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View Full Version : Bimini tops at speed



northern baja
01-20-2004, 04:57 AM
I'd like to go for a bimini tyle top on my Baja 208 Islander but have run into a bunch of questions.
Are you able to leave your top up cruising 60 (70 in my dreams)?
Who makes the best frames ? and what material, thickness am I looking for?
What heighth is about right? I'm thinking around 42-48".
I see multicolor tops in pics but I don't see any for sale. What's up with that?
What's your experience?
:confused:

jbtrailerjim
01-20-2004, 06:24 AM
I don't know if I would trust any bimini top at speed's much above 60mph. Make sure you go with an all stainless steel frame. Don't buy an aluminum one. Those suck.
BTW.......Nice avatar. Are you a big River Dave fan?;) :D

coolchange
01-20-2004, 08:41 AM
You proly want stainless if its over 74' wide and will be used at speed. Also make sure your fittings are rivetted if you dont have stainless. Height is a personal preference, but to low and your vision is impaired especially when turning. Multi color is prolly a west coast thing :D not realy available from mailorder.

CrazyHippy
01-20-2004, 02:04 PM
My 21' Wacker has had the top up over 70mph, and it made the WHOLE boat really light. Top held up just fine though.
BJH

BADBLOWN572
01-20-2004, 02:21 PM
If you are going to plan on heading over 65mph I would recommend solid stainless steel stantions (?sp) on both the front and the back. The nylon straps with clips are ok for up to 65, but I have actually seen one buckle at about 70mph and it wasn't pretty. The front clip that holds the top up broke and when the canopy was flying back it caught the wind and ripped the mounting hardware out of the boat and hit the rear passenger. I would recommend taking down the bimini over 60mph, but definitely don't rely on straps to hold it in place if going over 65 and always go with stainless. As for the stripes, there are a few manufactureres that do custom bimini tops for west cost builders. I don't know of any place you can order them by mail.

boatnam2
01-20-2004, 02:26 PM
i bent mine all to shit about 70mph.straps were fine but the teh rest were all david bowied.

rivercrazy
01-20-2004, 02:33 PM
I have a stainless bimini also. But the beam on my boat is 100" and the bimini is really large overall. I can only comfortably run about 45-50 with mine.
I heard that instead of the typical canvas cloth material, you can run a mesh fabric that will allow you to go a little faster.
Just be careful running any decent speed with it up

Trouble Maker
01-20-2004, 08:18 PM
45-50 for me...
Go with the stainless and spot weld the joints...rivets come loose....more vibration, more noise, etc etc.

Scream
01-20-2004, 09:59 PM
Maybe if you go fast enough, you'll be like Sister Batril on the Flying Nun!:D

Kachina26
01-20-2004, 10:25 PM
Originally posted by Scream
Maybe if you go fast enough, you'll be like Sister Batril on the Flying Nun!:D
Hey Scream,
About time you quit lurking and started working on that post count.:D

northern baja
01-21-2004, 04:21 AM
My actual traveling speed was overstated slightly. With 8-9 guests and the coolers that are always close by the topend is usually in the 50-55 range. I have big dreams of more speed and a fairly light wallet, but figured I should looking for a top that would perform whatever the future brings. I don't think I'll have to worry about the boat flying away with this crew aboard. ;)

Dr. Eagle
01-21-2004, 08:22 AM
Originally posted by northern baja
My actual traveling speed was overstated slightly. With 8-9 guests and the coolers that are always close by the topend is usually in the 50-55 range. I have big dreams of more speed and a fairly light wallet, but figured I should looking for a top that would perform whatever the future brings. I don't think I'll have to worry about the boat flying away with this crew aboard. ;)
I had my bimini pull out the strap anchor at about 55 and the damn thing came back and clobbered me in the head (yeah, probably what happened to make me sooooo loopy). But I had noticed the anchor was wiggling lose and didn't do anything to fix it...so my bad!
The one on my Ultra is all stainless steel with pin mount brackets. I have had an aluminum one before and I'd recommend the stainless steel for sure.
I think you should be just fine at those speeds. Much above 60 to 65 I think I'd take the thing down.

jackpunx
01-21-2004, 09:51 AM
I have mesh on mine.. I dont like to go faster then about 60 .. its not worth it if something gives way.. I have gone around 70 .. but just for a few seconds.. it felt fine..
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/500/943boat_shot-med.jpg

Starloans
01-21-2004, 09:57 AM
Been to 60 or so with my stainless up. The one on my last boat had a tag on it says don't exceed 35 mph. :confused:

Jetdriver
01-21-2004, 12:31 PM
Here check these guys! They make great stuff. Mine has seen 60 and no worries. Adlee Boat Covers (http://adleecoversboats.com/)

roostwear
01-21-2004, 12:53 PM
Here's a shot of my bimini at just under 100.
http://www.classicboatbeachbash.com/cbbb03/Dscn2273.jpg
OK, it was considerably under 100, but as most have said, 60 should be OK, even with an aluminum frame. Make sure all the joints are riveted!

Ziggy
01-21-2004, 07:08 PM
Had aluminum on my old boat, took it up to 55-58 with no problems, even towed the boat with it up at 60-65. It wiggled alot but stayed put just fine..Think the wiggle was because the buffed air off the truck.
New boat has stainless frame and its been at 60 with no problemo. Make sure all fitting are secure and in good condition.

Mohavekid
01-21-2004, 07:55 PM
Here's a pic of mine at about 60mph.
It's an aluminum frame but stainless fittings. I've found the trick to mine is to really pull the nylon straps down tight.
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/500/1177CBBB12-med.jpg

JetBoatRich
01-21-2004, 08:07 PM
I have gone pretty fast in mine and had one joint come loose in Parker. Scared the heck out of me, hit me in the head. It could have been real bad. I have heard stories of them coming down on people in teh back seats:frown: not good.
Make sure all is secure before the speed runs:D

Jetdriver
01-21-2004, 09:10 PM
I just run mine really tight

SoCal_fun
01-22-2004, 09:23 AM
Originally posted by RiverDave
I've had the bimini on the Nordic come apart on me 3 or 4 times now.. :( (Not a Nordic bimini it was built by the guys at castaic marine..... yeah anyways)
I looked around and found couple of places and mfg's that build bimini tops that are of a much higher quality and you can actually run a realistic 60 - 70 mph with them up (even 1 or 2 at a 100, but there the mesh type) and I was all prepared to throw some phone #'s online, but then I saw your avatar and the first thing that came to mind was..
Your obviously Gay.
RD :D
Castaic built mine. I had to have them redo it and get rid of the back straps for SS stanchions. Now it is good for 63mph so far with no problems (yet).
RD, any other bad experiences with Castaic? PM if you want, that's who I use and don't want to get burned. :rolleyes:

rivercrazy
01-22-2004, 09:35 AM
The speed you can go with a bimini up is still heavily dependant on the total surface area of the bimini. I used to be able to go 55-60 with my bimini on a 21 foot boat without any worries. But now with a 25 footer with a 100 inch beam, forget it....:)

TrojanDan
01-22-2004, 10:31 AM
Definitely do the mesh thing. We put a 12" white mesh stripe down the middle of our bimini (for about $100 bucks) and now I can drive 80-90 mph.......ok maybe 50-55mph :D without any bad shaking or ballooning.

rivercrazy
01-22-2004, 10:35 AM
Thanks for the tip TD! Just a stripe down the middle and that's it?

Havasu_Dreamin
01-22-2004, 10:50 AM
We've got the regular bimini, the non-mesh kind, on our Sterling and I've cruised at 60 with it up and have had zero problems for 4 years now.

jackpunx
01-22-2004, 11:00 AM
Originally posted by JetBoatRich
had one joint .. Scared the heck out of me, hit me in the head. It could have been real bad. I have heard stories of them coming down on people in teh back seats:frown: not good.
thats what you get for not sharing that joint

eliminatedsprinter
01-22-2004, 11:37 AM
Mine has a great looking tri colored top that is still near new. However my straps and fittings are old and worn so I don't trust it at anything over skiing speeds. Therefore, I only put it up when I am going out on the water for a while skiing, tubing, and/or wakeboarding etc... I don't use it for fun driving and I would never do a speed run with it up.:cool:

TrojanDan
01-22-2004, 03:54 PM
Originally posted by rivercrazy
Thanks for the tip TD! Just a stripe down the middle and that's it?
Yup, just one stripe. We used white and it still blocks out quite a bit of sun and heat. I've seen the all mesh ones and they hold up pretty damn good at high speeds also. :cool:

BajaMike
01-26-2004, 10:07 PM
I've had mine (Baja Outlaw) a little over 60 many times with no problems.
Mike
;)

91nordic29
01-29-2004, 06:27 AM
just a tip: if you add one "twist" in the straps when you put the top up, you wont get so much vibration noise from the straps while you are running.:cool:

CrazyHippy
01-30-2004, 12:26 AM
Good tip, Works GREAT
BJH:D

powerplay230
02-10-2004, 05:58 AM
Just my .02 cents... I had one custom built for my boat and guy who made it said he would guarantee stainless up to 60, aluminum he said no way. He did an awesome job building mine except for a few minor details. Yes it did come loose at speed where the stainless anchors were screwed in instead of through bolted with nylon pads and stainless lockwashers/nuts.. He fixed it but still never have been sure if he just wasn't thinking or being cheap.
Good Luck,
Rick

bordsmnj
02-10-2004, 03:58 PM
i'm surprised no one mentioned the one's with mesh checkers- good to 120mph!:D