Coating for duct tape - Top repar

I bought an old soft top another year or two of life by taping up a couple of spots with gorilla tape. I'm looking for a recommendation for a coating that will encapsulate the repair and prevent the edges of the tape from curling up. In my mind I'm thinking of something that will brush on, dry or cure without being tacky, and remain somewhat flexible. If a guy could put on a thin enough coat, a silicone caulk type sealant intrigues me, but may be too thick to put on thin and evenly. Roofing sealer with flocking? suggestions?

 

First off, I would not use silicone, it will seal things and is a decent adhesive but it tends to attract dust. I would use Sikaflex or Lexel. Both are as flexable as silacone but more expensive and you can paint them. I suppose you can paint silicone but it takes more prep work than it's worth.
Back in the '70s I sort of tore up the top for my MB trying to put it on in cold weather. I used Duco cement, canvas and leather with a bunch of rivets from Tandy Leather. It held up for years

 

Ive seen lexel. Does it come in something other than a caulk gun tube? I'll google it! Thanks!

 

I believe it is the only size I have ever seen it in. I resealed my entire camper with about 1/2 of a tube. Like most things the prep work is the key.

 

I used this stuff when I sealed the edges of the patches on my old top. It is holding up well. Flexible, waterproof. Available at Michaels.

http://www.michaels.com/liquid-fusion-clear-urethane-glue/10429006.html

 

sikaflex is a great caulking I use it to seal concrete joints

 

I've told people on several forums about not using silicone if it is a place that it can gather dust and you can see it. Silicone is a great product but there are better things to use. Yes, they do cost about 3X the price of silicone
Heck, I still have my old caulk gun of my grandfathers that you would manually fill with okum to seal things.
Um, is it Lexel or Lexell? I'm not going to crunch out through the snow to see if I still have a tube in my van.
I have never used sikaflex but I have read many good things about it. Actually, I have never seen it a store around here.

 

Plastidip? http://www.plastidip.com/home_solutions/Plasti_Dip

Or ShoeGoo http://www.amazon.com/Shoe-Goo-Protective-Coating-Adhesive/dp/B000BQR55G Remarkably tough stuff.

I'm skeptical of the Gorilla Tape idea. I would cut a patch of vinyl larger than the tear, glue it in place with 3M weatherstrip cement, and sew the edges, then coat the seams with ShoeGoo.

 

ShoeGoo is a good thought. I have used it on several things like a cooler that a friend was chopping up some ice in with a hatchet. I have actually used it on shoes before. It's been a while since I was in my local farm and ranch looking at their products and as I remember, ShoeGoo had several varients there for other purposes and some of them were more UV resistant.

 

The sikaflex is good stuff but I'm not sure it's what you're looking for if you think silicone will be too thick. The sikaflex I've used is as thick to thicker than silicone. Maybe there are different varieties of it. Available at contractor type construction supply places if you can't find at like Lowes or something.

ShoeGoo used to be great stuff. Maybe it still is. I haven't used it for a while but, I need some. I patched up many work books with it and it usually held up very well. Again, it's about like silicone but it available in a smaller tube.

I don't know if patching it from the inside would yield better results. The inside of the top is usually a bit more coarse and may hold the adhesive better. Perhaps patch it inside and out. Outside for aesthetics and inside for strength.

 

Ive used iron on patches for jeans on the inside and a little.goo on the outside

 

Myself I would try Tear Mender https://www.tearmender.com/products.php on a canvas or heavy denim on the inside then seal the outside of the puncture with some silicone. We used this stuff to repair the canvas drag belt on our old combine when I was younger. Seemed to hold up good to the extreme abuse that the drag belt went through. I would never use Duck Tape for a permanent exterior repair as it is not UV resistant and seems to break down quickly when exposed to sunlight.

 

Likely the black form would be most UV resistant, since it's probably just clear with some carbon black added. The pigment will block the UV to some degree.

 

There is a reason black dashboards hold up better in the sun. The carbon black lasts better

 

Of course the gorilla tape isn't your average duct tape...it costs more!

I did use the gorilla tape and I used a body filler spreader to put a thin coat of lexel over the whole patch, leaving it just a tad thicker over all of the edges. Not tacky like silicone. We will see how it does. Thanks for the input(s).

 

For future reference for anyone reading this for top repair ideas, I emailed Bestop about the mouse holes in my 20 yr old top, and they sent me a stack of free color swatches that match my top's color. I glued (with Liquid Fusion) and sewed them over the holes with outdoor thread and sealed the edges and stitches with more Liquid Fusion. It was time consuming, but it's been holding up great, even under 3' of wet melting snow.

 

A fried had to sew up the zipper on his rear window on his MG. UM, dental floss.

 

stitch with fishing line and cover it with gutter seal, the guy with the screen door in the boat.