They are separate pieces, I presume welded on but I can't really discern spot welds and would be unable to use a spot cutter down in the drip rail.
Think you could use a zip wheel to locate the spot welds? Can you access the drip rail from inside the truck,what I'm asking can you see any faint outline of where it was spot welded ? If so you could drill it out from the inside then fill the holes. HRP
Isn't the drip rail sandwiched between roof skin and door frame? As HRP has stated, cut off wheel and carefully fuse weld the seam to prevent distortion and fuse all the panels together so prevent later squeaks. Tin the joint and then lead load before filing smooth.
May not be what you want to do, but on my 40 tudor we hammer welded the drip rails around a small round rod. when finished it looks like a 36 ford. I think it is a clean, custom look.
I shaved the gutters off a 1967 chevy truck, i used a cut off wheel and spot welded as i went.... nice and slow so no chance for the roof getting sprung or twecked out...... couple inches at a time...... great outcome
I cut the gutters of our 37 but only to replace them as they we rusty , these were sandwiched between roof and body so was a tricky operation to remove the old rusty ones completely.
They are spot welded on. The roof skin has a recess to accept the drip rail. Maybe this will help you see what you are dealing with. Here's what the roof looks like with the drip rails removed on a 36. Here's a cross section If you want to remove them without damage, tackle the rust and reinstall I think it would be tedious job but very doable. Some gentile wedging should show the welds and then you can tap the high spots back down. However if your mission is rust- you can see there may be plenty between the roof skin and door jamb too.
I was hoping to save them to re-use after a chop and stretch. Since I'll be cutting up 2 cabs I would be able to make them longer and re-use. Maybe it would be better to just grind them off and get new ones but I'd have to buy 2 sets and they are kinda pricey. I could just leave them on and cut through but I'd like to have the cab welded together good under the rails and not have a gap that might rust or collect moisture. This is my first chop so I'm just trying to get advice on the best way to tackle the project.
The drip rails of those years trucks are the same profile as a 32 ford, but the arch is slightly different. Think about buying a set of repro drip rails for a 32 5-window from United Pacific and give them a little more arch. Then drill some holes and plug weld them on. Solves your length problem.
Try to tap a screw driver in the gap, that will show you where the welds are. When you put it back together, unless you weld it solid to the roof skin you'll always have a rust problem there.
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