2003 Hardtop lift and storage suggestions

lmc

lmc

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Jun 30, 2019
Thunderbird Year
2002
I bought my 2003 Whisper White Thunderbird last May and it finally arrived home, hardtop seals fixed, leaking corrected, and latching fixed in time for one jaunt to Detroit before storing it at the end of October, 2019.

I live in Michigan, so I don't expect to drive it again until late spring, late April but I'm now wondering how I'm going to get that hardtop off by myself. I do have the storage rack with wheels that originally came with the car. But I can't possibly lift that roof off by myself and need suggestions on hoists that won't damage my roof.

Any suggestions or comments based on previous experience with the pros/cons of storing it in ceiling vs. the supplied storage wrack that sits on the floor?

Which lifts/hoists have you had good experiences with - not only with using it, but installing it. Hand crank vs. electric? Can I use hoist to set roof on wrack floor wrack (I'm thinking not or not easily and by myself) - but I'm asking just in case it is possible and it is a better way to store the hardtop to avoid damage to the outer trim and the rubber seals)....

Name brands with links to the item your are suggesting, if possible, please.

Thank you, in advance, for your thoughts and suggestions,

lmc
 

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First off, removing/installing the hardtop is a two man job without the lift....period, or you'll sustain damage. I've used several hand operated lifts for the top for my 61 Corvette (now sold) and now my 02 Thunderbird. There are cheap ones and good ones....there are no cheap good ones. The cheap ones are tricky to use and may (probably will) distort your weatherstrip on the top....they also have cheap pulleys which I don't trust.
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The top doesn't go on often in Florida but I bought this one:

Top-Hoist.com -- manual and electric hoist lifts for your convertible hardtop

Easily mount and remove your convertible's hardtop all by yourself. Save on garage space. Hardtop may be suspended indefinitely to protect it from damage.
www.top-hoist.com

Pricey, but it works and with only one person... You can't use it to lift or place the top on the rolling rack as tilting the hardtop would be nigh impossible. You really don't need the rolling rack if you have the lift anyway.

The foam encircled horizontal bar on this one protects the hardtop weatherstripping well - no damage after months of airborne storage. You can get an electric winch for this hardtop ($$$) with a "brake" if you're concerned about hand operation (but I haven't found it necessary). With either method the tricky parts is attaching the top to the car - as you get close the car as you lower it either option requires careful maneuvering...holding the top to position it with one hand while lowering the top with the other. I have a 10'4" garage ceiling and can still park other cars under the lift (my SUV) without issue.
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How is the installation of this hoist onto the wall of my garage? - easy, difficult?
 
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I cut some steel conduit (3/4 inch I think) so that it will go through both windows and extend out about 8 or 10 inches. I put a few bends in it so that it won't rest heavily on the weatherstripping. It looks like a very flat "W". Then I put sections of a pool noodle at various points of possible contact. I can connect it to my ceiling lift and raise it a couple of inches then I have another padded hook that goes in the center in the back and also connects to the lift. Once all that is secure I get it all the way up to the ceiling and add a couple more straps to keep it from spinning around up there. I am at work but if I think about it later tonight I can try to post a picture or two...
 
A bit more vis a vis installing the lift. You just have to find a central location in your garage where the car can be parked under it and centered under the airborne hard top. Then its a matter of locating a ceiling joist to install the pulley "eye" bolt, Secondly, you need to install the "cleat" on a wall or elsewhere to wrap the rope around (similar to mooring a boat) to keep the top secured when its on the lift.
 
I actually cut a hole in my garage ceiling and put an electric lift in my attic so that I can raise it high enough to get it out of the way.
 
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I bought this one:

Top-Hoist.com -- manual and electric hoist lifts for your convertible hardtop

Easily mount and remove your convertible's hardtop all by yourself. Save on garage space. Hardtop may be suspended indefinitely to protect it from damage.
www.top-hoist.com

Much more economical....and you can watch the video...
Sorry about the "senior moment" - the lift appears to be identical to the more expensive one and what I use.
$200. (I corrected the link in my first post!)

You could certainly make something similar but it just wasn't worth my time (in my case)..
 
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There a dozen ways to go, mainly, any solution has to be 100% stable and secure, easy to operate and not do damage to paint or weatherstripping.
 
I bought the manual hoist from "top hoist" then I bought an electric 110/220 pound winch online 1/2 price of the electric they offered. securely mounted it to ceiling above car using a cross beam(different ways to do this depending on garage).
I let the control hang to just above the roof of the car that way I can grab it from either side to control the lift and I don't have to tie it to a wall. I also set it up for 220#s(double pulley) not for weight but to make the speed of lift slower and easier to control. I put top on the lift slightly higher on one side so when I lower it I can guide the lower pin into the hole then walk around other side and guide the second side in alone..takes about 5-10 mins by myself
pushing an electric button to raise and lower to me is better than trying to lower by hand and accidently letting go:eek:
 
hippymailman said:
I bought the manual hoist from "top hoist" then I bought an electric 110/220 pound winch online 1/2 price of the electric they offered. securely mounted it to ceiling above car using a cross beam(different ways to do this depending on garage).
I let the control hang to just above the roof of the car that way I can grab it from either side to control the lift and I don't have to tie it to a wall. I also set it up for 220#s(double pulley) not for weight but to make the speed of lift slower and easier to control. I put top on the lift slightly higher on one side so when I lower it I can guide the lower pin into the hole then walk around other side and guide the second side in alone..takes about 5-10 mins by myself
pushing an electric button to raise and lower to me is better than trying to lower by hand and accidently letting go:eek:
Click to expand...
That is genius!
 
Didn't need a double pulley. Believe or not I have the winch Mounted to my garage door (single solid door) So I raise the door drive my bird under the door connect the winch motor to the top-hoist lift unit and hit the up button. As you can see I don't have much clearance.
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Rigged a one man top removal system today, and it went OK. No damage done, but the back end is heavy and wants to drop and all in all it was a bit of a nail biter. My rigging consisted of two straps, one consisting of a loop going through the driver side and passenger side window and meeting at the center of the top, that gets hooked to the hoist. . The other consisting of a loop going front to back again meeting at the center of the top and the loops get hooked to the hoist. Connect all four strap end loops to an electric hoist located above and somewhat rear of the center of the top trying to align with the center of gravity, This did not work out well. No damage done, but the top is very back end heavy and did not maintain a level attitude as it lifted. Once successfully but not very gracefully done with removing the top, i started looking around on the internet, and from what i have seen the front to back sling should not be a loop that goes under the front and back of the top, but rather a single or double strap that hook that clips onto the bottom rear of the hard top. This rear hook takes the majority of the weight as far as i can tell. Can someone show me what the "hook" that clips onto the back of the hard top looks like. Some people mention they use one hook, others use two, but i am looking for some detail on what this hook looks like, and/or is padded with so that it does not scratch the top.

Thanks for any help.

JohnG
 
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