Need advices (pics ) on how to decrown a roof

thanks a lot

 

I've got an album on it on my profile

 

yep i remember those two nice cars

 

if you find it, i would like a link, cause i'm fuckin unable to find it myself !

 

Here is a simple way to do it without a lot of metal work. Cut the roof off just above the drip rail and make a new roof with 1" wide 1/8" thick strips of flat steel.

Make 1 strip every foot or so, across the roof like headliner bows. They will have to be different lengths to make a nice curve front to rear. But you can cut a form out of a 2X6 to bend them over.

When you have a nice shape add long strips front to rear to make a basket effect. Weld together, this is your roof support.

Cover with expanded metal, then thin cloth, cotton padding and another layer of cloth. Adjust the padding by poking it around with long needles until you get the shape right.

Now cover with a vinyl top or sailcloth.

This is basically the way a Carson top is made. You could make any shape you want with minimal metal working skills just bending and welding on the bows. Then cutting and tack welding expanded mesh.

 

Hey Zed,

Judgging from the way you handled the 403 2dr. conversion, the roof section shouldn't be a biggie for ya!

I'm guessin that is the 403 wagon in the background of the 2dr. photos?
My thinkin is that a roof section without a chop to the roof of that vehicle would make it look abit Volva 242 like! The 403's have nice rounded lines, and a section outa the roof would flatten that look I'm gonna guess that a chop thru the A,B & CPosts with a cut down winscreen would cause you legal trouble in france, no? A 2''-2.5'' chop would change the profile of that wagon without a stupid ''hey, look what I did to my 403'' look , and stay in scale with the design's basic flow. Maybe you could hunt up some stainless trim from a late fifties Simca, like a Vedette, to break up the plain sides of the 403 and two- tone it? A few grille teeth from bumper overriders of a Renault would look DeSoto grille toothlike, but in better scale for a 403?

Your 403 2dr. looks hot!

" Meanwhyle, back aboard The Tainted Pork "

 

Talk about great minds

the subtle look is exactly what i'm looking for . I don't want my roof to look flat at all

here is the photoshop i did : hard to figure it is chopped and decrowned



but it is i decided to keep it in 4 doors to fool even more

the chop is almost done... uh at least tacked. It's my first one , and i wanted to be sure everything is ok before welding it on the pics the back door is not done, but i did it yesterday



it is chopped just 4 cm. not legal , you're right, but i think it's a matter of how cool are the cops, and they re cool when you're driving an antique, custom or stock .

And noiw the best part : you've talked about late 50's simca side trim ? well it's the plan ! 59 Montlhery side trim with the front part replaced by another set from rear fenders to keep it straight ! i did a photoshop of it too



on a Simca Montlhery, there is a brushed steel part inside the trim, but i will use it to two tone it . I ve got a NOS set a real good friend find for me ... very rare

as for the grille, i'm not a big fan of bumper guards used as teeth... they look what they are you seems to know your french cars so i can tell you my plan. i will rework the front with a mouth and grill from a renault fregate, the one with the oval mouth, and vertical grill bar. the horizontal bar will be removed. i will use frenched simca versailles headlights rims, and 54-55 aronde tailites .

Thanks for the words on my ex-sedan i'm not fan of the look of the roof and overall proportions, but at that time i was afraid of chopping a roof... now i'm not she will probably be next

 

Bravo, Zed! Looking forward to seeing this develop.
Thoughts for paint? (Will be killer, no doubt! )

 

Hey Zed,

SWEETTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!
You've nailed it! The Simca side trim should give you plenty of different ways to go with colour on the sides of your wagon. The amount of chop, jus about perfect! 2''-2.5'' outa the crown should blend in perfect for a clean suttle ''hey, there's something goin on there, but what?" look.
Yeah, the bumper overriders as grill teeth usually require alot of rework to pull off the correct look, but sometimes with using ones off the rear of a vehicle (usually smaller than the fronts), and with some pie cuts made, will work. The Fregate grill w/o the centre bar should add a very clean/tasteful almost '' Italian showcar '' look to the front area. I can't place the Versailles head lamp doors, are they the same as the Vedette?
The Aronde tail lights should add a clean, not too large and outa scale look ,to the rear.
For the final colour/s I'd go with a lite & medium based colour with pearl.
You don't want the body mods to have to ''duke it out'' with the colour for first billing

'' Meanwhyle, back aboard The Tainted Pork "

 

Thanks Bro !

i still have no idea of the paint ! some time i imagine stockish french colors something like the one i've posted the picture, some time it's some pastels color ( kinda 50's american stockish color), but most time i'm thinking metallic paints, but don't have a special color in mind .to me color is probably the last think to choice, because when a build takes time, you can change of mind as many times as they is colors !lol!

 

yeah , i'm looking for the " damn, i didn't knew those peugeot 403
wagon were so elegant!"...hope i will aim that !lol!

Versailles, Trianon, Ariane and Regence are some different name for the same car, the vedette , you're right ! not the one that resemble a mid century mercury, but the next one, but i think you figure that, because the one that looks like a mercury have very boring headlight rings, not so different that the one from a 403

 

I think that looks great Zed! I really like the decrowned roof in the photoshop looks classy !

 

Hey Zed,

I don't think the roof panel section job will prove that tough for you, once layed out, and the corners releif cut, it will be just alot of welding and heat control.

Any plans to radius the hood panel to clean up the shut lines, and perhaps ''pancake'' it? Also, check out the shapes of the front facebars on late fifties Renault Dauphines and Florides/Caravelles. They both have a shape that looks like a Kaiser overrider, built in to the design, on a much smaller scale. Perhaps you can use one below your Fregate grille choice? If used on the rear you'd have to invert it to clear the rear cargo door. Anyway, just a thought, and probably a bad one

" Humpty Dumpty was pushed "

 

lol! no, no reason to be ashamed !!

You know your french cars very well ! i'm really impressed !

the front bumper from the cars you mention are very appealing. i'm gonna use the caravelle one on my coupe because of the overrider

i will have to rework the hood because the fregate grille will be a little lower, but not the way you describe, but that way is planned for another project... great minds i've got way to much project on french iron

 

Could have asked Zed I did pancake the roof on my 58 Renault wagon.

 

well, i was sure nobody has ever done that in france i'll take your pics if you have, and advices ( in french ! ) . it's more a matter of bracing and what not to do that i'm looking for

thanks for your help Chris

 

I'm building 5 cars at the same time for myself plus customer cars and don't post everything so...
I never heard of a sectioned car either in France, still it doesn't mean it wasn't done (by me for instance )

 

i see your point, but if i had to section one of my pos i would prefer collect picture of that particular transformation here , on the hamb( and i've already done that) rather than searching for them pics of an hypothetical section job in france ...do you see my point ?

I did my top chop after seeing zillion of pics here , and not a single one on french forum ... the number is the key

 

I wasn't talking about forums, I was just talking about hearing, most of the cars never show up on forums or magazines. I've never shown pics of the sectionning I did for a friend nor the pancaked roof on my Renault wagon (I probably took 3 pictures of that one 15 years ago while I was building the car but I'll try to find them for you)

 

Oh Zeddddddddddddddddd,

Did ya wack le toit of the wagon yet? Any mo peektures of your progress?


" Humpty Dumpty was pushed "

 

Not yet my friend ! i worked on this car outside, and now it's -10° ( celcius) !!! too fuckin cold ! lol! plus i've got miles of welding to do to my top chop before

 

Nice ideas and two really interesting projects. I like seeing euro cars getting the treatment too.

 

Since you've asked for it





more in my profile

 

Ha, thanks, looks great. I should have read to the end of the post first!

 

Hey Zed,

Those are two smokin' hot projects you've got in progress!

Maybe a 2''-2.250'' chop on the coupe' , and some clean, simple nave plates (wheel covers)- too bad '53 Caddie wheel covers are so expensive in france. Maybe some repopped Dodge Corrnet covers?

Are the backlight & sidelights of the wagon made of laminated or tempered glass? You won't be cutting down tempered ones Plexi-glass and Persiplex arn't legal, here in SoCal to run for window glass, but some run 'um anyway! Who knows, maybe de gendarmes will look the other way on 'um

'sorry to hear 'bout the weather It's almost spring, here in SoCal.

Thanx for the photos-

" The icecream truck in his neighborhood plays HelterSkelter ''

 

The first years of Citroen ID had a plexi back window, some DB's too and Pichon Parat used that on his coachbuild cars, there might be others too, soooooo...

 

Damn it Zed! I know your 2dor from a french forum! i remeber browsin in it years ago, there was a full build thread of the purple vedette that is on here as well. im pretty sure it was a general car forum with a custom section....
Im not much into the flame job, but i aways dug those cars, they'd look bad ass choped.
On the wagon, how much did you take out? never thought id say this, but sure it aint too mild? Work looks great thou.

 

Thanks my friend

First plan for the "now coupe" was to rest unchopped. I liked the idea of an unchopped phantom coupe, but even with door size from the factory convertible, i'm not very please with the proportions. So now that i've chopped the wagon, and really enjoy doing it, i will chopping it too ! I'm not into hammered roof, so it will probably be subtle

French car of that area came with tempered glass so i will probably made some new one, or use plexy. it's not legal, but gendarmes are cool with old cars ...even if the laws are not !!

 

Thanks Bonez

I took only 4 cm ! It is supposed to be very subtle the decrowning is going to be very subtle too , i don't want a flat top . The idea of that car is to improve the original lines, but not being noticed by the average looker

 

Nice wagon, nice project Zed... I have a Fregate wagon, it's my 'dream car' and I can't wait to start work on it. Mine was in a barn 25 years but is not too bad and will live again.