hey, im 28 and im building a 35 ford 5 window ,its early to mid 60s style.small block chev with dual quads,muncie 4 gear,57 for 9",chrome reversed wheels,blackwall tires,no bumpers or hood sides,white firewall,fenderwell headers,louvered hood,black tuck and roll ect ect,i have the chassis finished and once i build the engine and droped it in im onto the body. anyways,im thinking about doin a 2-3 inch chop on it and i do have it preaty much figured but ive never chopped a 5 window.i was wondering if anyone out there has any tips or pics? thanks
Sounds awesome!!! The plan sounds great man, but I'd stay away from chopping that car. 5w are hard to chop in the 35-40's and even harder to do it right. I think they look mean enough with the tops left alone. Take a look through old hot rod magazines and see if you find any 5w chopped from back in the day. 3 windows and roadster ? Yes but the 5window is meant to be left alone because it's perfection! Can't wait to see some updates!!
My best tip would be don't chop it more than 2". Five window coupes get kind of long in the roof when chopped.Sounds like you're building a hot rod,not a custom,So I'd say little or no chop.FYI, I chopped my '40 coupe only 1 3/4" and only did that because the driprails were rusty...you don't have driprails.
Heres some pics of mine, I didnt chop it the previous owner did, i got it from his widow. but from what i took out of the front window frame, It was no more than 3 inches. The back i think is more but i havent held the old broken glass up yet. It also looks like the front window was laid back and back straight down. I really like it. I can take more photos, pm me.
I would use Tex Smith's book of How To Chop Tops, just as a reference point of where to make the cuts. I did a five window 35 a couple years ago that was main floor at GNRS and in Street Rodder (yes it was a billet queen). it is a lot of work, give yourself plenty of room to look at it from far away. use long sections of .125 strap to hold sections together ( it will show you flow from one section to another) I scored a 56 ford sedan roof for the insert (perfect crown even after the stretch. if it doesn't look good tacked, do it again, it is just metal.
Here you go: Bout the best your gonna see on a 5 window. link to thread http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=156367
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=106626&page=22 last page look at Varodders car. I beleive he chopped it as well http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=206861&highlight=varodder edit found the thread
On a custom I would chop it for sure just like Zach's photoshop....but a hot rod?...and a 60's one at that? I would save yourself the trouble because it won't come out any better then if you left it alone.
hey guys thanks for the help and ideas,i have been leaning away from the chop lately,im good with the metal and bodywork(ive been building cars and hotrods for a living for 2 years now)but i want to run the roof insert still and the way i planned it out would be alot of work to keep it the stock size without streching it out and makeing it look funny.i guess most guys fill the roofs,but i didnt want to.ill see,i might just save a headache and go the unchopped route.ide love to post some pics on here but im kinda computer illiterate,what do i have to do??
Scroll down to the QUICK REPLY, but don't use that box, use the button that says GO ADVANCED. next click where that new page says: MANAGE ATTACHMENTS next click on the first BROWSE button and then you will get a pop up to find the pic you have in your files.
I'm going to jump on the bandwagon here...sounds like your well on your way to a kick ass hot rod...a "custom" touch on your hot rod might muddy the waters a bit...kinda like carbs through the hood of a tail dragger... Sounds like your steering away from it a bit...would love to see some pictures...
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