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another chop job

134K views 373 replies 32 participants last post by  knight hawk 
#1 ·
I know there are alot of ''chop'' threads and questions, but... I'd like to know if anyone has chopped a "48 Dodge 4dr post " with suicide doors,. I did a pick up once , so I know the basics. Question is, with the center door posts, I'm assuming the top can't can't be shifted ???
 
#3 ·
I think you could shift the top but you would have to angle the B Posts forward like the C post. That would make the front of the back door look a bit strange I think. You could also shift the top but would have to cut out above the rear door and back window before the shift and then join that section back up to the top. This would allow you to keep the B pillars straight. Hard to get the top and the sides to line up again. Either way I think it would be more work than just lengthening the top.

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#4 ·
I'm thinking, I need to keep the '' B '' pillers straight, lenghtening the roof is a good idea. The rear window is the problem that I can see ! There's not much room around it , especially the bottom, to get the hump out. Homebrew, have you ever chopped one, by cutting out the roof tin before you start, then building it , more or less, with just a frame ? as long as it would get cut up alot by streching and widening. Then just put the tin back on, and fill in where it's short.
 
#5 ·
I haven't done one! I have seen guys lengthen tops after chopping. It is not that hard. The Tex Smith book on chopping is a good one to get. It shows lots of different techniques. If you are not going to shift the top chopping a four door will be very similar to chopping any other top. You just have four doors that need to be fit rather than two.

Check out these links for more info:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=chopping+a+top&btnG=Google+Search

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#6 ·
I've got most of the cuts figured out for the chop ( '48 Dodge 4dr ) with the rear quarter window, the most difficult. After i lower it and pull the top forward, to flatten the rear window, it's going to leave an area at the top of the trunk, I don't think will look right, the trunk has a slight up turn in it right at the top. Do you think it's possible to kinda pancake the top portion of the trunk ????
 
#7 ·
Yes it would be possible to do something like that. I think you will not have enough material there though. You will probably have to add to the top or the trunk to fill the gap created by pulling the top forward. As well you have to do some metal shaping to get everything lined up. You could look at doing a pie cut in the top's quarter panels as well as to help tilt the rear window down.

For those who do not know what a 48 Dodge 4 door rear looks like I have posted a pic below.

I know that there have been several threads on the HAMB that have dealt with difficult chops. Trying doing a search for four door chops.

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#8 ·
boy, talk about a tuff choice of cars to chop. this is one of those that it's best to take out in the window. by doing the chop in the rear window the trunk transition does not change . but it will take a lot of work to do the 1/4 window area. but then there are very few easy chops. 1 to 10 your working on an 8. lot of work. good luck with it.
 
#9 ·
I understand all the pie cuts and filling, but the main concern , I guess is , if I try to flatten the top of the trunk to make it ''flow'' with the lowered roof line, it's probabley not going match the side to side curve of the window. Plus, I'll have to remove the trunk seal lip ( whatever thats called)and inside layer of the trunk lid itself,,,,,, I just have a hard time looking that far ahead.........
 
#10 ·
O K , picture this; leave the top anchored at the top of the trunk , pull it forward from the front, which will pull the rear window area forward and down, leaving a high spot at the top of the trunk, kinda like a pivot point.. If I could, imagine having the pivot half way down the trunk lid, pulling the top ( of the trunk lid ) down flatter with it. Does this make sense to you ??? That 's what I'm trying to figure out !!
 
#14 ·
I hate to admit this, but you're right. I don't think I can lower the window very much , because of the side to side curve of the glass. I'm trying to get rid of the bump at the top of the trunk. How about if I put a filler piece OVER the low spot on the trunk lid, so instead of dipping down , it would be kinda straight ?
 
#15 · (Edited)
top chop

hi ,i saw a 59 chev chopped 4 inches,what he did was split the top in half move the front half forward and down,and then move the back part rearward and down,i think it left a 13 inch gap in the center to be filled. i wpuld take a photo of the side of the car,blow up the photo (no,not the car) have the photo blown up larger,chop the photo top using scissors,and see what will work. im boatbob2
 
#17 ·
re. '48 Dodge chop job, I got the actual chop figured out, but I don't think I can drop the rear window as much as I want, cause of the sharp curve in it . Question : how do i figure out what window has less curve and will lay flater without going to the junk yard and wandering around ? Also is the junk yard going to let me cut out the back of a roof ? Then, how do I do that with only hand tools ?????
 
#18 ·
knighthawk said:
re. '48 Dodge chop job, I got the actual chop figured out, but I don't think I can drop the rear window as much as I want, cause of the sharp curve in it . Question : how do i figure out what window has less curve and will lay flater without going to the junk yard and wandering around ? Also is the junk yard going to let me cut out the back of a roof ? Then, how do I do that with only hand tools ?????
Good to hear you think you have it figured out.

I guess to find a window with less curve without going to the junk yard you could go to the carnut web site and check out the pics of late 30's and $0's rear windows until you find something that might work.

A junk yard is there to make money and so they should let you cut out a back window or take the whole roof.

As far as how to do it with only hand tools - Most junk yards will probably cut it off for you with their torch though. If not go to your local home reno store and rent a cordless drill and a reciprocating saw and cut away.

Good luck.

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#20 · (Edited)
You know just looking at your rear Window (in the picture) and the likely candidates for replacement-what about a 50's to early 60's VW bug rear Window (they were kinda the same shape). Also, would it be possible to just lower your rear Window instead of cutting it, or do you want that look?

With regard to when you cut your actual Roof (the one on your Dodge)-I am right in the middle of my Chop right now, and will tell you that I am not a big fan of using a Sawzall for the cuts (although I'm sure there are guys here who love them)-it's just too radical for me to finesse, so I tried every idea I could think of( air powered Hacksaw (good for the thin stuff), a regular Hacksaw (o.k., but really slow), a 3" air powered Cutoff Saw (good, but doesn't go very deep), a 7" Grinder with a Cut-off Wheel (really heavy and hard to control), and my Milwaukee 4 1/2" Grinder with a thin Cut-off Wheel (the best choice for me).

I found that the Sawzall will grip and tear when going through thick stuff like Door Posts (that have multiple layers of Metal) and "B" Pillars. I used the 4 1/2" (had all of my cut lines taped and marked), went through all four corners of the Posts and it would go through about 95% of anything I had to cut like Butter, do a nice straight initial cut, then I would use the Sawzall to finish the deep stuff. I also have to lengthen the Roof, and I bought a Donor Roof to do so-

Good luck, and when I was contemplating my Chop someone here said to plan, plan, plan-I spent a tremendous amount of time in research and if nothing else I was more comfortable when I picked up a Saw (that was the scariest part for me-cutting up a perfectly good Roof).
It sounds like you are getting it figured out-there was an Article in Street Rodder about Fatman Fabrications doing a '40 Sedan (which is a little different), but they had some of the same issues you are having-you might consider reading it-it might give you some ideas.
 
#21 ·
I agree with 35WINDOW about using the reciprocating saw for detail work. I was only suggesting using it to get your donor roof or window off of the donor car and out of the junk yard. Leave as much metal as possible around what you are cutting off at the junk yard and trim it to size when you get it home.

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#23 ·
well, where I'm at is....In addition to the 3'' chop, I want to flatten or remove the hump at the top of the rear window by laying it down and spreading it out, but, I'm going to be limited by the cuve of the glass, as to how much I can lower the center and still keep the cuve near the the drip rail. It's also the 4 dr suicide doors, but, I'm not worried about the pillars, it's just the hump at the top !.........thanks
 
#25 ·
Just thought I'd let you guys know that I did the ''chop job'' on my '48 Dodge. I do have some photos of it, but have problems getting them posted. If any one is intrested, let me know............meantime .....I'd like to thank all you members for helping me along !
 
#26 · (Edited)
knighthawk said:
Normally when hammer-welding , if you cool it as you go,with air or water, do you still have to hammer it ? If you hammer it, do you still have to cool it?

In my experience (which isn't unlimited), I think there is more than one definition (today) of Hammer Welding-my understanding is that with the original Hammer Welding that you would Oxy-Ace Weld the area, then re-heat and Hammer out the shrinkage-now, there are those who will say that you should Hammer while the area is still Hot from the Weld, and that does take some practice, but it will work (if you are using Oxy/Ace).

One of the other ideas is to use a Tig (which generally will leave a small Weld Bead), and Hammer the Weld (Planish it). One idea that has come out in the last year or so (from Randy Ferguson) was to Mig the Weld, grind the proud Bead down to about .050 on BOTH SIDES, and the Hammer it flat (stretch it). I have used the Tig method and the Mig method, and both work. There was a feeling that using a Mig (or the Mig process) was creating a "Hard" weld, but in reality, Mig and Tig can both use essentially the same Rod (ER70S6), so I believe it was Randy who first figured it out. I love to use my Tig, but it definitely will shrink the Metal more than a properly used Mig Weld (more Heat). Hope this helps-

Glad to hear you did the deed! Can't wait to see the pictures!
 
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