broken hard top guide pins

[rufuswingfield]

Removed the entire hard top for the first time. In the process I bent/broke the two forward guide pins. I'm sure that I'm not the first person who has done this. Can these be repaired?

 

[Apache 8]

Removed the entire hard top for the first time. In the process I bent/broke the two forward guide pins. I'm sure that I'm not the first person who has done this. Can these be repaired?

I haven’t taken mine off yet but planned on doing it soon. Can you tell us exactly what might have caused the problem so as to prevent it?

 

[rufuswingfield]

I used a Top Lift Pro, which seem to work fine. However, I forgot to remove the two top bolts, as the video I referenced didn't mention them. I'm pretty certain that's what caused the damage the pins.

 

[RaptorusMaximus]

I took a screw with a flat washer and reattached mine.

 

[TheLawnDart]

I just found out I’m missing one of these. So if anyone knows the part number or a good replacement option please let me know!

 

[RennWagen]

I damaged these on my Wildtrak when I removed the hardtop manually and then stupidly set it down on the floor, sitting on the locator pins. I haven't taken the back section off the roof of my Braptor yet because I've been waiting for a TopLift so I don't do this to the Braptor's roof. I assume the roofs are the same across both models and, if so, on the WT the locator pins were molded into the bottom rail and it didn't appear to be a fixable part, because it wasn't separable from the rail (it had broken off and also broken the underside of rail, sort of like how Ikea pressboard furniture breaks apart, pulling a level of the veneer off).

Here's how I fixed mine. I put the top on saw horses and drilled out the damaged pin from above, to give myself a clean hole. I made an assy out of two nylon washers (one washer on the top side of the drilled out hole, one underneath). I then made a locater pin out of a short length of PVC (you could use a wooden dowel too, which would be easier and like all things I do, only occurred to me afterwards). I used a screw, with a head larger than the openings of the nylon washers to screw down into the length of PVC. The screw was fat enough to catch on the inside of the PVC pipe but not to break it. if you decided to use a dowel, this would be easier, as the dowel is solid, so you have more options for the size of screw you use, just don't forget to pre-drill your hole, otherwise you'll risk splitting the dowel when you screw down into it. If you have a small vice or a clamp, it'll be easier to do this on your own, but if you don't, someone can hold the dowel for you in a pair of vice grips to keep your fingers away from the drill and screws while you're working. I used black washers and shot the PVC pipe with krylon rattle can paint, and it looked almost factory.

Sorry for the crappy illustration but I figured a picture might help and as I traded the WT for the Braptor last December, I can't find any pics of the repair in my phone from last summer.