Unfinished Nationals,are we choppin a top?

hey shiney, i'll throw in a hand if ya want! but NO brother jokes!!!! i really can't bring a lot for tools,i will be loaded, (the wife's car, the kids car, & my triumph)we promised the kid he could bring his butt rock charger to be in the under 18 class.....(he's 13) but i will lend a hand if ya want..chip

 

J,how bout a pic of your car?
Old sub,you can do all the grindin,I HATE grindin!
Chip,whats up with you postin on here twice in a month.I'm totally stoked you guys are coming this year.Hell I'll even give greasergirl a deal on an autographed shirt

Guys,I'll phone Glenn and Kathy tomorrow night.They have already told me we can have just about whatever we want.
I told them I could get the people to pull this off and they are pretty damn excited about it.
Paul,thanx again for steppin up.
Marty,you rock.
chip,ol'beet,k-member,theodore and everyone else whos stepped up,hell even redmeats pitchin in some grub.Its gonna be a frickin blast doing this.
If anyone needs to talk to me,ask and I'll PM my number......Shiny

 

I said I had a problem trying to get something unfinished enough for the nationals. I just got my 57 chev pu running yesterday so I have a tow rig, Now I have to figure what to put on the trailer, I have 16 days to figure that out. I'll be there too!!
"The Old Car Glass Guy"
Looking forward to meet up and swapping lies with Ol Beet

 

sounds cool! I have been saying forever I am going to have my truck there this year but not sure I can pull it off. I guess I will see what I get done this weekend. If I make it count me in for some grinding! I will come armed with my dewalt and handful of 36 grits.

 

I'd bring tools to, but I have enough fun getting across the border empty handed, I don't need to add power tools to the mix.

 

Yeah Theo, they'd think you're a terorist for sure. You'd enjoy the cavity search though

 

only a little bit

 

theodore told me he crosses the border often,,and causes a scene every time just for the cavity search..i wish i could go but the wife is due anytime now..seems to be shaping up to be an awsome event..so who is in charge first aid ???[hahaha]

 

We need the doctor from Cannonball run.

 

quote;"hey where are your instruments"?
mornin ponch n theo!

 

Shiny, this might be easier than we thought!!!!.......OLDBEET

 

I've been doing searches for chopped '54s and have found several, but..

for instance; the Mike Ness chop looks very nice and flows front to rear and back beautifuly but I'm afraid the split top technique and slanted B pillars may take more time then we have.

..slight variations can make or break a smooth design..

if it were mine I would consider maintaining the stock rake of the windshield front to rear and lean the posts in to match the roof.

keeping the roof intact, sliding it forward to match the windshield posts and relocating the top of the B pillars keeping them vertical.

lean the rear glass forward and take just a little more out of the back then the front.

something like three inches out of the front and four out of the back..

deffinately chopped but not too radical.

that's just me though,

Justin is the one that will take the car home and have to live with it, it should be done with his expectations in mind.

here is one chop I thought looks very do-able and is not too hard to look at either,

Paul

 

another view of the same car

 

This car is for sale on ebay right now isnt it?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=2487357913&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT

 

I'm with you Paul!! The KISS method!........OLDBEET

 

Beetle,do you have a liscence to use that thing?
Poncho,tell Tash you'll be back in time to feed the new kid!
60s,check out Pakrat32s.We shoulda got a fundraiser going and flew him out here.I really like the ford rear window treatment.
Justin,hows about a pic of your car??.....Shiny

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=502653&page=&view=&sb=5&o=&fpart=1&vc=1

 

Hey Paul, I just got a PM from J and I responded with the same. The chop on this car is exactly what we need to do to stay in our time frame. The back window is a little low but I can get that together pretty quick. That's right Beetle K.I.S.S.

 

I did a post a while back asking everyone for pics of 53-4 chevys that were chopped, kind of a straight vs. slanted comparison.... I have always liked slightly slanted pillars on these cars myself. NOT totally agaist keeping them straight, but Usually it makes the quater windows look really small to me when its more than a real mild chop... I like with a bit more taken out in the back than an even chop all around, kinda makes it look more streamlined I think???

What do you guys think looks better, slanted or straight pillars??? I like the way slanted ones give the car a sence of motion and speed, and I think they make the windows more proportionate to the rest of the car, but thats just me....

Paul, I'll try and get some pics up tomorrow, I'll have to scan one since I cant seem to find any decent side shots on my computer....

I have the idea of what I WOULD like it to look like, but I realize that time will be an issue here, so I might have to comprimise a bit. Either way Im sure I'll be happy with the results... -J.

 

I agree, I too like the slant pillar look.

but you can see the straight up pillar is all square cuts with relatively little rework,

and the slant pillar would need quite a bit more cutting and rework to get it to flow smoothly.

I found lots of finished pictures yesterday but few in progress.

here's the Ness chop in progress, you can see the roof was split lengthwise down the middle,

this would make it possible to cut just the top of the windshield but a TON more sheet metal work

 

and a side shot

 

I can't see more than 30 minutes difference between straight or slanted post. if you move the roof forward you have to fit the pillars.
If you have two sawzalls and a couple die grinders a couple aircompressors and a couple of migs. with enough power to keep things running. I see no shortage of voluteers.
I just want to sit in the bleachers and watch the show. but can notch and cut with the best of them. Marty can do it man.

 

I like this chop a lot.....

 

This one too... The posts are slanted a little much, but still awsome looking....

 

Here is one with straight pillars, not bad looking at all... But not my first choice for some reason. Its 5 am Im going to bed now.

 

Ah hell one more, Im on a roll...

 

what rear glass did Cole use there?

what rear glass is in your first example Justin?

doesn't the '52 Deluxe have a more pronounced bow to it then the small window examples here?

Paul

 

We can do this. Just not with that back window. It's the drastic pillars like the yellow car that are a pain. It was my understanding that Ness's car was a 53 business coupe to start and had the small window in it already. GM did use the 49-52 window in the 53 so it is a good fit.

 

J,what do you think of pakrat32 chop?I really like it,especially the shoebox ford rear window.Looks like its would ba an easy chop for all 28 of us ......Shiny

 

If all else fails, I'm gonna bring some whiskey and Band-aids. It's all down hill after we make the first cut. K.I.S.S.

 

Hey, I don't know if you guys need an extra hand but I am very new to this and would really like to learn the ropes. I'd love to pitch in even if it's just to hand you guys beer and tools , I just want to learn what the hell I'm doing before I do this myself