The grill is perfect in my opinion. The lines flow in both directions. I think removing the top bar will extend the hood too far down. I think the Hudson emblem on the grill really makes the car. Leave it alone. I would go w/ the buick headlight rings. The 56 olds has a peak in it on the top? to make the correct, you'll need to add a peak in the fender to match the rings, without it would be like putting 55 chevy without the fender beltline trim to finish it. Looks lame.
Hi Paul Hudson 48 here in Italy.Staying in a beautiful medieval village and our apartment is in a building 700 years old. Have to get my daily fix of HAMB and keep up with the news. No hot rods or customs here,just Fiats,Audis,Alphas and Smart cars. You need to see how they drive in this village to believe it. Heading to Chicago and Route 66 in mid May.Then I will get my fix of good cars. Shame you guys chopping Hudsons aren't in Australia.I have several one piece windscreens left!!!! Paul
Dave. Beautiful car. I really regret not getting a chance to meet up and talk Hudson "shop" in Sacramento. I really dig what you did with the 54 windshield. The front end will look fantastic too! Is that a 49 Olds grille moulding you are using? The 56 Olds trim rings will look fantastic. Funny how our cars seem to be so similar. I've got a 53 Olds dash in mine...I also had mocked up the Buick headlights, but will be going with 54 Hudson trim rings. Have you thought about extending the drip rail around the side window like a Merc? That might be an option. keith
By the way, your metal working skills are light years beyond mine...I wish I had that kind of talent.
I am in Australia, and that is where I have been getting custom made screens produced for over 30 years
I like the Olds ones as well. The restyle on the front is looking good. Here are a couple of Custom fronts I have done on Hudsons
I really hate Hudsons, but damn that looks good with the buick headlights and olds chrome... BUICK BUICK BUICK
Your chop is fantastic. Since you asked, remove one or both sets of andirons from the front bumper and stay with the Hudson headlight and grille trim bits. Looks as though some other Hudson pilots ended up wishing they'd bought a Buick in the first place. JMHO FWIW PITW
About how much does it cost, is it laminated or tempered, what is the preferred method for making a pattern and finally..........why the #&*$ can't US glass suppliers do this for us!!????
Smooth Customs hasn't answered yet so I will.He made a wooden plug for the screen and the glass people make the screen from that.The cost from memory was about $2500 but you get 12 screens for that.So if you have buddies doing the same chop you can share the cost.Hudsons are not being used a lot(yet) in Australia but are becoming more popular as customs.I think I still have 7 or 8 screens left and think $500 to $600 each is reasonable
Hudson 48 is close with the details. These screens were made about six years ago. The company I was using at the time to have screens made charged $2500 to produce a furnace mould and three laminated screens. I made a fibreglass master that was internally braced with a timber frame to maintain its accurate shape during the furnace moulds manufacture. A mistake in the laminating and manufacturing section saw ten screens made, the normal number for a production run. One was broken at this stage. When I went to pick up the three ordered screens, I was informed of the stuff up and told that I could take the nine. Otherwise they would just break up the six overs. There was an additional charge for the extra screens, as it would have been a shame to see them smashed. So I took the nine. This company has now been bought out by another manufacturer, that I now deal with for custom made screens. Their current price is $2700 for the furnace mould and one screen, additional screens start at $500 depending on their size. The advantages of having screens made, is on the chance of a breakage while driving. Like any normal car, replacement is simple and stress free. Unlike going through the cutting process where at times several screens can be lost due to breakage. And it allows others to have their similar car chopped, and be able to buy a ready made screen at a set price. A local 4 door Hudson was chopped using one of these screens. The pictures show the fibreglass pattern, and the first screen test fitted in place prior to paint.
Man they both look good.....I hope to see your car in person someday...!.....I am almost leaning towards the buick lights.
Hey man your photo shop is cool but reality is sometimes better.I wish I could photo shop like that. I think the way I got it going is way better not flat and boring like the photo shop but waay more work to shape the pieces. I think this is a bad ass look. I am not done but heres a preview. P.S. I dig how so many people decided to comment on the bumper guards. Like I ever planned on keepin them They will however become the ends of a floating grill bar which was always my intention i was just to lazy to pull em off earlier. This is why I am not using the buick headlight trim. It looks like a dam ski jump off the fender as it is flat on top. The olds has a bad ass flow that fits the rest of the hudson fender. The line on top of the fender will fade out. The Hood lip will get smaller and decrease in radius as it comes around under the headlight and fade to nothing There also is no real big space under the light as people said cuz the olds actually drops the light down towards the mustache. Thanks for lookin and all the comments Dave
No - reality is always better! The photoshop was a five minute quickie, but what you´ve done makes much more sense all the way around - bringing the headlights forward and down and adding that radius is just what it needed. The Hudson has a very flat "face" originally. Not any more - great work man!
Look forward to seeing the updates on the progress of the front end mods You are going to have one great looking Custom Hudson Have you decided on the colour it will be.
You saw it in paso as sea foam green back in the day. Well I cant get past green in my head so I think it will be a candy green fade, a very subtle fade that is and a slightly lighter top than bottom that will break at the belt line. Then again the car is quite aways away from paint so I could change my mind ltr Dave
James D you are awsome! Thanks man that is what I exactly what I had in my head! You did the grill and peaked the bumper just like I asked! Thanks Again Dave
damn you do good work , the ole hudson had a front end only the designer could love , with your front end revamp it looks awesome , great work
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