I have only had the hard top on the car three times in eight years. I like most, leave it on a top stand however when I took it to a mechanic two weeks ago, he indicated he wanted it for the whole week and so I decided to put the top on so that it did not sit in his workshop and get covered in dust as they do in workshops and was a bit more secure if he put it outside.
The hoist I use is the hand winch type with pullys that make up a small block and tackle, a bar across the roof with roof gutter grips with wing nuts in a similar fashion to the old roof racks that fitted into the roof gutters. They are advertised on eBay all the time and sell for around $100+.
In fitting it you need to find the middle point so that it hangs level as you lift it off. If I used it a lot I would know but but only using it for the third time I had to adjust it a couple of times before I got it right. In tightening the wing nuts on the grips that last time, I obviously did not get them tight on one side, or at least they looked tight but I did not shake the metal bar to check that they were actually locked in. In now looking at the fitting I see that it has a bolt that is squared under the bolt head and that this may not have been fitted into the square hole in the grip fitting thus whilst giving the feel of being tight, was probably not being fully tightened and allowed the fitting to slip off the roof gutter on one side.
It lifted up all right and appeared to be sitting suspended above the car and I tied it off and turned back to the car to move it out of the way to allow me to lower the roof onto its rack and with a loud crash I turned to see the front corner of the roof crash down on the door, one side of the roof still held by one rail grip with the front locking device doing the most damage to the door. The second grip then gave way as well and the rest of the roof then falling onto the car and sliding off one side scratching it as it then slid off the side onto the concrete floor and leaving it leaning against the side of the car. Seemed like a minute as I watched it all happen in slow motion but all done in 10 seconds.
Peter you were right, don't mix water with the whisky so I drank the best bottle of red wine I had and went to bed.
Its a new sunny day now and I am just about to take the car, roof down, to a couple of paint shops that I know have had Pagodas before. I don't live where it was originally done any more so a new painter needs to be found. I have a local weekend car rally in three weeks, that was why I was fixing the oil seal in the first place and had put the top on.
I think I will need to design a second strap from the cross bar to go around the around the roof just in case. I always felt uncomfortable with the lifting device and lever left the roof suspended from it longer then necessary. Its on the rack now, maybe I will never put the top back on!
