Upper Sliders - Replacing Fabric

[RMac80]

This post will be a how-to on replacing the fabric for the upper sliders!

So I found a set of upper sliders for my TJ locally on FB marketplace VERY cheap. One is completely missing the fabric, but the frame and glass are intact. The other is complete but the fabric is in bad condition.

I did some research on this forum and called BesTop to confirm, you cannot get replacement fabric for the sliders. I contacted about 8 local upholstery shops that do automotive and marine exterior work (car tops, sails, boat covers, etc). All but one declined to even look at the job. The one shop who looked at it said that by the time they did all the stitching with the weather seals and everything that it would be cheaper for me to buy a set of new sliders at ~$800...

Another post in the form says you can try to take the replacement upper skins (with zip out vinyl window) and use it to replace the fabric in your slider.
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/tj-replacement-upper-slider-fabric.31595/

I have done this successfully, it was way more effort than I thought it would be to get it "right". In the end I have about $180 total in this pair of sliders, time will tell if the money and time was worth it.

 

[RMac80]

First thing's first, I chose the Sierra Offroad upper door skins to cut up because they have good customer reviews but are not very expensive.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LDBYXWG/?tag=wranglerorg-20

While I was waiting on those to arrive, I did some cleaning/sanding/painting and repair work on the slider frame. Carefully remove the inner and outer plastic frame covers which will allow you to remove the glass and set that aside in a safe place. Use a set of vinyl wedges and pry bars and be very careful not to break the tabs inside the frame, old plastic can be very brittle.

While the frame is fully exposed I sanded and painted over some rusty areas.

I noticed that the main support tab that connects the top of the plastic window frame to the top of the metal frame was broken, so I came up with a repair for that using some tiny u-bolts scavenged from some cable clamps. I had to come up with something that would fit between the front and back of the window frame but not interfere with the tabs when I put the frames/glass back in, but I wanted more support than just the JB weld plastic bond.

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The zip ties are eisily accessible from inside the vehicle so they can be tightened/replaced in the future if necessary.

 

[RMac80]

The door skins arrived, and like many of you have noted on this forum, it is best to set those out in the sun to get them flexible so they will stretch over the frames.

What I did next was:
1) scraped and cleaned all remaining old weather stripping off the inner frame and the two frame/glass covers
2) added new weather stripping to the inner frame and trimmed it
3) reinstalled inner frame cover with rear half of glass
4) stretched the new door skin over the frame (front glass and outer frame cover still off)

What I recommend doing is skip step 3 until later. Having that glass in there made the rest of the process more delicate/difficult.

You will need a ver sharp (new) razor blade in your utility knife to trim the weather stripping and to later cut the door skin. I didn't take many pictures at this stage but here is the weather strip I used and a close up of one stitch I had to cut in the door skin to get it to fit.

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[RMac80]

Once you have the new door skin stretched onto the frame, and the window zipped up, I recommend moving the upper onto the jeep door to properly line up all the weather stipping, get the velcro adjusted properly, etc.

Now back on the work bench, place the outer window frame onto the fabric. Use an awl to poke holes through the fabric where the 3 screw holes along the bottom are. Put drill bits or nails or something through the holes to hold the outer frame into place.

Now using a silver sharpie, or other marking method that will show up, go around and mark the fabric where the outer frame tabs will go through it.

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Now it is time to commit and cut holes in the fabric, this is the point of no return. You can see from the last image that the frame for the sliders does not exactly line up with the vinyl zip up window. This is the part I did not expect. I had expected them to line up and it would be as simple as removing the vinyl part only and maybe the zipper perfectly along the seams.

However, There are places where the frame will overlap canvas, vinyl, thick seams and velcro, and even the zipper itself. Anything that prevents the outer frame from closing fully will prevent the glass from sliding properly (and it may even fall out) so anything in the way has to be carefully removed.

At this point, use your sharp utility knife to cut slits where you marked the fabric for the tabs to go through.

 

[RMac80]

I apologize for the lack of photos here, I marked one up to try and illustrate the important part.

First, you need to mark where the zipper crosses the BOTTOM of the lower part of the inner frame on both sides.
Now mark a line where the window/fabric runs along the TOP of the lower part of the inner frame.

Make sure the zipper trucks are moved to one corner at the top of the frame. Make a cut on both sides of the zipper at each mark then use tin snips to clip the zipper. In my case I had to go to the inner side of the skin and cut out the entire zipper all the way to one end on the front side.

Now cut along the line you marked. Then move the zipper trucks down towards the lower corners. They should fall off where you clipped the zipper, and the window itself should fall out.

Now use your razor knife to remove the half of the zipper that remains attached to the door skin because it will prevent the frame from re-assembling correctly. You should also cut away any thicker seams and flaps that keep the outer frame from going on tightly. Using a butane torch, go around anywhere you have made a cut and singe together any loose threading or tattered fabric.

At this point you will definitely feel like you messed up, but press on! The fabric will try to shift around on you, but that is why we pre-marked and cut holes for those tabs in the frame.

Now, reinstall the front glass in its track on put on the outer frame cover. You will have to work your way around making sure all the tabs go into the holes you made earlier so that the fabric is stretched into its original position. I found clamps helpful here to keep pressure on the parts I had already done.

I had to do this several times, taking it back off to remove more material so the window would slide properly. Once you are happy with the outer/front glass and frame you can flip the unit over and do the inner frame and rear glass.

I did replace the factory screws (which were rusted and some of the heads were stripped out) with these slightly longer screws with matching washer.

 

[RMac80]

This step is optional.

In my case I broke a few of the frame connecting tabs during disassembly, so I wanted to add a few more bolts through the frame to hold onto the fabric tighter and at more points. If you decide to do this, BE VERY CAREFUL! If you drill your holes too close to the glass it will impede the glass from sliding. If you hit the glass with a drill bit you could crack or shatter it and the whole point of this exercise is lost. I don't think you can get replacement glass pieces. (but you may be able to get a glass shop to make a new piece). But the point here is low cost so let's not break anything expensive or irreplaceable...

1) remove the inner frame cover but leave the glass inserted. (I did not leave the glass in and it messed me up, more about that later)
2) drill holes through the inside part of the outer frame in suitable locations where the frame is hollow and you are not too close to glass. (use scrap wood behind the frame to safely stop the drill bit.)
3) replace the inner frame cover and flip the entire unit over.
4) drill holes in the inner frame through the holes you already made in the outer frame so that they line up.

Again, clamps help this entire process. Here are the bolts I used and the finished result.

 

[RMac80]

At this point, I fitted the sliders onto the jeep but we couldn't drive with them on because the latches had all failed (no spring action). The glass was just sliding around freely.

I ordered a pair of new latches from BesTop. This is a part you have to call and order, it is not on the web page. The front and rear latches are the same so I used the new pair I bought to replace the front latch on both sides. About $65 a pair, order all 4 latches new if it's in your budget.

I took the 4 old latches I had, selected the two best looking ones to refurbish for the rear latches. Typically the latches fail because the little plastic tab inside which is providing spring back force has broken. I found the right size spring to fit in there and cut it to length.

 

[RMac80]

Here is what the finished slider looks like on the jeep. Note on the inside I had to cut a flap out to make room for that upper frame reapir I had to do. You may not have to do this on yours. I may tuck that piece into the inner frame later to prevent that bulging in the weather strip up top.

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There are only a couple things I am not too happy with.

First, I got my extra bolt on the bottom front corner in the path of the glass by about 1/16" so the glass has to be raised up for it to latch. If I had left the glass in when I was drilling for these extra bolts I could have avoided that. If the frame tabs/clips had not been so brittle and broken off, I would not have even needed the extra bolts.

Second, I wish I had left the zipper cover flap intact on the part of the zipper I left in place below the window frame at the rear. And I cut a bit too much zipper out. I will pop a couple grommets in there and use paracord to tie it off to keep the little zipper section from separating. Had I left the flap in place enough to tuck up inside the frame I could have simply sewn a stitch down the edge to hid the zipper and hold it together.

 

[RMac80]

Conclusions.

Considering this jeep is not my daily driver and we normally ride it within 50 miles of our house in fair weather, these sliders will do fine. I will report back if there are any long term reliability issues that pop up.

Whether or not you want to go this route, depends on a lot of things. Can you get a damaged set of sliders cheap enough? How much time are you willing to spend? Do you have the tools/skills?

If you have the time to do this right (hopefully using my experience you can do better than me) then it's great. Having a set of sliders for under $200 is awesome. However, because of the extra effort required you might want to look for a used but still usable set (~$300 in my area).

I don't know why anyone would spend $800 or so on a new set. If you are thinking about that, might I recommend the Bulldawg sliders that are hard material instead of fabric, and similarly priced. You might even be able to find a really clean set of full doors in your area (here they are ~$600).
https://www.bulldawgmfg.com/shop/Jeep_Doors_for_Wrangler_TJ_1997_2006_LJ_2004_2006-1-1.html

Like so many things in the Jeep community, do what fits your life and your vehicle. I hope the info here can help you do that.

 

[RMac80]

Here is what the finished slider looks like on the jeep. Note on the inside I had to cut a flap out to make room for that upper frame reapir I had to do. You may not have to do this on yours. I may tuck that piece into the inner frame later to prevent that bulging in the weather strip up top.

View attachment 554025. View attachment 554026

There are only a couple things I am not too happy with.

First, I got my extra bolt on the bottom front corner in the path of the glass by about 1/16" so the glass has to be raised up for it to latch. If I had left the glass in when I was drilling for these extra bolts I could have avoided that. If the frame tabs/clips had not been so brittle and broken off, I would not have even needed the extra bolts.
View attachment 554027

Second, I wish I had left the zipper cover flap intact on the part of the zipper I left in place below the window frame at the rear. And I cut a bit too much zipper out. I will pop a couple grommets in there and use paracord to tie it off to keep the little zipper section from separating. Had I left the flap in place enough to tuck up inside the frame I could have simply sewn a stitch down the edge to hid the zipper and hold it together.
View attachment 554028

 

[RMac80]

So I added some grommets and tied in some paracord to cover up this area and keep the zipper/fabric from separating. It would have been a lot cleaner had I left the zipper flap in place and tucked it into the window frame, and cut the zipper much closer to the frame bottom. But overall this isn't too bad.

 

[CrazeSilver]

Did you consider turning it into a fiberglass upper instead? I have the sliding fabric uppers and there is some damage to the part that slides under the channel on the half door to make it “seamless”. Due to this I have been researching trying to figure out if fiberglassing is an option.

 

[CrazeSilver]

Did you consider turning it into a fiberglass upper instead? I have the sliding fabric uppers and there is some damage to the part that slides under the channel on the half door to make it “seamless”. Due to this I have been researching trying to figure out if fiberglassing is an option.

 

[RMac80]

Did you consider turning it into a fiberglass upper instead? I have the sliding fabric uppers and there is some damage to the part that slides under the channel on the half door to make it “seamless”. Due to this I have been researching trying to figure out if fiberglassing is an option.

I did not consider this option as I don't think I can do it at home.

 

[CrazeSilver]

I did not consider this option as I don't think I can do it at home.

Fiberglassing is actually pretty easy. I have done it with no previous experience for custom interior mods for my jeep. I might try a fabric skin with zip window first and see how it comes out first but hoping to find someone show has already done it.

 

[RMac80]

Fiberglassing is actually pretty easy. I have done it with no previous experience for custom interior mods for my jeep. I might try a fabric skin with zip window first and see how it comes out first but hoping to find someone show has already done it.

Good luck to you! If you get it done please do a write up and link to it in here so we can all see it.