The girl goes topless

I've been trying to find the best means of removing the Meyer top all winter. I was resigned to needing a frame and winch (which I'd have to create) and renting a storage unit to keep the top in. Then one day I had an epiphany...what if I simply disassemble the top and store each piece inside my storage shed?

The weather finally broke (16 days straight of rain) so I was able to rearrange all the yard tools in my shed. I got rid of all the duplicates (who needs three shovels; how did I even get three shovels?) as well as some stuff I didn't know I had, which is another way of saying it's outta here!

By the time I was done I had a place where all the bits of the Meyer top would fit. Now I just needed to get the courage up to start removing it.

Sunday the weather was nice so I started removing bolts. 16 on the top, another 6 across the windshield, and another 8 along the base. Before I removed those, I took the doors off, including the rear lift door and its hardware.
Turns out the top piece is not as heavy as I had thought; while the whole top is about 350 pounds, the doors are the heaviest. The top was quite light but bulky. I had a neighbor give me a hand lifting it off, flipping it upside down and then getting it into the shed. The rest I easily did.

Thanks for looking...

Can I get the door (handle), Madame?

Okay, this is a bit of character.  The Old Girl saw some action in her younger days; some bits got ripped off by branches and other things while running through the Maine woods.

Like her mirrors...the spare tire holder...the side steps...and the left door handle.  But no need to fret; it's a simple door mechanism so any door handle works:

I believe that's available from the local hardware store, typically seen on some older homes.  The handle is glass with a square steel post and certainly goes all the way through.  Hey, it works!

So I decided to go cheap and got some nice handles to replace the existing ones; the passenger side still works but is corroded; I'll replace that one when I do some restoration work on the doors and top.

Much better and now it looks natural, new, almost like it was supposed to be there.  Of course, I still cannot lock the Girl, but why should I?  It's not like I keep anything of value inside her.  The "value" is really the Girl herself.  Any anyone with a modicum of hotwire knowledge can take her.

But then again down here in Southern Maryland she's the only one of her kind...so if someone takes her they need to break her up quick, which means she won't be worth much.  So I'm not too worried and besides, she doesn't get out of my sight much.

Thanks for looking...

The Old Girl is mine!

7th August, 2012

She was originally my uncle's Jeep.  He got her back in 1970 when he was quite young as something to have fun with.  She likely never went more than 50 miles from central Maine where he lives.  

She DID spent lots of time in bogs, along logging trails and generally "in the woods".  I understand a few empty beer cans have been known to rattle around behind those seats in the cargo area!

My brother and I both have connections to her but during very different times.  I've driven her a bit (maybe my Grandfather's red one more?) and so has my brother.  Seven or more years apart given we both have memories of doing that during our high school years and that's the difference in age...

The running joke between us, and the whole family participated, was which one of us would get it and how we'd determine that: arm wresting, sprints, or cards it didn't matter because in the end it came down to who had the time and inclination to treat her right.

So on the 7th of August, after we agreed I could have it and my uncle and I agreed on the price I jumped in the truck and got up to Maine before either one changed their minds!  Talk about exciting; I looked forward to the trip all the way up and then driving her when I got home.  While my uncle was quite at home jumping in and just going, I wanted a good look over her because some things about her just weren't right.  So I didn't drive her while in Maine but waited until I got her home.

That's when all the "fun" started.

Thanks for looking...