Q&A with TopsOnline
Image courtesy Flickr/skinnylawyer
Q: I see you have N.O.S. fabric featured on your site… what is it?
A: We now offer N.O.S. fabric, which stands for New Old Stock. This is fabric which the car manufacturers produced (or purchased) when the car was originally made.
These are new materials, in the sense that they have never been used in a car, exposed to the elements, or cut from their original bolts of cloth. But they are called “old stock” because it is the original material which may have been made in the 50s, 60s, 70s, or 80s.
There are very limited quantities of N.O.S. fabric and seat cloths materials available. And when it’s gone, it’s gone! Barring time travel, it will not be possible to obtain more of the actual original fabric which is contemporary to your car’s original model, if you want to restore your classic car’s original material.
For those collectors and devotees who want to restore their car’s interior fabric to the factory original, N.O.S. fabric is the clear choice. We currently offer N.O.S. fabric and seat cloth for many classic cars models. If you don’t see the car or the fabric you’re looking for, please contact us to ask.
Do you sell weather stripping? Replacement convertible hard tops? How about hardware?
Photo courtesy: Flickr/kenjonbro
It may seem a little weird to list the things that we don’t sell. (I mean the obvious things – we don’t sell fresh pears or pygmy goats, either.) But in some cases, we often have people asking after certain replacement equipment for their convertible tops. And in other cases, if there is enough demand for some items, we may begin stocking them.
Weather Stripping
This is the thin strip of foam rubber which keeps out the rain and wind. While we sell the tension cables which help hold your convertible top snug to your car’s body, we do not yet stock weather stripping. However, we may add it in the future.
Replacement Hard Tops
We only sell replacement soft tops for convertible cars.
Convertible Top Hardware (Other)
Sometimes if a top is exceptionally damaged, you may need to replace more than just the window insert or the fabric top. For example, a car which has been in an accident may have structural damage to the convertible top hardware.
We do not stock these pieces. However, you can often get them from a car dealer or an auto wrecking yard. Be sure to check our page for your car first, as we do sell quite a lot of the replacement parts, which may include cables, pads, headliners, and more.
In this week’s Q&A I thought I would turn the tables, and address the #1 most common question we have to ask our customers: which color?
Just about everything that we sell comes in a custom color. And we want to make sure that you are getting the right color, the one that you want for your car! Much of the time, just clicking to add the item to your cart will include the color information. But there are some listings where we ask our customers to specify the color at checkout.
This also comes into play if you want a color that is not shown in the page or on the listing. We have access to a lot of material and parts. Often if a color is not shown, we can special order it for you. It depends on the item, and the color you want. Please ask, though! We love to help our customers with special requests!
Before you finish your order and complete checkout, take a moment to be sure that your color is specified in your order. If not, please just type the color you want into the comments box. It will save us an extra step, which lets us get your replacement convertible top, replacement seat covers, replacement carpet kit, or other parts out to you as quickly as possible!
Photo credit: Flickr/H4NUM4N
Q&A: What’s the difference between pinpoint and sailcloth vinyl?
Both pinpoint vinyl and sailcloth vinyl are commonly used in replacement convertible car tops. Both kinds look like grained plastic, but pinpoint vinyl has a pattern of small dimples, whereas sailcloth vinyl has a broader texture of bumps that look a little more like woven fabric.
Pinpoint vinyl was commonly used for convertible car tops in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. It’s a two-ply composite which has an outer layer of PVC plastic, and an inner layer of dyed 100% cotton sateen.
Sailcloth vinyl is original equipment on the Ford Mustang convertible and Chrysler Sebring convertible. It also has an outer layer of PVC plastic, but it has an inner layer of gray blended poly/cotton drill fabric.
If your car originally had a vinyl top (either pinpoint vinyl or sailcloth vinyl), you can replace it with either another vinyl top, or with a canvas top. Both canvas and vinyl tops wear out at about the same rate. It is common practice to replace tops made of one material with tops made of another material. The quality and the looks will remain top-notch, as with any of our replacement convertible tops!
