Topic: 4Runner bikini top

[4xtoy]

I have posted this on another board too, so this may be a repeat to many of you. It has been 90+ degrees for three day straight. I took my top off in March and won't go back on until late September so I needed something to protect the kiddos from the sun. I had a Safari top stored away from back when I owned my '98 TJ and decided to put it to good use.
My first idea involved altering the top to fit over the roll bar and attach to the cab. Well I didn't feel it provided enough side coverage since the roll bar is narrower than the bed sides. Also the cheapest price I could get to alter the top was $50. I decided that I would just build a frame to fit the top. Not counting the top that I bought 5 years ago for around $50, I have around $20 in materials invested and used a 1/2" electrical emt hand bender. For the tubing I used 1/2 O.D. 16 ga pipe that I got out of the random pile at the local steel yard. An 8' joint works perfect for each bow with very little waste. And the horizontal braces are just under 2' each, so 4 8' joints was perfect. The mounting brackets on the bed rails are 1"x1/8" flat bar. If I did it again I would use 3/16 material because the 1/8" wants to bow up between the mounting bolts. The cab mount is made up of 3/4" 16ga square tube with a awning track I bought from a RV shop. The bows and the horizontal bars slip over a piece of 9/16" round stock and the horiz.'s are pinned with hitch pins. All mounting points are factory threaded holes so there are no extra holes to drill in the truck. The best part of the whole frame is it can completely disassemble and fit in a corner somewhere in the garage or hang mostly flat on the wall.

Here are a few pics I snapped today but I still need to make a bracket or two and finish deburring and paint. I also plan to make a couple of straps for the sides that will snap like the snap I put up front that will pull it tight to the cab. When finished it should be as tight as a good soft top unlike the way it fit on my Heep. More pics later.


Like my new Roll cage



Had to put a three point saddle to clear the roll bar. (My electricain skeels at work  )

I still have a few attachment points to make. The snaps on the front are not attached yet.

edit: I have no idea why this pic is so much bigger than the rest, They all came from photobucket

[BCD]

Looks nice, similar to mine, but I left it narrower than the bed rails. I simply made a bracket that would bolt to the 4 holes in the cab, and streched it over the roll bar. I used Sunbrella canvas which is what Can Back uses for their tops, extremely water proof and UV resistant. Only made it to keep the sun out though, becuase it doesn't rain in New Mexico much

[4xtoy [OP]]

Here are a few more. It is basically done except for paint and a couple of straps with snaps I have to add.

[DTB]

you could sell those. looks good 

[gotrocks]

good job, we need someone to make more of those

[CTENG in KS]

Make it a full folding top...you can do it!

[toyo487]

I always like the way a 4runner looks with a soft top or bikini top on it.  Good job.

[rouchx4]

It looks awesome and really finishes off the truck.  But, aren't you worried about what might happen to the kids in the back seat if you were to roll?  I would be affraid of how that pipe would collapse and where it would land in a roll-over.  Maybe I'm just paranoid or maybe you don't wheel that much.  Just a thought!

[4xtoy [OP]]

It looks awesome and really finishes off the truck.  But, aren't you worried about what might happen to the kids in the back seat if you were to roll?  I would be affraid of how that pipe would collapse and where it would land in a roll-over.  Maybe I'm just paranoid or maybe you don't wheel that much.  Just a thought!

Very good concern about the kids. I took that into consideration and incorperated a "crumple zone" so to speak. About 6" up from the bed rail the pipe is bent outward. This serves two purposes. One, since the bikini frame follws the cab line, it needed to come back in at some point to meet up with the inner lip of the bed rail. So I bent a radius in it to bring the end of the pipe back in. This also creates a break over point, if it was to land on the top, It would most likely bow outward at that point. Unless it landed square on a rock the center of it would probably not protrude into the passenger area.
But what do I know, I'm no engineer.

Here is the final product before a test drive. I am a little concered with the rear of it flapping at highway speeds. If this happens I will just add a couple of snaps back there.

 

[rouchx4]

Good thinking----gotta take care of those kids, huh?  Finished product looks really cool!

[85 4runr]

I like the look of the frame but beings mine is short I made it to just snap to the bar also I attach mine to eyebolts I put through some factory holes where the top mounts