Cloning the "Pioneering Plymouth" ...a Barris Kustom 1953 Plymouth

I was told the spot lights are Appleton 552's with the push button ends. Is there any chance they are anything else other then 552's?

 

Hey,

If you do deside to ''add meat'' to the roof panel to acheave length, I'd add that extra just above the backlight rail, and not out in the center of the panel where it will be a bitch to work!

'' Meanwhyle, back aboard The Tainted Pork "

 

Hey pimpin paint. Mikey and I were talking and figured out that they didn't add any metal to the roof.

The roof was brought straight down but because of the shape of the c pillar it didn't loose any length. With it sloping back like it does it basically stayed in place. This is good for Mikey cause the quarter window won't need to be cut!! Lucky dog!!

 

What Pete said above me

 

Yeah, that and the fact that the OEM backlight would no longer fit if the "C" posts were jus dropped given you can move metal but not glass. Even if they jus chose to tilt the glass fowards.

 

Pimpin are you taking about the interior lights?

They aren't in the interior photos I have seen. Apparently a lot of interior parts are gone from the car.

-door handles
-window crank handles
-arm rests
-ash trays
-interior light
-sun visors

 

I dont get it? if metal comes out of the a pillar and it goes straight down doesnt that mean the roof moves forward no matter what, and the c pillar would move forward too?

 

AHHHHH. Sly fox you!

The "backlight" was plexiglass in Sloan's car. I will most likely use lexan or something less scratch resistant then plexiglass.

I would love to use glass, but thats not what Barris used.

 

The roof does move forward so the A-pillars meet, but the way the rear piller is shaped it looks like it comes straight down. Look at the photos. The rear pillar looks like it doesn't move forward.

I couldn't figure it out because the the measurement stock and after the chop that was between each piller was the same.

 

Subscribed ! Been drooling over your avatar for quite a while, very simular colors as to what I want on my Pontiac. Now seeing some bigger pics of it I am in love ! Can't wait to see your progress , good luck .

 

I have checked out your picture and figure it is cut 3.5" in the rear and 3.0" up in front.

 

I was thinking the same. The printed numbers in the mags seem a bit much. We can always take off more if we have too.

 

It looks as though the tail of the rain gutter ends about an inch from the top of the quarter.

 

Royal...

The stock height of the rain gutter is 4.5" so looks like banditomerc was right on the money with a 3.5" cut in the back.

 

my thoughts exactly!

 

are you sure the measurement is the same as stock? looking at the 2 photos above...if you put a vertical straight edge (i used a new window on my computer) at the end of the drip rail. If you follow the straight edge down on ed sloans car it shows that the driprail ends in front of the rear tire. If you do the same in the photo of your car, the straight edge shows that the drip rail ends further back closer to the rim, not in front of the tire like sloans car...


this would lead me to believe that the roof was NOT extended and the c pillars are not in same place as stock...if the roof was extended the dip between rear window and roof would not be there either, correct me if i'm wrong.


i made sure the photos were taken from a near perfect side profile by comparing my vertical straight edge to the door line.

just my thoughts hope it helps

 

I see what you are saying. It is really deceiving when you look at it, but look at where I drew the red arrow. From that point up to the A-Pillar is 5'-2.75" and if you look at the CAD work down on the other picture you will see the measurement is 5'3". There is a little leeway with the CAD drawing.

Does that make sense? If is so much easier to describe in person hah!

 

ahh, the reason the point that your looking at stays in the same place because the front side of the C-pillar is angled backwards, so if u cut the bottom of the c pillar off, and slide the roof forward, the front part of the shortened c pillar will land in the approximate area where the stock (Wider) c pillar landed.

 

Yes thats it.

 

ok i get it, the roof does slide forward and is not lengthened like i said before, that includes the c pillars moving forward. But when you cut off the bottom of the c pillar the remaining c pillar is farther back due to the funky shape of it and lands it near the original spot. No meat added to middle

 

Talked to Ed this morning. Ed has found pictures of the inside of the car that he took as well as others. He will be having his nephew scan them to email to me.

I can not wait to see them!!

 

Hey,

What are your plans for the forming of the plexi backlight, making a buck of wood and plaster, and forming the plastic sheet with a heat gun?
I'd guess, given the angle of the original chop that the backlight wasn't much for good vision!
I'd step cut the C Posts @ the inner quarters for a stronger pillar, and also reinforce the A Posts @ the cut areas with square tube or solid square stock ,rosette welded above and below the cut line. None of this will be visable once the glass, paint and interior is finished, but given this is a hardtop model, ya don't want cracks at the welds on up the road, Too, should the vehicle ever leave the road airborne, squirtgun welds and mud @ the pillars alone, won't play out well for anyone onboard!
What's that noise?? is it the sound of the firewrench bein lit?

'' All great truths begin as blasphemies "

 

I am a welder by trade and I was employed before moving to TX to build high pressure fire sprinkler systems. My welds wont be "squirtgun" and will be very sound. I am also a prefectionist so if I see something will be a problem down the road it will be fixed.

 

Hey,

No rub made with regard to your skills as a welder, I too have spent an enchanted evening or two in a bellhole covered in murky blackwater welding overhead. I was speaking to the standard pratice when building kustoms wherein A,B &C posts have been butt welded for years without any thought to structural integrity. This pratice has never been signed off by ICAR or the insurance industry, and could well get you suied and your shop license pulled.
Again, no mud ment to be thrown @ you!

" Meanwhyle, back aboard The Tainted Pork "

 

any update picks? i really enjoy this build, if you need a painter , bodyman, keep me in mind.

 

I cant wait to watch this build come together , get chopping already ! You picked a sweet Kustom to clone ,lots of nice big detailed pics please when tha sparks really start to fly ! Post the old interior pics when you get them too!

 

Hi Mike,
Took a glance at your Plymouth project, I am big on all things Plymouth would love to see it on the road. My thoughts for what they are worth. I think if I were building a Tribute car I would like to keep it true to the original. I wouldn't worry to much about the brakes as modern materials can be had to update the originals and you can hide a booster behind the dash or under the floor. One mod I would consider is to keep the original rear widow. Take the whole rear window and about 3 inches of metal all around. Remove it do the chop with the intention of refitting the orignial window shell and glass

 

Ceegrey,

I sold the rear glass about 2 months ago. hah

I actually have so many pictures of the car that a exact clone is the way to go. Right down to the electrical system and brakes. (I know I'll get shit for this from some HAMB'rs.)

it wont be a speed demon either. Flathead 6 and 3 speed. I'll cruise at 55mph. Plus I like back roads because highways aren't fun.

 

thatta boy