I really like the way you did the chop. I have a 46 Mercury coupe and I think that's what it needs. Frank
Have you considered following the L shape of your upper/side trim as a smaller series instead of vertical teeth? Think '47 Olds. Sent from my SM-G960U using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Thanks Frank. Moving the back window forward a lot helps the lines, but even with the modest chop, a functional back seat is lost. Not a concern for me, but something to keep in mind.
I think that would look great! At this point though, after cutting up the DeSoto grill for the teeth, I'm pretty committed to the teeth. Otherwise I'd have to build another car so the teeth didn't go to waste. That said, the grill teeth will be bolting on. I could always make swap-able inserts.
What gauge metal did you use to make the filler panel out of ? I also have a second coupe as a parts car.
Hope ya don't mind I did a quickie, I like the Desoto but this one is sure making me think twice. Love your project.
I try to match the gauge as close as possible to the car - I think I used 18 Ga. for the filler panel.
Sometimes the small projects are as rewarding as the big ones. Mom's 1881 lucky silver dollar in her new home. If she brings Howland and me as much luck as she did my Mom, we'll be doing pretty good.
Sometimes life gets in the way, but I left that job behind and I'm back at it planning on having Howland on the road this Summer. I decided not to use the gravel pan since I like the look of exposed bumper brackets. So I used the gravel pan to make a chin panel and blend everything together. I decided on horizontal grill bars instead of the vertical teeth. I think the horizontal bars will fit the look I'm going for better. Still need to do some fine tuning and make the bumper bracket openings in the chin panel.
Made a simple buck to help form the bumper bracket openings. I goofed up on thr lateral location a little because I didn't realize the brackets had to be spread to match the bumper mounting holes. This moved the brackets off center in the chin pan openings. I'll either modify the brackets or just get used to it.
Detour from work on the grill bars - I like the Studebaker headlights that I started out with, but the shape just isn't a good fit for this flat-front car. So I decided to go back to the original buckets and form a frenching panel that incorporates a lens from an accessory reverse light for the turn signal. I'll make a little bucket for an amber bulb. Lots of shape to put in an 18 gauge panel, but the real challenge is going to be making the passenger side panel match. Bucket mounted behind fender with wood spacer for reference when forming panel. Paper pattern - lots of shrinking! Took about 1" out to form a cone to reduce the amount of additional shrinking. Start of forming. Wood reference helps keep the headlight opening centered and at the right height during the process. Happened to have a socket the right size to form the turn signal lens opening. Getting closer
Pretty cool project. The roofline reads chevy, the front end feels vaugly mopar and the grill work looks like a never made 1941 1/2 ford! Very subtle and wild at the same time. Fun one to follow along with
I gotta be honest with you, I have never been a fan of chopping '40 to '48 Fords, but you really nailed the roofline. I would bet that when the car is finished some people would stand back and try to figure out if the car is chopped or not. It almost reminds me of a late '40s Chevy roofline. Your metal work is beautiful, keep up with the pictures, nice job!
Thanks everyone! The goal of the build is to create a car that looks like it could have been factory built back in the day, at the same time being substantially modified.
The Jalopy Journal
