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Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop
#4
OK, I just screwed up and deleted my installation post so I'm retyping it.  

I thought the installation of the top was remarkably easy. 

Hardtop arriving on the truck:
    (click to enlarge)

Hardtop on block thanks to the yard guys:
     (click to enlarge)

I drilled a hole to align with a matching hole I drilled on the radar arch.  Aft of that hole you can see the anchor light threaded holes and wiring:
     (click to enlarge)

I drilled out holes for the radar on the hardtop and the arch using a drill jig I made for my Furuno radar.  If this is of use to anyone else I can send it to them.  

Jig: 
     (click to enlarge)

I then polished the gasketing surfaces:
     (click to enlarge)

I temporarily attached the Tiara support strut to the windshield using the hardware they provided.  I then ran a horiztontal 2x4 from the top of the arch to the top of the Tiara strut.  I then bolted a vertical 2x4 to the OUTSIDE of the windshield frame (photo shows inside but that is WRONG--It needs to go on the outside to grip the non-skid).   I marked the vertical 2x4 at the bottom of the horizontal 2x4 and cut it about 2" higher than that in order to support the hardtop.

Marking the 2x4:
         (click to enlarge)

Now the boat is ready for the top with the 2x4 supports in place on the OUTSIDE (and the Tiara support struts temporarily removed):
   

Hardtop on the Travelift.  I dropped a 6" long 1" diameter bolt and washer through the alignment hole I drilled in the hardtop before it got hoisted into the air:
   

From there, the yard lifted the top onto the boat and lowered it on the arch and wooden 2x4 supports.  I would not have done this on a windy day!!
   

During the process, I had a couple guys help to nudge the top so the bolt would drop through the matching hole in the arch, and after threading on the nut I stood on the bow and they adjusted the twist before the final drop onto the wooden 2x4 supports.

Next I permanently installed the Tiara struts.   I used another drill jig to drill the pilot holes for the screws.  Here, the windshield is in the way so you need a flex shaft for your drill bit and the drill jig helps.  One small annoyance:  Tiara made the base of the struts with irregular hole spacing.  As a result, I had to make drill jigs for the port and stbd, and they would not work for anyone else.  But you could probably drill the holes another way.  Clean up with acetone, and bed it with 3M 5200.

I cannot add more photos to this post so I'll show the drill jig in another picture.
 

Here is the drill jig for the Tiara support struts.  I wanted the screws to go in perfectly straight, hence the jig so I could drill the pilot holes straight so close to the windshield. 

   

Oh, I forgot to mention that disconnecting the radar wiring and then reconnecting it was probably the most annoying part of the install.   There were something like 40 colored wires inside the radar that I had to keep track of.   I removed my radar after making sure I could reconnect the wires, and tucked the wires inside the arch until the top was on.  Then, when the top was on I reinstalled the radar using longer 316 bolts than had been there.   Used silicone paste between the rubber gasket and the hardtop.   

Other wiring was pretty easy.  There is already wiring there (hanging out in the sternshot photo below) for the anchor light, so you just cut that and connect it to the light they give you.  The pull string was still in my arch, and I was able to use this to pull up wiring for the LEDs and to install two additional, rear-facing LEDs in the arch for a total of 5 total LEDs in the top.  I'm very glad about the rear facing LEDs and highly recommend them.
   
[-] The following 2 users Like jmk's post:
Fiddlehead (01-18-2015), YOLO (01-19-2015)
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Messages In This Thread
Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by jmk - 01-15-2015, 09:32 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Fiddlehead - 01-18-2015, 11:26 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by jmk - 01-18-2015, 12:43 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by jmk - 01-18-2015, 02:42 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Massimo - 09-24-2022, 11:11 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Fiddlehead - 01-18-2015, 07:24 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by jmk - 01-18-2015, 08:37 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by anthem - 01-25-2015, 08:05 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by jmk - 01-25-2015, 08:21 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by anthem - 01-25-2015, 10:37 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by evan - 02-28-2015, 07:50 AM
1995 3600 open Tiara Hardtop - by Sasha - 09-28-2019, 10:49 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Sasha - 10-01-2019, 09:35 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by evan - 10-06-2019, 09:38 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Sasha - 10-06-2019, 02:55 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Lured Away - 12-23-2019, 10:51 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Sasha - 02-09-2020, 07:09 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Lured Away - 04-01-2020, 08:29 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Sasha - 04-02-2020, 08:50 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Sasha - 10-06-2020, 03:23 PM
Capt. mark Tobias - by CAPT. MARK TOBIAS - 10-07-2020, 06:25 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by jmk - 12-29-2020, 01:00 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by trit21 - 10-06-2020, 04:15 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Sasha - 10-07-2020, 09:18 AM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Sasha - 02-22-2021, 04:51 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by jmk - 02-22-2021, 05:48 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by Sasha - 02-24-2021, 04:03 PM
RE: Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by trit21 - 02-22-2021, 07:12 PM
Factory Tiara Classic Hardtop - by jmk - 09-24-2022, 01:11 PM

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