I used to think the same then I went traveling and thought what the hell I'll buy a later kombi (a bay I owned a split at the time) with the full camper interior. I did this and brought a Australian 74 Sopru camper (same colour and top as above ^ )which had a poptop and my mind was changed the first day when we went camping. I recommend hiring one with a poptop and trying it out, then see if you think the same, its a different camping experience
Yeah, doing everything in the bus while kneeling down is a bit of a pain! Lol I like the idea of a poptop for practicality but I hate how they look. There's a guy near me that does a lot of work with GRP.... I may have to go have a chat with him and kick some ideas around for an ultra low profile, no bed roof
high-tops are the way forwards ,just remember when taking a picture try and block it out... another fan of the sliding sunroof ,when open the tintop is`nt like a greenhouse in summer...
Taste is a varied and fab thing. Bays look like a loaf of bread to start with but are still gorgeous. When we got into them a few years back we started lusting after a splitty then realised they are pretty and very small so with a need to sleep four that was out. We liked prototypes with their low lights and curvy moon shaped vents but not much space in the by now Ok pop tops and we ended up with a 77 rear hinge Westy with a proper bed upstairs. We love our Myrtle and the fact that everything is close to standard as it came out of the (Westfalia) factory. Everything is a compromise to a degree. I have a mate with a splitty and he actually has a T4 for his family to sleep in when they go away (yes they take 2 vehicles!), why not love your tiptop and use the awning for a spare bedroom. Saves you money on a conversion. If not then you may need to learn to love a proper pop too as A home brew mod could end up looking weird.
there's no reason why you couldn't make a low profile pop top for a bus. It would take some head-scratching to make the transition from pop top to roof look neat though, as grp/ fibreglass needs strengthening along its edges to prevent cracking, and you'd probably need to make some provision for sealing/buffering the edges to stop the wind from lifting it whilst driving. Given the amount of work involved, I wouldn't bother....keep the tin top and buy a really good awning I take your point though.....to date, noone has made a really low profile elevating roof for a type 2
Dormy tops have windows in the top to let in loads of light but also enable you to stare at other people who camp to close.
Then realising youve left the slider open and havent even noticed your top half for some reason (oh - sorry that @baybirmingham as his roof is on the other way round!)
Been mulling this over some more, and I thought maybe hide it in plain sight lol what if it could be made to resemble a rag top roof? That would allow for some thickness of the fibreglass skin or reinforcing structure or whatever, and the skin could be covered in vinyl to complete the camouflage. Hinge it from the front to prevent lift and todo bien! A low profile pop top that doesn't look out of place
if you're serious about making one (and there's no reason you shouldn't be) then I'd look into alternative arrangements as well..... if the shell was hinged along it's length (like a dormi, or a viking) strengthening/sealing could be achieved so that it would be within the confines of the roof cut out, and the outer edges of the roof shell are just 'cosmetic'.... it's hard to think of an analogy but this springs to mind making your own lifters for a straight up roof would be fairly easy and could be installed within the cut out rather than planted on top:
This (above) T5 roofs are flat and have no gutter, so it's not hard to get a thin roof. T2 roofs have maybe 4 or 5 inches of elevation in the curve above the gutter line - the only 'thin' solution might be a curved fibreglass roof that follows the line of the curve.
I reckon its entirely possible to create a roof that looks like the current one from a few feet away and that has all of the lifting gibbons and bellows hidden inside the bus. You could even buy a full sized roof cut to make it out of. Thing is you would have all sorts of stuff inside the bus to bang your head on. A bit like modern hard top convertible cars that look brilliant but have all sorts of scaffolding etc. inside the boot to make them work so the boot is smaller i.e. you clutter up and reduce space inside. An alternate would be a rag top and create a removable pop-top that you fit when you need it or leave at home when you don't. I know a guy who has a very rare Arco split that is like this (he is the one with the T4 as a bedroom that I mentioned earlier)
I have a plan (once all my welding etc is done) For something of an exaggeration of that- Get yourself a full length roof rack, put removable floorboards on it, some tent poles and this: Can't see any reason why it wouldn't work
Apart from the curve of the roof? I think one of my roof cuts could be strengthened inside with steel and wouldn't hang down inside the van more than the existing struts. I might even have a couple of cut-out c-post roof strengtheners, certainly still got one of them though I might have chopped the other to make something else. With a little more strengthening and a westy type seal around the perimeter you'd be nearly there.
There are coffee bar type busses with elevating tin roof sections. Perhaps a look at how they have done it - no canvas for them which would be the next concealing problem.
