Flop, very nice work and great execution. You definatelly got a nack for mods that are easy on the eyes. Best part of a custom is watching people scratch their heads kowing something was done but cant figure out what it was. Good workmanship, I cant wait to see a pic of it outside the garage to get a clear view of the whole project. Keep up the good work. ETHER
all my friends said just make the peak out of bondo but i said not on this car .. so thas how the caddy body line came into play . so now shes peaked the right way. thanks slow you hit the nail on the head ether thats the way i wanted to build this car. not many people will be able to pick out the subtilities that were done to this car. also i will never hear the end of nice chevy you got there man. ether i think there are outside pics with the old hood and front end after the chop and pancake back around page 17 or 18
Flop, Thanks for the inspiration. Your updates are very much appreciated and the roloc connection is balls. Keep up the good work. Bill
Looking good! Love the peak I can imagine hwo scary it must have been to start that project. Keep it coming.
thanks everyone. i think brians like up to a b cup now ace i can finally see the light!! startin it wasnt scary at all k13 ..i had another pontiac hood in the parking lot.scary part was cutting it down the middle after a month of work !!!!! real subtle on the round corners this time .
Ordered some stuff from Lehigh Valley Abrasives last night. Thanks for the tip, they rule. I turned my boss onto them as well. I have done peaks by running thin round rod and welding off each side. Kind of a pain in the ass and I never quite liked how it turned out. Never though to use s strip from another hood. Duh. Junkyard time, I'll stock up.
the are the body lines off the front fender slownlow also becareful the have a different curve on either side of the body line that needs taken care of before you weld it in.
WOW, that's just amazing, I would never have thought to use a fender line for a hood peak. Still puting to gether an order for abrasives. You should get some kinda kickback from them (I know it was probably unintentional on your part, but you still brought them a fair chunk of business).
yah i can picture the guy from lehigh valley now wonder why the big influx of biz. some guy named flop mentioned it on the hamb i bet that has the gears grindin in his mind.
Hey Flop, That Tin Indian is makin' my naughty parts tingle, and I'm not a big GM fan! Be very careful with makin' too many shrinks in a small area with the stud welder. It's very easy, even with a hood with as much crown in it as that one, to pull metal from a low crown area, causing a wave, and yet another high spot. You probably figgered this out by now, but I'd thought I'd mention it anyway. Also, small grinder discs like Rolocs are great for small, tight areas, but create localised heat, and thus warpage. A larger disc will last longer and run cooler, thus less warpage! I like a 7" disc 36 grit for grinding in an open area like a hood. When I started doing this, if someone saw you with a 4'' grinder in your tool box, they'd figger you had to squat to pee. No one but the aircraft industry used Roloc discs! I guess it's just a generational thing. Try and use as little plastic filler as possible on hoods. They heat cycle more than any part on a vehcle, and I don't care who's filler you use, over time ,heavy filler will crack! Good luck, Swankey Devils C.C. "Meanwhile, back aboard The Tainted Pork"
good tips pimpin thanks for your time. ohh ive ruined my share or things learning to shrink on my own haha!!! most of them practice things but i ruined a door from this car that was really stretched . gotta learn somehow!! learned about 2 or 3 in a small area is all this piece can handle and that usually get its pretty close . stud gun seems way more forgiving then a torch though. hmmm i see no ill affects from the roloc and localized heat. i put a ton of tacs down and weld about 4 tacs in a row then grind with 100 grit roloc. repeat repeat repeat!!!! ive used one of those big grinders before and it seemed like it was more harm then good . i guess to each there own. there are a couple spots that are gonna need a little more then a 16th but thats about it. i figured that it would be a bad area for filler with all the motor heat then cooling off and being a huge panel open to a ton of heat from the sun too.
UPDATES!!!! WE DEMAND UPDATES!!!! This is the first thread I search for every day when I get on the board!
weld grind hammer repeat is the only up date... almost finished with the hood then onto the front splash pan and 51 merc bumper. gotta wait to get my tig to make the new kaiser taillight bezels gotta get it in metal with bumpers on by feb 6th . also forgot some ass bag came to look at my friends newer car for sale and came into the shop and said ohhh i always wanted to build one of those rat rods!!! first time its ever been called that gezus christ.
Hey Flop, Yeah, sadly in most states in the union it's still not illegal to be an idiot, hell ,look what the country did the first week of November! One of the toughest things about building a kustom is that most "people" don't even know what they are lookin' at, much less what it took to create! Keep on it, man cuz February will be here before you know it! Remember,there are regular builds and than there are kustoms- Swankey Devils C.C. "Meanwhile, back aboard The Tainted Pork"
hahahaha some how kept my cool nexxx hood is pretty much done .gotta make the bottom gap nice as you can tell from the other pics . yah the idiot didnt even know what he was lookin at when it came down to it pimpin but what are ya gona do .cant keep everyone happy. feb 6th is gonna be here before i know it . gonna bite me in the ass. i feel alot of long nights comin with a ton of coffee and red bull. but bad news the comp that accepts the card from the digi camera is broke! i kno cars but not computers!!!
This is the most fascinating thread , I just spent the last hour and a half reading and looking at all the photos. Flop, you are a master, great photos, super explainations and outstanding metal work. I can't wait to see the finished project. I don't know how I missed this when it started.
well the hoods got me burned out so i stopped workin on it for a while moved to the rear for now . kinda sick of seein the front of the car. oh well ill get back on it soon enough. i started on the bumpers and taillight mock up but i dont kno how i feel about it doent have anough flow i dont think. i dig the bumper just donmt think the kaiser lights are gonna work.let me know what you guys think . if i bring the bezel down to meet the body to get it to flow ...then the bumper would have to be in the trunk almost haha .. so i think i mgonna get a set of 49 or 50 cad lights and bezels. and work them into the quarters so it slopes right down into the bumper . also using the cad gas door trick. had to cut the bumper looks like about 6 inches is gonna be removed which will be covered by the bumper guards so if anyone has any 49 or 50 cad bezels and lights i need a set badd!!!! cause im kinda stuck til i find them .
the bumper is a great look,,,you are right though,,the kaisers dont quite work,,,,, i hear you on the hood,,,sometimes you gotta walk away for a little bit and do something fun,,,,,,,,,,,, 1950 dodge taillights would be a natural.....check 'em out...
just my 2 cents, i like caddy taillights but its been done to death. those kaiser lights are really cool and different. how about maybe tilting the top of the lights away from the body and stretching the quarters a little. if you look from the side angle photo, if you match the taillight angle down to the bumper angle up it could look pretty cool. just my opinion. great looking car so i'm sure you'll come up with something cool. mike
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