[Spridgets] Story about a hardtop

[Rick Fisk]

Hi Tim,

You did a great job in restoring that top and I'm really happy that it went to someone who appreciates it.  What I don't understand though is that when we had so much trouble loading it in or on your car why didn't we just load it into my Suburban and take it to your house?  :)

I traded a Bugeye fiberglass front end last fall for a couple of engines and had no trouble delivering it in my Expedition which replaced the Suburban.  

Rick



> On Mar 24, 2026, at 9:15 AM, Tim Collins via Spridgets <spridgets at autox.team.net> wrote:
> 
> 
> Back in  September of 2022 Rick Fisk posted a Spridget hardtop as a give away item. After a day or so I sent Rick a note saying if no one else wanted the hardtop I would take it rather than have it get trashed. Rick responded; "Come and get it." Several others were interested until they learned where Rick lives. 
> 
> I'm 33 miles away from his home so getting the top was "easy." Easy is in quotes because I don't have a truck. I drove to Rick's in my (at the time) 2002 Mercury Sable "grandma car." - inherited from my mother-in-law. The top wouldn't fit in the car easily no matter how we twisted it. I finally lashed it to the open trunk lid - partly in the trunk - and drove home. 
> 
> My wife had passed away 5 months prior so I thought this would make a good project to keep me busy.
> 
> Here's what I learned about restoring a fibreglass hardtop;
> I don't like working with fibreglass
> Free is quite expensive
> Parts may be available - somewhere else in the world, but not nearby
> Some parts are not available - anywhere
> I had fun with the project! Maybe the most important part of this story.
> 
> The hardtop was missing one sidelight. I made a pattern and went to a glass company with an aluminum pattern to be sure I would get a perfect fit. On the second try they made a window that matched the pattern. The cost was in the neighborhood of $168, but it is tempered glass as it should be. McGregor British Car Parts in Canada was able to provide most trim and seal parts except for the window seals for the sidelights. I never did find an exact replacement so I ended up buying the closest size I could find and then trimmed some off to fit. It's not perfect, I couldn't use the lock strip, trade offs were made. I chose a MG blue paint, Iris Blue - I don't know why, it just worked for me.
> 
> It isn't that heavy, but putting it on by myself wasn't easy and as I get older it won't get any easier. So, I put a hoist on the ceiling of my garage which also provides an elevated storage location. That's another story.
> 
> Thanks again to Rick for the hardtop!!! 
>   
> Here's some before and after pics.
> <sprite top 2.jpeg>
> <20240912_163214.jpg>
> 
> <20250528_084837.jpg>
> 
> I couldn't find a good pic of the sidelights in the weather seal. These pics have temporary plastic sidelights. 
> 
> Tim Collins
> 
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> 
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