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I recently purchased a new full-back soft top from www.rockgearinc.com and thought I'd let you all know about it now that I've had it a few weeks.
I purchased a black one with upper soft half doors for a delivered price of about $620. It does not have bows to support it, as it just stretches over your roll cage. California Tops makes a similar product, but I've heard their customer service is not the best. Not having bows makes it really easy to roll up and leave in the garage or in the back of the jeep on those warm days. The side and back curtains roll up and can be stowed in pockets sewn into the top. In this mode, you have the equivalent to a safari top, but the convenience of a full top if the weather changes. The upper door halves collapse and allow them to be rolled up as well...this makes storage in the jeep much easier. Below are my thoughts/complaints.
1) Doesn't seal well around the doors. I knew this prior to purchase and don't care, but someone else may care more than I do. The side curtains have an elastic band that allows them to stretch around the outside of the door, basically sealing it off.
2) Window plastic feels really thin. I haven't compared this to other new tops, but my OEM top had thicker plastic, which must be more durable.
3) No strap to hold the rear curtain open. It doesn't have, or I haven't found, a strap that holds the rear curtain in the rolled up position. In the fall and spring, I tend to like this setup with the half doors off to let a breeze through, but not be fully open. There are a series of straps and buckles that tension the top, some of which could probably be used for this purpose. However the traditional strap w/ snap would be more convenient.
4) Upper doors need storage bag. A tent-type storage bag for the collapsed upper door halves would be welcome. As it it now, you have four metal parts and the fabric to figure out where to store. If you don't collapse them, then it's just like typical upper half doors.
Overall I really like the top, particularly for the lack of a bow system to hassle with. I think the OEM TJ bow system is more user friendly than the YJ, so it may not be as beneficial for TJs.
I purchased a black one with upper soft half doors for a delivered price of about $620. It does not have bows to support it, as it just stretches over your roll cage. California Tops makes a similar product, but I've heard their customer service is not the best. Not having bows makes it really easy to roll up and leave in the garage or in the back of the jeep on those warm days. The side and back curtains roll up and can be stowed in pockets sewn into the top. In this mode, you have the equivalent to a safari top, but the convenience of a full top if the weather changes. The upper door halves collapse and allow them to be rolled up as well...this makes storage in the jeep much easier. Below are my thoughts/complaints.
1) Doesn't seal well around the doors. I knew this prior to purchase and don't care, but someone else may care more than I do. The side curtains have an elastic band that allows them to stretch around the outside of the door, basically sealing it off.
2) Window plastic feels really thin. I haven't compared this to other new tops, but my OEM top had thicker plastic, which must be more durable.
3) No strap to hold the rear curtain open. It doesn't have, or I haven't found, a strap that holds the rear curtain in the rolled up position. In the fall and spring, I tend to like this setup with the half doors off to let a breeze through, but not be fully open. There are a series of straps and buckles that tension the top, some of which could probably be used for this purpose. However the traditional strap w/ snap would be more convenient.
4) Upper doors need storage bag. A tent-type storage bag for the collapsed upper door halves would be welcome. As it it now, you have four metal parts and the fabric to figure out where to store. If you don't collapse them, then it's just like typical upper half doors.
Overall I really like the top, particularly for the lack of a bow system to hassle with. I think the OEM TJ bow system is more user friendly than the YJ, so it may not be as beneficial for TJs.
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