Quoted from midcoastsurf:Sorry for the confusion. Curious what outside edge’s response has been? Would you do anything different next time? I haven’t tried a hard top yet, but definitely considering them for future projects.
No worries! Two different guys having hardtop failures on two different EBD's at about the same time....I can see how we could get confused. 
*OE's Response*
Their response on my first failure was really good. They got back to me quickly, asked a lot of detailed questions, asked for close up/clear photos of the failure points, and after a few emails back and forth they took care of me. They did say this was "extremely rare" and felt my prep might have had something to do with it (I did not clear the entire playfield, even tho I sanded all the artwork off, because their instructions at the time mentioned clearing only the inserts if you chose not to wet sand them). They also suggested I may have overtightened posts in the area of the bubbling which could contribute to the lifting, but I'm not really buying that - I don't overtighten as I don't want to make indentations into the playfield/hardtop. But, they did take care of me and as I understand it, they also updated their installation instructions to be more direct with their recommendations (i.e. clearing the playfield to "seal in any potential contaminants that might interfere with their adhesive").
For the next two failures I had during the ensuing weeks (lifting with no art damage), I did not contact them. At that point, they probably wouldn't do anything for me and I certainly did not want to go through another removal and re-install. I was able to figure out a way to address the issues myself and, if no more areas pop up after this last one I'm working on this week, I'll be happy. Had I contacted them, I'm sure they would've pointed to my playfield as the culprit, i.e. after 40 years there's some contaminant in the wood that keeps surfacing and interacting with their adhesive. Even tho I cleared it this time.
*Would I do anything different next time?*
I'll definitely clear the entire playfield, and let it outgas for a week or more, before putting down a hardtop. Clearing with a rattle can is easy and way safer than 2PAC (which requires respirators and a bunny suit). It'll just take a little extra prep work like removing rollover wireforms, blocking lamp sockets, removing/protector mechs under the playfield, and other things you might have left in place when laying down a hardtop.
I also purchased a Black Knight hardtop at the same time I got the EBD - that will be my next project after I'm confident EBD is in my rearview mirror. Despite this experience, I'm still a big hardtop fan but I will admit my confidence is slightly shaken. My first hardtop, Mata Hari, was a breeze. I did it a year ago, sanded the playfield and wet sanded the inserts (no clear). 300+ plays later, still perfect. Then I started the EBD project (around April 2020) and I've got Black Knight queued up.
Topeka, KS
