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In this Discussion
- jsrail December 2005
- ron50j December 2005
- tristansdaz December 2005
Top Chop??
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I have a 52 Hudson Pacemaker 2-dr. coupe. I would like to rat rod it by chopping the top. The rear roof pillar poses a problem by being two different dimensions after the three inch removal. Does anyone have specific how-to tips they would care to share? THANKS!!!! JAK
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You should talk with few051, I think thats how its spelled (he's also posted on the lead sled forum). He has a great looking chop on his ride. I have a 50 Pacemaker Club Coupe, but no budget for a chop right now, though I wish I did! Good luck with yours and post or email me pics if you can.
Jay
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i've chopped my 51 2dr pacemaker21/2in,my 52 wasp 4dr3in, & just finished my 36 ford pickup 5in,every chop is basic ,it seems that everyone has different ideas how to attack the top from the b pillars back even myself,i could'nt talk to anyone in my area because nobody chops tops around here.i read every how to book on the planet & desided if i want a chopped top i was going to have to do it myself! so there ya go!you can see the results on that pink and white pacemaker on the forum that i just sold to a guy in calfifornia,the first cut is the scariest & i can guarantee you,you'll be the better for chopping your own top,just do it!
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Jak wrote:I have a 52 Hudson Pacemaker 2-dr. coupe. I would like to rat rod it by chopping the top. The rear roof pillar poses a problem by being two different dimensions after the three inch removal. Does anyone have specific how-to tips they would care to share? THANKS!!!! JAK
Jak, do you have pics of your ride? You don't see too many 2 doors out there.
And Ron, the Pacemaker you sold was a beauty!
Jay "its a dry heat!" -
Ron, just wanted to take the moment to welcome you to the forum. Do you still have a Hudson? Love the chopped cars, my current Kustom In Progress is a 1955 Ford Sedan Delivery chopped 3 1/2 inches. Your advice is on the money, Just Do It!!
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You know I've read a few articles on chops but have never really seen how they determine where and how to cut the glass. ron50j, maybe you can shed some light on this?
Jay -
jsrail wrote:You know I've read a few articles on chops but have never really seen how they determine where and how to cut the glass. ron50j, maybe you can shed some light on this?
Jay
Jay-
The majority of the time, when curved BACK or FRONT glass is utilized in the car, most guys find it easier to "lay down" the glass, i.e., leave it stock heigth and increase the opening to fit the original glass. In the front, usually the posts are "laid back". In the back, the top of the opening is increased, the posts are "laid forward". But, truth be told, with laminated glass, it is not difficult to cut down to size. Unfortunately, if you take X" out of the middle of your chop, you would technically have to take the same X" out of the middle of the glass, which is not feasible. Therefore, you would need to cut the glass X" out of the top or bottom and re-curve the glass in a kiln, heated up to match a pre-made form that fit your new opening. Not too difficult, but definately involved. I've never chopped anything that actually had curved glass, although I've done some straight ones, which is obviously much easier. I'm sure someone here could fill you in more, or you could check out hotrodders.com and do a search. There is bound to be a thread there covering that very aspect.
Russell -
The rear window is always the most troublesome. Most utilize the original rear window frame and lay it forward as Russell said. However, it certainly is possible to put another rear window in from another make/model that will fit the curvature of the top better. I've seen windshields put in for a rear window to make the "flow" better. It is next to impossible to "cut" a rear window as it's designed to shatter into little itty bitty pieces when broken. I have heard of sandblasting to fit but have no experience in it.
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i found on my 51 2dr because of the size & shape of the rear window i could lean it ahead with a 21/2 in chop ,any thing beyond that it looked to me like i would have to use a different window,being my first chop i was conservative & went with 21/2 in chop.now when i got the urge to do build a radical custom,i desided i wanted to do a 4d r stepdown (a new challenge) & chop it at least 3in. which meant a different rear window,i rememered a guy that had a few & went to see him,they were pretty beat,2 4dr wasps & a 37 hud sedan that was totally shot ,but i had a plan! i got 1 4dr fixed up & traded it for a bunch of parts,the other one i turned into a radical custom that looks like it was built in the 50's & just found in an old barn some place,chopped 3in,37 sedan split rear window,37 head lite buckets used as dagmar bullets on front split bumper & on & on,now for the front window,again my research told me at the time any cutting,sandblasting or the like would average 4 broken windshields to 1 that did'nt break,at 180 bucks a side this was not an option,ahhh,now the secret,sinking!i sunk the windshield into the cowl ,i had to give up the vent system but i did'nt care ,i could now chop a stepdown economically,i'm sure other people out there have done it this way.every time someone asks me how i cut the glass i tell them i sunk it & they think i'm joking & the look on there face is great !i hope this helps some of you out there,it sure works for me ,just do it!
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Ron, you're absolutely right. I sunk the windshield on my '55 Ford too. Just too many curves for me and I certainly couldn't afford 3-4 windshields at $500 a pop! I also encourage people to try it!
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Do you guys have some pics showing how you sunk them?
Jay -
i've seen a few 55-56 fords with chopped tops & cut glass,they did'nt look to good to me,but 3 yrs ago i did see a 56 with what looked like a run of the mill chop from a distance but the closer i got to it the better it looked especially the windshield,then i realized the whole roof front & rear glass & all was sunk into the body about 21/2-3in.,he covered the the rear deck up to the rear window with a filler piece ,the car was'nt finished but man it was the best looking job i've seen on one of these to date.
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My '55 is still in Reno, where I came from about a year ago. I haven't quite solved the problem with the rear glass yet as the sedan deliveries had a one piece rear window in the single door on the back. I put '56 Dodge quarter panels on it and really changed the feel of the car. No, it doesn't look like a Dodge either. Sorry Jay, I don't have any closeups of the windshield work.
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i don't have any pics ,but basically i removed the cowel vent assm. & cut a slot on both sides where the bottom of the windshield normally rests ,this allows you to slide the glass down into the cowl area,then i built to mounts 1 on each side under the dash to hold one glass up into place & 2 on the other side.i glued rubber blocks on top of the mounts where the glass rests.it takes alot of patience,i did break 1 side rushing it a little but the glass was scratched pretty bad anyway,it was a good experience to see how far i could push it.
