I enjoyed the whole Telstar process. Glad to see your back on it with new vision and lessons learned. Looking forward to further postings.
shortened the roofline today. not a fan of the sedan roofline...i like a shorter roofline and a loooong deck...got most of the important pieces in place,,,can't decide on straight or slanted posts, i like both. next is door frames, b pillars, and roof skin.....if anyone local to austin is reading this and has a spare shoebox roof skin for sale,,,,PLEASE get in touch with me....i plan to pancake the roof a bit too,,to get rid of a little bit of the high crown....
Wow, you really moved that rear window forward. What are your plans for the trunk lid/opening? Moving the window forward leaves a huge sail panel between the window and the trunk lid and makes the trunk lid look out of place IMO. When Bleed chopped mine he extended the trunk opening to fill that gap and I reworked 2 trunk lids to fit. It was a PITA, but I think it was worth the effort. Hell, we already know you're not afraid to cut anything Glad to see you're back in action. I've done a ton of cutting and modifying on my shoebox, the Telstar was/is some of my inspiration. How about Mrs. Carleson on WKRP?
i've always like the look of a shorter roofline and a long deck....when i add the fins, it may make more sense....maybe not ....at least it does to me......leaning towards a pancaked trunk, but may just weld the entire trunk closed like i did on my 41 caddy,,,trunk access would be through the interior...
I was wondering what happened to that Caddy. Great looking custom... http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=176859
It's in Denmark, Palle Johansen(who owns the Jack Stewart Ford that is currently being restored) owns it now.
Really glad to see the return of this build. Check out the "New Panoramic Ford" of Andreas Aberg. He´s added a lip to the top of the door, as per the Mercury and it looks a whole lot better as it levels out the window line around the car and just looks more finished.
Nice work so far....and that Caddy looks sweet with the trunk welded closed! Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Do the canted Buick headlights like you did on an early version of Telstar. I really liked that look.
you can,,,,but only if you install a george foreman grille in the grille cavity first. i recommend aunt jemima pancakes,,,they usually come out the best,,,,,
more progress on roof.....figured out the lean of the rear window,,,,sliced and diced the sail panel to help everything line up.....next is making the "catwalk" filler piece......and then it's decision time: slanted posts, or hardtop...thinking hardtop ala buster litton ford,,,,if i do that, i need to find convertible window frames (or maybe victoria window frames would work)..i welcome advice from anyone that's successfully hardtopped a shoebox...
Motor.......Motor...... what are you puttin' n it? Smack me if I'm overstepping but since the rears (windows) are not rollup then you could custom fab (n chrome) new pillars matching the front angle of the roll ups (front window rear), then make the rears pop-out with pinch welt seals... looks like the spotweld could be followed all around for the rear, just got to match the front part of the NEW fab'd pillar to match the front window. BAM.
I was showing some friends at work your creativity/madness... We thought it was very bitchin.Sorry to see # 1 pass on,but looking forward to version#2. Your gettin' down,and it's pretty damn cool!
Jim, Welcome back to the new and improved Telstar ! Looking forward to all the new mods. Way to go there JIM ! Dave
really wanting to do frames like the hirohata merc if i can figure out how to do it....i have some ideas,,,we'll see.........if i do figure it out, i think i probably need to reshape the radius in the bottom rear of the quarter windows to more of a sharper corner,,,what do you guys think?
You can use square stock. Bend it to shape, without heat, For minor curves. Heat tight radius's over a buck. Then cut out one side for a c chanel. Bill hines did this on monster garage or some similar show with george barris there. Gene winfield did c channel Stainless over a buck with a torch in one of his classes. I never had much luck with c channel . Always kinked. You have some great skills . Show us how its done. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
I am getting ready to make some window frames for my 51 Chevy that I hardtopped. I thought about square tubing , bending it, cuting out one side of it, I also thought about two pieces of angle , bent to shape, and welded together on a jig, the weld would be easy to get looking good again. VW convertibles have old Ford style quarter windows, some are brass, others metal. But they hold 3/16ths glass, or the metric equivalent. I also thought about bending some i-beam or h style channel , then cutting off the edges you dont need. You can get brass channel , I will try to find the site I had saved. But I was worried about kinks too, even if you heat it. Just thinking outloud.