Roll Bar Padding Installation

I felt it was important to pad the roll bar to prevent my head from hitting it in the event of an accident -- particularly if the car was rear-ended. I learned that it is important to use padding that meets the SFI 45.1 specification. The SFI Foundation is a California nonprofit that develops performance standards for racing equipment. SFI approved padding is very hard, almost like plastic to the touch. It does deform however, and because its so firm, it can absorb the large forces acting during a crash. Cheaper foam-type padding is of little help, as it compresses easily allowing you to hit the roll bar. I purchased JAZ brand padding from Summit Racing. It comes in 1/2", 3/4", and 1" thicknesses, and in black, red, or blue. I got the 3/4" black padding which seems to fit the 1.5" tubes of my Hard Dog Sport roll bar well. The padding is supposed to come in 3 foot (36") lengths but mine were actually 37". The cross section of the padding is C shapped. You can use 2 C shapped lengths on either side of a bar to completely pad it, but its not really necessary to pad the back of the bar. Also note that the padding is thicker towards the center of the C shape. I ordered 2 strips which I trimmed with a hacksaw down to 27.5" each to fit the length of the main hoop. I attached them to the forward face of the roll bar, angled slightly downward. It happens to naturally want to be at this angle and it seems to make sense to have it angled towards the heads of the occupants. At first it feels like these pieces are hard plastic and will not bend, but they will. Just gently push on them, and wait for the material to adjust to the new shape... then push a bit more. Warming them up will probably help too (working in the sun for instance), but I didn't find it necessary. I zip tied them in place on the bar, but didn't pull the ties tight, allowing them to have a gentle bend. After a few hours I tightened them all the way, and left them overnight to conform to the bar. The zip ties were temporary just to shape the padding, but I needed a permanent way to secure them. The padding comes with sticky backed velcro attached, but don't even bother trying to use this. The glue will heat up in the sun and the pads will fall off. I removed the zip ties and secured the padding to the bar with duct tape. Since the SFI padding is so hard, and I wasn't going to be wearing a helmet, I wanted a little bit of softer padding over top. I needed padding that was semi-firm, and thin enough as not to rub when putting the top up. I found just the right stuff in my closet. Old computer mouse pads! I happened to have a half dozen left over from someplace I used to work. If you lay the pads length wise along the bar, they're just the right size... their edges come together perfectly as they wrap around, as if they were cut to fit. I used whole pads, then cut up a few to fill in the smaller gaps. I later realized that the mouse pads are probably not fire resistant. Oh well, they're on there now so I'll probably just keep them, but its a good idea to use a material that won't burn.