[buggmann]

im thinking of doing a chop top on my
1953 Chevy 210 4door how hard would
it be i can do some metal work but this
is new to me
here are some pics of the car i might be chopping


any info any help

thanks buggmann

[Tubbed71]

I don't know if this could help you at all but they chopped a 53 or 54 chevy on Monster Garage a couple years back. Maybe you could find the show on the internet somewhere and get a couple ideas.

[buggmann]

i looked and could not find out
a lot about it i did find some pics
of the car after it was done but
not much more than that

[Paul M]

That car is alot of work to chop, you might reconsider. Let's see...... glass: side window.. flat no problem, Front can't tell from pic rear window ( better know a glassman personally, vent windows reconfigure shapes of frames however, the flat glass is no problem. Rubber from Steele Rubber. You'll want a below center cut. Lower front posts will have to be modified a few degrees. The angles wont match. Rear sail posts will need to be reconfigured inward a few degrees. I'd prob. fab the rear instead of cut & reposition. You'll have to cut the stainless & add clips to over lap the cuts.. Neat old car, the shape is pretty low profile as is.

[buggmann]

just thinking about it i know it would be hard
to do i don't think im going to do it my wife
told me to leave it as is she likes it the way it is

[bobjob]

seen one done just like it a while back...they started by rolling down side windows to where they wanted them to end up, cut doors to match windows started there.still a lot of work to make a chop look good.you can use rear glass(don't cut) tilt. it's a 4 door so post betw'n doors r important . if front glass is curved check to see if it can be cut and where to cut, so you can build around it. good luck!
too many people just "cut em up" and can't finish cause no glass will fit there dreams of what it should look like

[buggmann]

if i do it im going to take my time
i want it to turn out right and look
good im not in a hurry it has took
me two years to get it running
so in not in a hurry as you can see

[Paul M]

My dreaded E's are a pile'n up

Yep, didn't mention the doors cause the cuts don't involve angle mods.

It's no 30's 3 window straight glass chop. You'd have to see if you like the glass tilted/ or back to glass guy b.s. There are a few guys who water jet the windshields n rear curved pcs. In the long run. People will be a dime a dozen & unique " original " cars will be far n few between.

It's better than buying a high depreciation NEW car.
fix 'er up, drive 'er n save $. That ol' unit in restored condition should be more reliable than a Honda or Toyota w/ cheaper maintentance.
10 years later when yr tired of 'er sell r 4 a few bucks profit.

later paul

[buggmann]

you are a man of my own heart i would rather
have and drive a old car than buy and own
some damn new car that might last five years
or less the way i look at it my 1953 Chevy 210 has
been around this long not by chance yes it might
need some love but it has lasted a lot damn longer
than any Honda i ever had

later buggmann

[Chris Kemp]

This is what it could look like!

Saw your post and almost passed it up but when I read that the car in question was a four door, I had to read further. I have never seen an upside down bath tub four door chevy chopped so I chopped it for you. Your car could look like this.

I have chopped a few roofs and it is a lot of work but if done correctly it yields some amazing results. Even people that don't usually look at cars do a double take.

In the picture I did not change the angle of the windshield or rear glass. The windshield would be no problem all you would have to do is have the top edge trimmed. The back glass is tempered and you can not cut it. You would have to have one made for it and lately a lot of people have done this. Or if your gonna rat the car just have one made out of lexan. Another thought with the back glass could be to trim another front windshield and use it. Possibly a 55,56,57,58 front windshield, they were of a wrap around shape like the back glass that you have.

When you chop a roof this way you will find out that the roof is not long enough or wide enough. You have to add sheet metal into it. To explain: After you add the sheet metal and look down at the car it usually winds up with something that looks like a cross or plus sign in the sheet metal of the roof. With this type roof it would probably wind up with about twelve inches added through the middle section and about eight inches all the way down the center. You will also have to add side window frame sections at least in the front doors. You can do this by picking up some spare doors and removing the top section. These cars were prone to severe rot in the bottom section of the doors so you could probably pick some up cheap. The ones you have appear to be in good shape, with only surface rust.

It could be an awesome ride (too kewel to rule) especially if it was chopped and slammed as in the picture.

Chris

[buggmann]

hey that is the look i would want
i don't know about the low part
but i could live with it if i do it i
would do the back window out of
something diff the car does not have
the rust probs you asked about it does have
some probs with the floor but that is being fixed
will i have to get rid of the vent windows i do like them
i do think it would look good with a chop

[bobjob]

that car would look sooo cool!!! ??how did you do that picture on your computer?? what kind of program??
it would really be worth chopping.even without so much drop at frame (for ground clearance)on back roads, (dirt)...
my vote .... chop...
what does your wife think??
my wife thinks she would drive it chopped over stock...says stock looks too much like something her grandpaw would drive

[eloc431962]

Check these links maybe they can help. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...ead.php?t=5897

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=48907 . Cole

[Chris Kemp]

You don't have to remove the vent windows, you can always reshape the vent window frame. Most people leave them out because it is easier and it gives a cleaner look.

Here I worked on it a little more, added some more to the skirt and made the doors suicide!

[buggmann]

hey keep going i like it maybe you can put
some paint on it with some flames i think
it is the only way it will ever look that good