1990 mustang 5.0 Convertible LX

I just got my mustang, the rear window was sagging, So we pulled off the rubber molding, pulled it tight, and replaced the staples that were in there originally. Now the thing has pulled loose again and is sagging. I think that the entire top needs to be restretched and reattatched to. Is this hard to do? Am I better having someone do it?

Also is there head liners available for my car? Its pretty tacky with just the frame hanging out in the open.

 

If it is the original top, chances are it has hardened and dried out. Re streching may not be the answer if feasible at all. There aren't really any special staples, as long as they are long enough to go the whole way thru the plastic tack strip. There are headliners available(50 Resto) but if your car wasn't originally equipped with one it will be challenging to install. I just replaced my top(working on a write up for here) and I installed a headliner as well. My car was obviously not equipped from the factory with one, so a lot of modifications had to be made.

 

No its a newer top, it actually is very soft and looks really good. I am thinking that the guy tried to do it himself and didn't know what he was doing. I was looking at it yesterday and below the back window on each corner, there are wrinkles, its not stretched properly. I am guessing, that since the back portion isn't stretched right, that it is putting undo stress on where the tac strip is, which than is pulling them out.

MY car is in the transmission shop (still,) I will try to get pictures of it and post them when I get it back.

 

it might be pulling out where the back windown meets the top of the frame and not on the tack strip around back. if i remember correctly, we used 5/8" staples when we replaced my top about 3 years ago and we have had no problems with any of them pulling out. but we also put about 300 staples around that rear tack strip.

 

Holy crap! 300 staples!! ........ I think we only did maybe 100. How does it attach down by the truck? You have to have a heat gun to do that properly right?

I was actually wondering if I used some heavy duty aresol glue on the extra material that is left over when you pull it tight, if that might make it hold better. Give it better support.

 

im pretty sure we didnt use a heat gun at all when we replaced my whole top, everything is stapled, and a little glue here and there. and there were about that many staples in it from the factory top. they were in lines of 5 spaced about 1" apart. so i doubt it will be going anywhere anytime soon. if i understand right about the aerosol glue, then that is just gonna act as a safety percaution in case the staples pull out, then that glue is there to still hold it. i think if you want to get the wrinkles out of it then you are gona have to pull the old staples out, pull the top tight and then staple it back. and it would probably be best for you to do this in the sun beacuse it will stretch the top some. you dont want to do it in the cold because when the top heats up then it will stretch back out and you will have wrinkles in it still.

 

Sun? Nice day? What the hell is that? I live in Washington!! Nah, I think that it is going to be nice this weekend, so I was going to get a buddy of mine try to stretch it back out and add more staples, and maybe the glue. Yes, the glue is just a saftey, maybe take some of the stress off of the staples. I don't think that it would effect the operation of the top, but that is what worries me the most about the glue.