Customs 51 Merc 4 door price for chopping top?

Keep the four doors, I'm chopping a '50 four door this summer. I'd be budgeting about $7,500 to $10,000, more doors, more trim.

 

All I can add on a personal basis is the car in my avatar was chopped when I bought it, but had no garnish moldings at all, so after acquiring them, teaching myself how to gas weld (and I am still not particularly good at it) I can attest to the time it takes to just do the garnish moldings. The comments on price of a chop makes me feel a little better at paying "more than the car was worth" because it was chopped. Good luck on what ever you do, I remember seeing a four door 49-51 Lincoln that was chopped about 30 years ago, I still remember the look of the car (and the smell of the fresh paint), wonder if it is still in Des Moines Iowa?

 

I dont usually keep track of hours but I am doing a 41 Chevy truck cab for money right now and I have over 40 hrs in it now, probably 50 by the time I am done with it and its a pretty straight forward chop ,unlike a Merc more door...wont be starting on my own Merc for a year or so thought!

 

My favorite four-door chopped Mercury's are the pickle and the red one.

From another thread on here:



Thread: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=443722&page=2

The red one I'm thinking of is old, red maybe called the Bill something car? Rik might have a folder for it.

OP, looks like you could chop the car and just repaint the top section I'm guessing that's your plan.

I think you should go for it. I LOVE my chopped Merc. I vote that you try Matt or someone with cred on here. Matt Townsend has an awesome eye for the body lines and he's conscientious as hell. Sure he's a hike but he did Bob's car, that other car that was just in Rod and Custom, and I saw three other chopped ones when I visited his shop a while back.

 

If you have ever done one I can tell you for example a 2 1/2 " chop is a hell of a lot less work , fitting things back up, making pcs. etc.than say a 6" chop & we have done both.
The most we ever did was an 8" chop on a 49 Merc. Sled, never again, wound up making 4" dropped floor pans so the dude could fit.
Hell cutting down and re-chroming all the window garnishes was almost 3k !
Thanks for your comments but I'll keep charging by the inch.

 

50 hours that's not bad at all.
We have a 48 Chev Aero Cp. full custom in the shop approaching 5,500 hours and not in final paint yet.

 

Ltorch, what back gl*** is that in the primered 51? is it a 49/50?

 

looks like an early caddy or something not a merc.

 

You might shoot Deuceg***er a PM he chopped a 4 door 50/51 Merc several years ago. HRP

 

pics from the HAMB

 

its a 47 cadillac

 

Hey LIFESTYLZ i had no idea when i typed this **** i was going to be graded on it.Oh and i see that your not to far from me.While im still in australia you should send that mess of a lincoln over to me and ill see if i can help that roof.

 

Hey Kevin, you should put up 10 pics of that 51 4 door with the Lincoln taillights. That was about the coolest ****ing thing I ever saw.

 

Forget it, Ill do it.

 

this one looks good. I like it better when they leave that little "woopdee" on the back door above the beltline. some of the others pictured here the rear door gl*** looks too small. left all the vent widows as well... too cool.

 

That red one is really nice. I agree some chops the rear door gl*** looks a little cheated.

 

Hi Ant
agree with you that was the one Kevin did that i like the best

 

I did mine by myself in my 1 car garage. It took about 2 weeks ( many long hours here and there at night and weekends) and a great deal of patience and well thought out plans.
COST:16 and 18 guage sheet metal $40
110 volt mig welder $190
cutting wheels and grinding wheels $50
brazing rod $15
mini torch set $40
bracing $00
Rage Gold filler $150
misc sand paper $90
block sanders $60

Overall the 4" chop went very smooth and I am proud of my accomplishment and no dent in my wallet!!!!

 

I just read this whole thread. Chopping a 4 door Merc?
Don't do it. They never turn out.

 

Just do it! Matt Townsend will make it look rite!

 

Cant we all just get along?? Lol!

 

Here some for you anthony ..And the lincoln is next ,the red one is a photo shop i did how i will make it look,If i leve that front end on.

 

I'm diggin the back of that!

 

To bad im not from australia just visiting,so I have not idea what you are talking about with all your stupid comments.

 

I been buried in the shop so it's been a long time since i have had any extra time for the computer. To get a 4dr merc to look ***y when chopped can be a real challenge but it can be done. I prefere to keep the rear door window as long as posible and to repofile the top of the door to give it a better flow. To help answer your price question. I charge $8k for my 4dr merc post chopped mercs finished in bare steel with inside granish moldings, winshield frame and all 4 vent window frames. That price would be with the 51 rear window changing it would be extra. All new flat gl*** with patters $1k. If you chop the rear more than 5" i recomend you change the rear window but a 4" to 5"chop looks just right to me on a 4 door merc. I do hard top style choppes also but they are more money.

 

oddrod46

Extreme Kustoms (Rick Erickson) - Does chops for about $6k - $12k depending on what you're thinking with your ride. He does great work personally been at his shop in So. Cal.

Checkout his Facebook fanpage or lookup Extreme Kustoms for a sampling of his work.

Good Luck with your project.

 

A neighbour in Vancouver got his Merc coupe chopped for the sum of $350! Of course, that was in 1958.......

 

Well John may have been a tad out of line with his " if you have to ask you can't afford it" line as it's a bit unfair for any of us to ***ume that someone can or cannot afford to have things done on his car. From what I have seen his quote of 8K give or take is pretty close and especially on a four door which makes for a lot more work and a lot more finish work.

It pisses me off that anyone has the audacity to call him an ***hole though as he is one of those few that goes out of his way to give the correct answer to endless questions time and time again unlike those who only offer up some smart *** answer or some redneck solution that uncle Willy did back in the 50's on his huntin rig.

I would do one thing if I chopped it and that is take it to someone who absolutely knows how to chop one of those right and has done several even if you have to take it from one side of the country to the other. That may actually save money in the long run as you won't have to pay for a bunch of hours of fiddle farting around trying to make things work by someone who hasn't done several of them.

 

You might want to look at the "Dixie Deluxe" that Bo Huff built a few years ago for some ideas