The Anatomy of A Hard Top
The hard top of the Wajer 55HT.
How to spot brilliance (or blunder) atop the cockpit.
A beautiful hull can be ruined by a bad hard top. You’ll have a hard time convincing me otherwise. With hard tops now a basic requirement in the day boat space—every popular model has some form of coverage—their importance in both form and function is paramount.
I’d argue the hard top of a day boat is the best barometer of a designer’s all-around abilities, and often, the most accurate test of a boat’s engineering chops. You can’t cheat it. Either it flows or it doesn’t, and it has the power, if done poorly, to ruin what is otherwise beautiful.
Form vs. Function: A Classic Duel
Building a beautiful hard top isn’t just about a unifying design, it's about physics too. These structures endure serious stress when slamming through waves at 35+ knots, yet a balance between structurally strong and aesthetically minimalistic is still a must. A great top finds equilibrium.
I prefer a hard top with a seamless and sturdy connection to the windshield, a long, light body and a bevy of valuable features. The perfect hard top is so perfectly fluid that you barely recognize it—its almost invisible. Hard to achieve? Absolutely. But greatness always is. Just ask Steve Jobs, who once fought to make the iPhone equally beautiful and functional. The best boats, like the best phones, do both.
The X-FACTORS of a Great Hard Top
Inboard vs. Outboard Mounting
Inboard mounts, like those found on the Pardo 50, deliver unobstructed 360-degree views, but take up valuable cockpit space to do so. On the other hand, outboard mounts reclaim cockpit real estate, with support poles integrated into the freeboards, keeping the guest area open and unencumbered. For me, there’s only one right answer, and that’s whatever maximizes useable space. That’s the holy grail.
The Pardo 50 is mounted from within the cockpit, leaving the exterior unobstructed.
The Wajer 55HT is mounted outboard yielding maximum space to the cockpit,
Electric Aft Sunshade
An aft sunshade is great to have regardless of its engineering, but whether its built into the hardtop frame or mounted externally will show true engineering skill (or cost management) of the builder. Vanquish and Alia hide sunshades within the hardtop beautifully. The negative trade-off is the need for a thicker hard top frame in order to hide the components, but by using a rollup canvas system, the spacial requirements are quite small compared to the value gained.
The Pardo 50 uses an exposed aft sunshade.
The Vanquish VQ55 hides the sunshade components within the hard top.
Moonroof / Sunroof / Skylight
If I gave you the option to see the sky, would you take it? Of course you would. Whether it’s tinted glass panels, louvered slats, or a retractable sunroof, this is the difference between being enclosed or immersed in the elements. Think less "roof" and more "lens to the sky."
Vanquish supplies the largest hard top panels in the category.
Bluegame is famous for its louvered roof.
Dropdown TV
Even as we seek a closeness to the water, watching the game live is a nice luxury. But everything has trade-offs: dropdown TVs require a thicker hard top to store the screen, and they often block sky views. Still, for Sunday football or an evening movie with a sea breeze? Worth it.
I’ve been hard on the Pardo 50, but its got the best drop down TV in the game.
Inset LED Lighting
If lighting design matters in your home or office, it should matter on your boat. Some builders take shortcuts with dinky pin lights, while others go bold with linear LED accents that transform the vibe. Those who skip lighting altogether? Shut. Them. Down.
The Alia 57 has some of the prettiest hard top strip lighting I’ve seen.
The Fjord 41XP surprised me with its quality strip lighting and glass panels.
Structural Supports
There’s really no additional support that can add to a hard top’s fluidity. The VanDutch 56 hard top is a great example of where I think improvements can be made. The diagonal structural supports could benefit from a reengineering, simply for cosmetic reasons.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Whenever we are surveying boats in a transaction, I give extra attention to what’s above. While it can look amazing, the way it functions under duress (at sea and at speed) is usually the true test. Not all hard tops are made equal. Sometimes you’ll see and feel significant shifting (while at sea) that could make anyone nervous. And alternatively, on well-built machines, you’ll feel your hard top to be sturdy and supported. The industry knows which builders deliver quality, and which hard tops are an afterthought.
I am self-aware enough to know I am not the judge, nor the jury, on hard top design. But I do know I love a good hard top, and sometimes I just want to share all the random thoughts in my head to start a conversation. Which of these options is most important to you? Email me at Reed@RNMarine.com with questions, concerns or blatant disagreement with my positions. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
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About the Author
Reed Nicol is a licensed yacht broker with experience in all corners of the marine industry. He’s worked as an executive and sales director in yacht manufacturing and distribution, has structured commercial charter operations, and designed and executed notable refits. Read more about Reed’s marine journey, his love of helping 1st time boaters and his entrepreneurial spirit here.
Reed Nicol [Licensed FL Yacht Broker #11926]
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