Okay. I'm coming into money and plan to replace the Miata. This will require first selling the Miata. The top is in crappy shape and needs to be replaced before I try to sell it in an area as rainy as where I'm at. Planning to get a cheap, simple top with a non-zip window (if I were keeping, I'd get a zip-down, but this is the cheapest option to get it in saleable condition).
So... Do I need to be able to press in rivets to install a top? I do not have any kind of rivet gun. If I order a top with the rain-rail pre-installed will I be able to sidestep punching holes and setting rivets? If I do need to rivet, what kind? Pound rivets? Punch rivets? Pull rivets? Does it matter?
Is this a sign from the heavens that I need to buy some sort of rivet tool?
Rivet tools are cheap. They're just normal pop rivets in the top. Even with the rain rail, you do need to set a few if memory serves.
Also, side tension cables. Do I need those?
I don't replace that many tops - but I've never replaced the cables 
Others with more top replacement experience may have a different opinion.
I own three Miatas. All have hardtops, only one has a soft top. And that soft top is 20 years old and still in good shape. Go figure.
For resale you may want to use a less expensive top - my NA is a keeper so I bought a Robbins which has the reputation of being a very well made, if slightly spendy one.
I bought it w/ the rain rail pre-installed, and while I'm a good and fast mechanic and have done top work - it still took me much of a day.
There's a few pop rivets that retain the cables - they require nothing more than a conventional rivet puller.
Take pictures as it's coming apart - I managed to install one of the cable end blocks incorrectly and had to drill out the rivets and do it over. Also - If you can work in a very warm garage/room or wait 'til it's warm out it's immensely helpful to have soft vinyl.
I bought a cheap top off ebay for my '96 about 4-years ago and installed it myself. It was an absolute royal PITA doing it by myself - almost to the point that if it needs replaced again, I may just sell the damn car!
But to answer your question, yes you'll need a few rivets. Oh, and the cheap top I bought wasn't made like the OE one, so I couldn't exactly reverse-engineer the installation. And the instructions were a few crappy B&W pics on a photocopied sheet.
Did I mention it sucked?
Some guy wrote a book a while back that has a chapter on replacing a top. Doing the photo shoot for that was the last time I replaced one, now that I think about it...
asoduk
New Reader
3/19/13 9:44 p.m.
I didn't think it was all that bad of a job. It is however a job that is a lot easier if you take your time, even with a cheap ebay top.
I have a pop rivet set that I got at Harbor Freight for some ridiculous price.
In reply to Keith Tanner:
I have that book. I just dont know where I have it.
Temp will probably be 55 and sunny. I am willing to spend a bit extra on a better designed top if it will speed up the replacement process. I am even fine selling the car for cheaper without replacing it. I just think it will be a lot easier to move if I do take the time.
I think it would be worth your time to do it, a casual buyer isn't going to be interested in a car that needs something like a top. And the sort of guy who's willing to replace the top is also the sort of guy who's going to try to get a screaming deal out of you - and then brag about it on GRM
Life without a rivet gun just isn't worth living. So yea, it's a sign from above.
You'll want a drill too. And a socket wrench (10mm?), and a phillips screwdriver.
The job is a simple enough Saturday job. Easier with two people, but can be done alone.
I found doing part of the job with the top removed from the car made it a lot easier. Don't remember which part, but it becomes quite obvious, once you reach that stage.
I've done three. Buy a roof with a rain rail. Every top I have removed has had a brittle and fragile rain rail. I've bought the tension cables twice because they had snapped. For the last top I couldn't source them from Mazda so I made do with a home solution.
It is a royal pita to do the roof. But not impossible. Just time consuming.
