mack78

Ok, here's the plan as I can best describe it. I want to drill four holes in my hard to to mount eye bolts. I would use two sections of super strut or channel bar between the front two and back two eye bolts. I'm thinking about using the super strut both inside and outside of the top. I would do this for two functions. First to have latch points to lift my hardtop off when I want to remove it. Second, to have tie down points if I want to carry anything on the top of my jeep.

So here's where I need help. First, who has drilled into their hard tops? What issues / warnings do you have? Second, is this even a good idea? It seems good in my head, but my beautiful wife wisely advised me to post this on JK Forum to see what the experts think. She asked if it was worth risking destroying a hard top on a "good idea" and how much did a new one cost if we messed up. If this isn't a wild idea, I will do a write up on it and post it.

All advice is appreciated.

Cheers!
Matt

Jeremy072288

I was actually thinking about doing the same.

JKRio

Don't use an eye bolt, use a marine stainless u-bolt.... Like a bow eye. They come with a plate on the top that functions like a big washer and use your channel on the bottom. Requires 2 holes at each point but is a much stronger and better looking on the top. I have not done this on a Jeep top but have used it on my pickup camper shell.

Sahara_Maverick

I installed the Thule roof rack system on mine. Also applied silicone adhesive through the holes to ensure water tightness. Actually, the Thule kit comes with a silicone tube for that.

The rails provide great flexibility to hold different types of cargo since you can move the attachment points (towers) back and forth.

The "towers" are also strong enough for you to lift the hard top using them as anchors.

You will need to drill several small holes to attach the rails to the hard top, which is also better from a standpoint of distributing the load. The hard top is made o fiberglass, which does not fare well to concentrated loads.

Drilling is very easy using a carbide drill. A wood drill would go blunt quickly because fiberglass is very hard on tools.

cdemeyer

Use large washers to distribute the point load of the bolt

mack78

Ok, so silicone adhesive to fill the holes and ensure a water tight seal. U bolts, stainless steel, instead of eye bolts. Nice big washers to distribute the weight. I'll do a write up if anyone is interested. Thanks for all the help and advice!

hscott200

You might try pop up cleats, i installed a ton of these at a boat shop i worked at, put some masking tape down mark the two holes with a pen and use a step drill bit. the nice part is they will sit flat when not in use, just pull up and you will have a great place to tie down not sure how they will look on the inside though.

USCG-JK

I agree with the pop idea go with something like pick ups for tie downs im sure you could find them on JC whitney.

Sahara_Maverick

You should also consider the load you plan to carry over your hard top. Depending on that, you may also risk damaging it.

Will you attach a cargo basket, or something similar, to those anchor points to hold your stuff and distribute the load?

I remember seeing a write-up in this forum where the guy attached the basket directly to the hard top. Seemed to work.

mack78

Still working out the details on this plan. Not looking at loading a lot of gear up there, doing it more for the removal of the hard top aspect. I looked into the pop up cleat idea, I really like that aspect but am having trouble locating them online. Will keep the thread posted.

Thanks for all the advice.


Cheers!