Thanks Jim, I do like trying new things....will do the Dap. Headliner is next. Done some Chevys in the past and they turned out great. My first Mopar, a 72 b body, looked terrible....not stretched tight enough. Now I have seen the pro s put a small strip of glue all along the edges as they worked out the loosness, that appears where I went wrong. So , will be using that glue for that next......
 
I use my good gun. The cheap ones splatter and shows under the top. The good gun with a 2.0 tip sprays it nice and even and is no harder to clean up than epoxy primer.
I had no issue with spattering in a throw away hazard freight gun.
No way am I running glue through my Iwata super nova. It’s a 900 dollar gun. :)
 
I had no issue with spattering in a throw away hazard freight gun.
No way am I running glue through my Iwata super nova. It’s a 900 dollar gun. :)
I pulled the trigger on HF gun and threw it in the trash! I was amazed how easy it cleaned up.
 
Thanks Jim, I do like trying new things....will do the Dap. Headliner is next. Done some Chevys in the past and they turned out great. My first Mopar, a 72 b body, looked terrible....not stretched tight enough. Now I have seen the pro s put a small strip of glue all along the edges as they worked out the loosness, that appears where I went wrong. So , will be using that glue for that next......
Also a cloths steamer works wonders to heat and soften the vinyl to stretch it.
 
Not to hijack this thread, but is it necessary to remove the windshield to replace the top?
 
No hijack Bro, fairly old thread. Yes, maybe, and no to your question. The factory, as I understand it, put on the top shortly after paint. This allowed for the front windshield vinyl to be glued down in the glass gully. So the moulding clips were slipped on the tabs that also held the vinyl down. So, when the glass was installed, the sealer also helped hold the vinyl down, also when the final chrome moulding was installed. So if your glass is in place you prolly cannot get the vinyl properly glued down and would have to rely only on the moulding to hold it in place. I suspect rain and sun could cause an early possible rollback of the top from under the upper windshield moulding.....
 
It’s true that the factory put the top on first. No arguing that.
You can trim around the stainless trim clips and tuck the vinyl down.
I used DAP contact cement, and it’s been fine.
 
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