so, ive already done the search on all the model a chop threads.. seen lots of pictures. and there is a few different ways of doing it... im thinking about choping my 30 A, what is the best most proper way to do this..? just a straight 4 inch cut across the board, or stagger them in the rear corners and around the windows like i have seen done.
For just slicing thru the back window or around it depends on your preference of a full back window or a mail slot window.
im chopping it, thats why i bought it, i have a bad problem not listenting to others, i just was curious to someone who has done it, what cut style works the best that everything ligns up the easiest, this will be my first,
I don't believe there is an easier car to chop than a model A, just measure carefully,cut and weld. I like the little window,if you are chopping it you want it to look the part you know? Have fun, you will be fine.....................
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDyba8sB_QY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75wOtUlIT4U http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Obu1QBBAeBE
The bottom pic with the stagar. Its done that way because you will need relief cuts there anyway. If you prefer a lager back window, you can take some from below the window and less thru the window.
There is a third way -- like the second pix but DON'T cut the center 3" -- cut across from the center of one 3" side to the center of the other, drop roof down, then cut across (cutting both pieces of metal), this cut need not be perfectly straight since the upper and lower will be cut the same and will align automatically... It ends up like the first photo but the cutting across needn't be as perfect. I don't have a photo or video but I'm sure someone does....
The other thing to consider is the hinge on the A pillar: Some guys cut above and below, to locate the hinge at a more 'desireable' height? When you measure, you'll see what I mean. (2-1/2" chops don't consider this, they are cut below the hinge; but 4", that hinge will drop 4" if cut below. Just a consideration)
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=350751&highlight=model+chop+pie+cut I'm not sure how to link a thread exactly, but this should take you to a pretty good one I've looked at a few times.
Why? I mig'd mine as well as thousands of other ***holes who welded up chopped tops in the 50's, 60's, and 70's.... Some of them even used OXYACETYLENE welders!!! Does it invoke the spirit of Giant Gila Monsters? 50 foot women? Dudes in piss yellow Deuce coupes?
When i chopped mine i staggered the cut. And i mig welded it up. Then friend of mine ran his shrinking disc over it. All it needed was a light skim of filler. Cheers hammered
Cracked welds mostly. Slightly more devastating than piss yellow duece coupes. They're fine until you try to metal finish them. Mig & mud all day long but mig and hammer will give you an *** ache. Nobody mig welded a chop in the 50s. Probably not in the 60s either since the first practical Mig was patterned in 1962. Long time till it would see a body shop. Even longer before prices came down to far enough to be sold at Walgreens . Oxy acetylene is a great way to weld anything, even aluminum- just that others are faster and more practical.
Hey Haag, Either way will work on a Model A. I chopped an A seadan straight across but chopped my (avatar pic) 34 coupe staggered. The 34 had curves in the roof that I didn't want to mess with and by droppin' the cut down from the middle of the window down to the belt line it stays away from the curves. Everything is pretty much straight down with an A except that the thickness is tapered on the sides at the window area. Smokey
OA welding is actually better than MIG for chopping when done correctly because its a nice soft weld that you can hammer on and not worry about it cracking.
I'm gonna tig mine. I think I'll do a straight across and slice the side windows and make it work that way .. I have seen soooo many hack jobs for a roof chop and there is no way in hell ill let mine fly that way. That's why I asked which was better . I get a lol nervouse about cutting my car up ha ha
Well put, you knew what I was saying. just to be clear I have had a mig since 1982, I still have the same one and use it regularly just not for welding exterior panels where I can get to both sides of the panel. Tig or gas will give a weld with a lot less distortion. Mig welds are hard and very difficult to get anywhere near a metal finish. Gas is actually the quickest method of welding especially for ally but that is off topic here. People think that mig causes less distortion because it puts in very little heat, that is debatable but the main thing is that the weld is hard. Distortion is caused not so much by the amount of heat that is put into the weld but by how even or uneven that heat is. If a piece of metal is heated it expands when it contract it shrinks beyond its original state. If it is heated evenly it will expand and contract evenly so there will be little distortion. If it is heated unevenly (as is the case with mig skip welding) some places are heated more so expand and contract more causing distortion. Then if the weld is hard as it is with mig, dressing that distortion out is very difficult. Not knocking anyone, just trying to be helpful. David
3" straight across is what I did...I did not have to move the top henge. When we welded it up....I'd recommend the initial welds secure the points around the edges of the openings...lining them up one by one from the back to the front. For a 3" chop, the top portion of the a piller will more than likely need some material added to match flush with the bottom (mine needed 1/16) or a guy could slice the bottom (maybe 4-5") both sides and push it in abit to line up the outside plane of the a piller. This accounts for small taper in that a piller. I look at my Signature link.....my chop is there
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