Here is something that comes up from time to time that may be of some interest to do it yourselfers. I have a job in the shop now that involves a small panel that never was....... you know what I mean- it has to be made to order for your way of chopping a top. In this case I am doing a chop for a guy on a '37 Chevy Sed Delivery- he had me install 6" longer Coupe doors and move the door Jambs back 6" as well to accomodate them. This is where the dilemma begins. The sedan delivery door had a vertical rear edge and the coupe door has a sloped rear edge,so the jamb and the corresponding front portion of the side panel of a Delivery has to be fabricated from scratch to make this happen..... dont panic- its not that big a deal.... here is a step by step showing how it can be accomplished with no tools other than a mig welder-a hammer- and tin snips. [and a small air cut off tool]. I willstart by showing the "problem"- as it looks when I started.
the horizontal bare metal strip at lower left is where I made the 2" cut/drop for the chop top [on this delivery]. I first cut the door top on other side and made a template from thin cardboard of that door top and then drew a corresponding mirror image to form the "post" to be made up to match the door top. here is templates left is door top and right is the post [to be made].....
then I marked out the post pattern on some 16ga hot rolled steel.......[stiffer than cold rolled]. I then "score the outline with the thin cut off wheel repeatedly -till it is about halfway thru. it will "blue" the metal [on back side]- then score that side once too and then you can bend it back and forth a couple of times and WHAMMO!its cut out clean and not warped.!
Sure theres gonna be the school of thought that says-"Why dont you just use the stock peice and cut it 1143 times and weld it 1143 times till it fits"! well brothers- thats the long way around the*****in barn..... this is simple an fast and ends up a cleaner job in the end. you then line up and tack the flat peice that you made to the area the post is being built for. Now is the part wher the contoured' stepped rib shown in the side panel has to be created...... for this I took a peice of 3/4" pipe and a straight peice of square tube to clamp a strip of cold rolled 16ga in place. then I hammered the flat around the pipe forming a 180 degree U shaped peice. this is in turn trimmed to about half that width to form the roll tha was originally stamped in the quarter panels.
then to roll the corners in this curved straight peice you can clamp it to a rounde surface and slowly work it into submission. I am impatient so I did it cold although some heat would be a help......
then you insert the three peices in the space left between the flat panel and the post you made and tack weld and hammer tap it into shape...... then you carefully spot weld repeatedly going slow to avoid heat build up and warpage of the smooth panel on deliveries!! then you grind all welds smooth and there it is!
Great work so far, Bud! Seeing those pics, I think you make more progress in an HOUR than I do in three days! Cool to see the Money Job gettin' done...so's ya can bang out that kick**** roadster project!
Without a doubt the best post this week! Thank you for sharing, Kenny. You are a true craftsman. mid-tenn mike
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