I started out today by finishing installing the super rope on the front and back corners of the cargo cover. While i was working on that the mailman came with the package containing the door locks I ordered. Installed the door locks. Now I can lock the cab! I was going to pressure-wash the cargo cover, but decided to finish securing the hard-top.
I needed to fabricate custom brackets to attach to the hard-top on the left and right corners in order to pull the front corners down on the front edge of the hard-top. (the hard-top was bowed in the center -which made the 2 front corners wing up and leave an opening between the top of the windshield and hard-top.) The J-bolts were too far from the corners to pull the corners down! The idea is to mount 1 L-bracket on the edge (inner lip) of the hard-top and another L-bracket on the top of the of the windshield side frame. Then connect the 2 L-brackets with a 1/4" bolt and tighten -pulling the hard-top corners towards the windshield.
I had some scrap 2" U-channel laying around. (the same stuff I used for the battery support brackets) I cut the U-channel down the middle to make to make two L's facing each-other. I then sliced two 1" L-brackets and two 2" L-brackets. Prepped them, drilled them, primed them, painted them.
Installed the 2" L-bracket to the edge of the hard-top and the 1" L-brackets to the windshield frame using self-tapping screws. Inserted a long 1/4" bolt and tightened it down. Once installed I applied touch-up paint.
Jeff Davis came down to visit from Mississippi. He brought the 4 LED headlight we ordered from a fellow SS member. Looks like I will be installing LED headlights on the truck tomorrow! LED marker lights are my next addition. I am also gong to replace the tail lights with LED's. Got to remove them from the M931 I decided to sell.
Pictures of brackets attached.
![Brackets_1.jpg Brackets_1.jpg](https://www.steelsoldiers.com/data/attachments/276/276560-02c5c5e1039be51466b93a5bb959d36f.jpg)
![Brackets_1a.jpg Brackets_1a.jpg](https://www.steelsoldiers.com/data/attachments/276/276561-ed1f74dfb8180c08c08e2e16f5d733bd.jpg)
![Installed_bracket_1.jpg Installed_bracket_1.jpg](https://www.steelsoldiers.com/data/attachments/276/276562-fb7e9418b22a8613b5df4ee154ae7f8a.jpg)