Top Removal

I know this is going to sound ridiculous but I just inherited this Jeep. I want to keep it as original as possible. I went to take the original top off to clean it up. It has somewhat become part of the windshield..rust etc..
Was it designed to slide out the rail it sits in, or just pull out the bottom? I don’t want to damage the top. Thanks for any help

 

Either/or....depends on how wide the channel is. Of course with the rust...go slow.

 

Spray it with some silicone spray . If it's a Bestop ,the flat spline should start sliding a little each way. Also remove all the bows and try flopping the top forward it over the hood . The windshield spline part of the top is held taut by the bows & rear attachments, typically not by "Rust"

 

For a soft top I would loosen it up in the sun. Spray some soapy water where you need to work it. Maybe some vaseline in the track to help it slide.

 

Thanks. It won’t budge. It’s hard to get any lubricant to the whole track. I’m going to jack it up on one side and try to run some Krud Kutter down the track

 

I second the idea , of trying to remove the front seam . out of channel .
with the top laying on hood . what I remember of my soft top is . you only had to slide it a little left and right
to get the top front to back seam line out of channel . the rest would just tuck up in channel before I toss it over windshield