Pop top trouble
- Thread starter Light air
- Start date
The only difficulty I can imagine with raising the pop top might be the weight? Once raised, there is a thingamajig on the mast that secures the pop top up and against the mast. That thingamajig is prone to being lost though, so if you don't have that, it could be problematic because the pop top could then come crashing down unexpectedly. I had a C25 before my Beneteau, and I also now have a C22 myself, so I'm at least somewhat familiar with the mechanisms, although I don't use them very frequently. Good luck in figuring it out.
The weight is definitely significant. You can add gas pistons to help with the lift. CatalinaDirect and Stingy Sailor both make kits (it looks like CD's is out of stock, but they'll probably get it back in eventually). I don't have any personal experience with this mod, but it seems to be the typical approach.
CD <= 1985
CD 1986-1994
Stingy Sailor
CD <= 1985
CD 1986-1994
Stingy Sailor
There's not really any trick to it, but the thing is definitely heavy. Ours already had a lift kit installed when we bought the boat, so I've only had to heave-ho the full weight of the hatch once or twice. Enough to appreciate the lift kit! 
Easy enough to buy gas pistons and install them without a kit. I saved a lot that way and used stainless steel units. Depending on skillset and current availability of course.
I had issues raising mine (before installing the lift kit). It looked like no one had attempted to raise the top in a decade at least, so it was kind of glued / stuck down to the weather seal gasket. It took some time pushing from various angles until I was able to get it to release and then rotate up.
I try to be careful when opening and closing. The hinge mechanism doesn't have a whole lot to stop it from wanting to twist and rack -- I also had to do some work on the cabin / pop-top itself. It looks like at some point water got into it. When I put the CD lift kit on and tried to close the pop-top, a bunch of screws holding the aluminum arms ripped out. On the plus side, that was all the prodding I needed to remove the top completely, fill and re-drill the holes, address the companion way hatch slides since it was all in the garage instead of on the boat.
I try to be careful when opening and closing. The hinge mechanism doesn't have a whole lot to stop it from wanting to twist and rack -- I also had to do some work on the cabin / pop-top itself. It looks like at some point water got into it. When I put the CD lift kit on and tried to close the pop-top, a bunch of screws holding the aluminum arms ripped out. On the plus side, that was all the prodding I needed to remove the top completely, fill and re-drill the holes, address the companion way hatch slides since it was all in the garage instead of on the boat.
Seems like the answer is the strut lifting kit and I'll look into that today. I want to try to open it one more time without the kit but, at my age, I'm not as strong as I used to be (LOL). I understand that the top weighs about 70lb.
