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Old 07-11-2012, 11:50 AM   #31
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Re: We have a new pop top available!

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Originally Posted by Ultrasport12
Ford says to NEVER cut the roof in front of the rib behind the front seats. I hope they dont cut that out.
Ultrasport, I agree completely, and Derek doesn't do this as stated above, but I am wondering why every custom van converter gets away with it when they add a fiberglass top? I've always wondered this.

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Old 07-11-2012, 03:51 PM   #32
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Re: We have a new pop top available!

WOW - My mistake!! - I never should have gone off half crocked like that.

Sorry for the misinformation.
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Old 07-11-2012, 04:03 PM   #33
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Re: We have a new pop top available!

Quote:
Originally Posted by 86Scotty
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ultrasport12
Ford says to NEVER cut the roof in front of the rib behind the front seats. I hope they dont cut that out.
Ultrasport, I agree completely, and Derek doesn't do this as stated above, but I am wondering why every custom van converter gets away with it when they add a fiberglass top? I've always wondered this.
I have never seen this done on standard conversion vans. I have seen it done on ADA vans, but those require a full roll cage built into the top, so that adds the protection lost when the rib is removed.
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Old 07-14-2012, 04:58 PM   #34
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Re: We have a new pop top available!

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I'm sure Derek will answer, but if he doesn't see this soon, no exterior latches are used anymore, and his tops aren't spring loaded so they can't pop up on their own. The electric motors can stop anywhere in between closed and open, and they are plenty strong to hold the top down even of you didn't latch manually. The interior latches he uses now are heavy industrial units, no worries about the top opening.

Thanks! Interior latches are a strong preference of mine; the explanation about the springs (or not) and spontaneous opening (or not) makes sense.

I'm still not sure how these would be lowered manually if the motorized system fails. I'm a bit gunshy about that: when I had an SMB circa 2005, the less-than-year old PH mech jammed "up" in the Kaibab National Forest (with a loud "bang!"). I eventually wrestled it down, latched it best I could, and drove directly and cautiously to SMB-West where they couldn't figure it out and just replaced all the tubes, etc. Four months later it was going down lopsidedly (a rear corner wouldn't go down) in TX, and SMB-TX very quickly figured out the problem and fixed it -- something about spring blocks.

Hence, nearly being stuck in a NF with an undrivable van due to an "up" roof makes me a bit wary of not having a backup way of lowering the roof!

Nonetheless, I like this soooo much more than the spring-loaded PH that I've emailed Derek enquiring about a new lid for my homebrew (stock roof) van!
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Old 07-14-2012, 10:45 PM   #35
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Re: We have a new pop top available!

I would ask Derek about lowering the top manually if you have a problem. I don't remember the specifics, but I believe I heard him say something once about removing the bolt in the end of the motors if you ever had one fail in the field and it could be lowered, but honestly I just kind of look at the statistics on things like this. These motors are built for industrial use, I would think you should have many years of occasionally opening and closing them in a recreational vehicle. Maybe 20-30 a year you'll open and close it, and that's probably a pretty high figure.
Also, he did say that he has only had one failure, and he is pretty sure that's when a remote key fob button got pushed and held down (like in someone"s pocket). If I remember right this was figured out because both motors went at once, and this was on one of the earlier conversions. I'd ask him. He's honest and he does warranty his work as well.

Good luck
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Old 07-15-2012, 05:28 PM   #36
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Re: We have a new pop top available!

ill let derek give a definitive answer, but there are 2 motors, one on each side of the top. catastrophic failure of both motors would only be caused by operator error like leaving power to them and the brushes burn (what happened to his one customer) and very rare. of course anything can break, and if the motors fail (one or both) there is a pin on each side that can be removed, and remove the failed unit. the other good motor will still lower the top, but probably a good idea to help it on the failed side come down evenly. if both motors went, you can still lower it but i bet its not fun as in HEAVY.

so total dead in the water, top stuck up is not possible from what i see. and this is how derek explained it to me since i usually carry a spare EVERYthing and asked about purchasing a spare motor, and he said i didnt need to. to show how anal i am, my ducati broke down last week, failed voltage regulator, i had a spare under the seat, swapped it out and completed my ride. people can not believe i had a spare regulator just in case (known ducati problem actually)
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Old 04-01-2016, 01:45 PM   #37
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This thing looks awesome! A couple of questions...

This new CCV low-profile top is made of fiberglass, correct? Are the Sportsmobile penthouse installations metal or fiberglass? I'd always imagined they were metal but maybe I was wrong.

I was wondering about installing a roof rack and solar panels or other hardware since none of the pics I've seen so far show any loads on top, unless I missed something. I guess what I'm getting at is how adding racks and roof storage compares between them.
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Old 04-01-2016, 05:22 PM   #38
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Sportsmobile and CCV roofs are fiberglass. There are several ways to mount roof racks, solar, kayaks, etc. on the roof of either of them. Electric lifts are a must if you are adding a lot of weight. Electric lifts are difficult to install as an after thought.
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Old 04-01-2016, 05:37 PM   #39
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Larrie,

Is anything after the factory build of something like an RB50 considered an "after thought"? Just curious because we want electric, also.
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Old 04-01-2016, 10:31 PM   #40
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Yes it is. Once it leaves the factory retrofitting anything can be difficult. Call SMB to see if they can retrofit the electric lift to a manual top. I believe that CCV only installs electric tops.
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