Hard Top for Bimini and Dodger?

[PuttingDoctor]

Originally Posted by foojin

This husband and wife team does nice work. TARTAROOGA (tm) HARD DODGERS

Might be out of your way.

Just of the phone with Jacques at Tartarooga. Sad to say Florida is out of reach for this overwhelmed British Columbia couple. It's nice to be busy but so many are in that "bastard stage" of being too big to get small but to small to get bigger. Seems they are working 7 days 12 hours and not able to keep up. A mixed blessing for certain.

The search continues. Not sure I like the Hard To Top product and am hoping Wave Stoppers will return my email / voicemail outreach today.

Any other ideas?

[Ndavies]

Well this has to be a business opportunity for someone - I have tried to contact 3 suppliers that I found on the internet (including those listed in this thread), and I have not received a return phone call or email from any. So I have pretty much resigned myself to a conventional canvas approach.

Neil

[brad torrence]

Originally Posted by PuttingDoctor

Their web site could use some help in the photo department... I reasearched and found TARTAROOGA (tm) HARD DODGERS who I've reached out to for more info.

I would avoid Tartarooga. The owner, Jacques, is very awkward and hard to deal with. I bought a boat with one of his dodgers and a bimini, and he was most unhelpful. He tried to tell me no one was allowed to work on his dodger, or sew new curtains for it except his "authorized dealers", because it was his "intellectual property". Good grief.

[brad torrence]

Originally Posted by foojin

This husband and wife team does nice work. TARTAROOGA (tm) HARD DODGERS

Might be out of your way.

I would not recommend them. I have one of their dodgers.

[PuttingDoctor]

Interesting that this thread from 2015 pops up again.

I did in fact get a call back from Wave Stopper. Seems the owner was having health issues.

I traveled up to Annapolis where we met on another Irwin 38 to do some measurements. It took quite a while to build the Bimini and dodger. But the overall job was a hit. The molded polystyrene on conventional stainless bows was lightweight but sturdy.

Sadly the owner of Wave Stopper was a solo act and he died about six months after completing my project.

My canvas guy here in Daytona did a great job adding the enclosure and aft fly.

[bcboomer]

Old thread but anyway.

I just got off the phone from talking to Tartarooga.
Talk about difficult!
He asked me what I wanted and I told him just a dodger hardtop, meaning not their bimini. He immediately assumed I would do my own canvas and hung up on me.
I called back and tried again with his wife but she is just as difficult. Don't know how they stay in business.

[chouliha]

We documented the building of a hardtop on Jacaranda. Now after 18 years it’s still working well. Maybe you might get a few thoughts from our build. https://www.jacarandajourney.com/harddodger

[bcboomer]

Thanks Jacaranda.
Very nicely done and it does give me some idea of what to look for.
Unfortunately I don't have a land base anymore and the marina would kick me out if I built something like that on the dock.
I'm going to try a couple of local marine fibreglass shops and see if I can find a builder.
We have a Sailrite and can do the rest ourselves.