I recently moved into a condo and now I have limited options for my hardtop and a much further distance to move it. I require something with some sort of wheels to take the top into an elevator and up to my storage room and also would like a cover for it to prevent scratching.

Does anyone have experience with either of these two companies shown below? The ebay one actually seems really like a good option however I worry about quality and the sturdiness of the stand.


Ebay Link

They also have a full website that can be seen here:
Full site

The other option is this California covers site that some recommended shown here:

California Covers

If anyone has any personal experience with either of these options please let me know as it would be a sin to never drive top down because of no way to remove and store my top.

 

I have no experience with either but I do have the "factory" stand which has wheels on it but not castoring wheels - these would be a good idea and I will have to look into how I can modify mine to install them. The one comment that I would make is that the factory stand has the 'front' edge of the top sitting on the bottom legs of the stand with the heavier rear portion of the top leaning back against handle of the stand. None of the rubbers are in contact with any part of the stand so they don't get crushed. I don't see the 3rd wheel on the Factory Covers stand and even if there is one I would still be concerned about stability - the castors don't look very big so easy to catch them on something on the floor and away you go. From a design perspective the Califormia Covers stand appeals to me more (stability) assuming the frame members are adequately padded to protect the finish of the top. Get a cover from Honda-they're great. Even if adequately padded I would probably go out and buy a couple of chamois and face the pads with them. Both stands suffer from the fact that to move the Hard Top around on the stand you have to push on the Top whereas the factory stand has handles at 'belly button' level that you move things around with. The Factory Cover stand seems to have a safety strap which is a good idea in theory except for the possibility of crushing rubbers again. If I had designed the California Covers stand I would have made the lower arms slightly longer so that the Top is cradled better in the stand but maybe they were designing this for many different tops and this lower leg length was a compromise decision.Just some things to think about before you jump.

 

i made my own with wheels based on instructions on this forum. About $50 in materials because I got the extra thick pvc piping with locking casters.

 

There's also a thread on here (rather ingenius might I add) if you park in the garage, using a boat reel / line as a Hardtop hoist. To easily get it off and on.

 

Also a thread on here about building a stand out of PVC pipe for $50

 

I actually tried to make one and for some reason many things are exponentially more expensive in Canada. The 50$ stand came up to 160$ or something absurd and I ended up taking back all the materials and saving my money. For condo living I really do need something that I can carefully cart around. I am curious to talk to someone that actually has one of these or other stands. I would consider the Honda stand if it could roll sideways not just forward and back.

 

Time to make stands and sell to canadians.