The wind blew my hardtop off the trailer I had it on and when it flipped off, it landed on the tongue lock lever, putting about a 3" long crack in it. How do I repair this crack to make it waterproof again and hopefully not have an ugly glob of fiberglass gel or something else on it? Since the crack is still misaligned, a buddy suggested I put some gel on it and then pop it back into place. Should I use a dremel and cut a V groove in the crack to have more surface area for the gel to stick to? Any suggestions would help before I make a big mess on the top. Thanks!! <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/notooth.gif" alt="" />

I'd say to do what your buddy suggested. Using a dremel to change it can only cause more problems. just try to get enough gel on the crack before you pop it back into place. Then after it sets up a little, clean it with a razor blade.

Im no expert but thats what i would do

First off you should drill a small hole at the end of the crack to prevent it from spreading. Then head off to your local boat/marine store and get some marine epoxy, they should sell a kit that will repair a small crack like you have. Then use the marine epoxy to join the two halves using clamps to hold the desired position and shape till the epoxy cures, which could be up to 48 hours depending on the epoxy used. You should be able to sand away any imperfections then touch up the paint work with some touch up paint.


underwater epoxy Marine repair kit

Just curious...what is a tongue lock lever?

Just a guess, but I'd say it was the lever that locks the tongue clamp on a trailer onto the receiver ball of the towing vehicle.

Goog Gosh! The thing is on a hard top guys! What on earth could you imagine on a hard top that needs locking... except the clamp that locks the top on to the windshield?
Big Jim <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/pfft.gif" alt="" />

The liftgate.

The OP said:
"The wind blew my hardtop off the [color:"red"]trailer [/color] I had it on..."

Yeah that is what he wrote. Might be he had the trailer PARKED and the natural wind blew from the rear of the trailer and flipped the top onto the tongue of the trailer..
First thought I had was, he was traveling and the hiway speed wind blew it off backwards from the trailer..
Big Jim <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/pfft.gif" alt="" />

Thanks for the tips. Yes the top was stored on my little utility trailer and the wind got under it and flipped it end over, landing on the tongue and the lock lever happened to be in the up position which caused the damage. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/notooth.gif" alt="" />