Honeybourne fiberglass top miscellaneous discussion

65beam said:
Is the hard top a fiber glass unit?
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Actually it's a "fibreglass" "hardtop" from honeyborne moldings.

Quite obvious given the difference in the B post area and the openings around the side windows and non hinged rear 1/4 windows.

The car also has fibreglass bonnet and boot panels.
 
michael-king said:
Actually it's a "fibreglass" "hardtop" from honeyborne moldings.

Quite obvious given the difference in the B post area and the openings around the side windows and non hinged rear 1/4 windows.

The car also has fibreglass bonnet and boot panels.
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There are differences in spelling of words in American English versus Commonwealth English. Do you know the difference in weight of the fiberglass top versus the weight of the Rootes steel top? I've never seen a Sunbeam with one of the Honeyborne tops. It looks like the door windows would seal better. What kind of weather do they anticipate they will encounter and the time frame to finish the rally?
 
65beam said:
There are differences in spelling of words in American English versus Commonwealth English.
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Robert, are you suggesting in the USA they spell fibreglass and hardtop as two separate words?.. all the stateside sites and text I see seem to have them as one word.

65beam said:
What kind of weather do they anticipate they will encounter and the time frame to finish the rally?
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If you check the event website it lists the route , duration and details.
 
michael-king said:
Robert, are you suggesting in the USA they spell fibreglass and hardtop as two separate words?.. all the stateside sites and text I see seem to have them as one word.



If you check the event website it lists the route , duration and details.
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Michael, my name isn't Robert. Do you have any idea concerning the weight of the hardtop? Is it something that one person could install by himself? As far as the event website I can't check it because my system says it's an unsafe site.
 
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65beam said:
Do you have any idea concerning the weight of the hardtop? Is it something that one person could install by himself? As far as the event website I can't check it because my system says it's an unsafe site.
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The honeyborne tops have been discussed a few times, infact on the SAOCA a few years back they were discussed and iirc there was a vendor who imported some stateside.

The tops car be lifted solo, as for exact weight...they have a website, email and phone number.
 
michael-king said:
The honeyborne tops have been discussed a few times, infact on the SAOCA a few years back they were discussed and iirc there was a vendor who imported some stateside.

The tops car be lifted solo, as for exact weight...they have a website, email and phone number.
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Geez, I lift my steel top on and off all by myself!! and I've had 8 back surgeries. and , NO the back surgeries came well before the Tiger came into my life.
 
0neoffive said:
In the world of practical economics, the Honeybourne is a very good deal when compared to a complete restoration of a Rootes factory top.
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agreed on the cost issue... between finding a rebuildable steel hardtop and the resto would be into it $5K USD at least.
 
Austin Healer said:
Geez, I lift my steel top on and off all by myself!! and I've had 8 back surgeries. and , NO the back surgeries came well before the Tiger came into my life.
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I've seen many owners lift their top off the car by themselves. I did it in my younger days. I've also seen several hoists that owners have devised. That's why I asked about the weight difference. Many owners are getting older and don't want to tackle removing the steel top by themselves. I've also seen the scratches and damage that have occurred to their cars by doing it solo. That's the risk you take if you have to do it yourself. The top on this car hasn't been off since Tiger Auto set it on the car back in 2013.

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Austin Healer said:
agreed on the cost issue... between finding a rebuildable steel hardtop and the resto would be into it $5K USD at least.
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Yep just about to re restore mine -The previous owner proudly told me that he had spent $6000 restoring it . The metal looks good but missing is the rear window stainless trim , stainless drip rails, all stainless trim round the quarter windows and most if not all of the vertical post trim . Consequently nothing round the quarter windows fits and it all looks very Heath Robinson ! Thankfully I have every thing I need to fix it having disassembled my very rotten Series V hardtop 25 years ago to restore it and never getting round to doing it -It just might take me a while to remember how everthing goes together particulalry on the vertical posts -Karl
 
Agent 861 said:
Yep just about to re restore mine -The previous owner proudly told me that he had spent $6000 restoring it . The metal looks good but missing is the rear window stainless trim , stainless drip rails, all stainless trim round the quarter windows and most if not all of the vertical post trim . Consequently nothing round the quarter windows fits and it all looks very Heath Robinson ! Thankfully I have every thing I need to fix it having disassembled my very rotten Series V hardtop 25 years ago to restore it and never getting round to doing it -It just might take me a while to remember how everthing goes together particulalry on the vertical posts -Karl
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Disassembly and chrome costs for the latches & rear locators sure caught my attention $$$.
 
65beam said:
Getting the drip rail mouldings on without leaving dents in them takes some time.
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The trick is not to load up the drip rails with paint. I tape them off before the last coats of color. installation is not that bad. strike the flat area of the molding with the palm of your hand in a downward slapping motion. Takes about 30 minutes to do both sides.

I'm assembling one now, with another in line right behind it.
 
Austin Healer said:
The trick is not to load up the drip rails with paint. I tape them off before the last coats of color. installation is not that bad. strike the flat area of the molding with the palm of your hand in a downward slapping motion. Takes about 30 minutes to do both sides.

I'm assembling one now, with another in line right behind it.
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If it works for you then that's all that counts.
 
Austin Healer said:
The trick is not to load up the drip rails with paint. I tape them off before the last coats of color. installation is not that bad. strike the flat area of the molding with the palm of your hand in a downward slapping motion. Takes about 30 minutes to do both sides.

I'm assembling one now, with another in line right behind it.
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Thanks Sean - They came of easily if I recall -was worried about getting them back on
I wouldn't mind some photos of the vertical post set up if you are doing one -Karl
 
Agent 861 said:
Thanks Sean - They came of easily if I recall -was worried about getting them back on
I wouldn't mind some photos of the vertical post set up if you are doing one -Karl
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Just got back home from a vaca on the Oregon coast.... I'll attach some pics in the next few days
 
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