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Drip rair removal ??? for a 62 impala

3K views 10 replies 4 participants last post by  workingclass 
#1 ·
Hey all, I had a question about removing the drip rails on my 62 impala, is this just a remove some spot welds like it looks or would I have to cut into the roof and replace the rails with new metal and weld?

Kevin
 
#2 ·
are you looking to completely remove the dril rails? or repair and replacing them? on my nova i had to cut away the drip rail so i could patch a piece on the roof. then welded the rail back up. on my friend 68 camaro they removed the drip rail with a big grinder... just sanded it down then stitched the seam.
 
#4 ·
i am guessing here... but with my 63 nova. the dril rail is where they attach the roof to the side. i think mine were just crimped though... hence the rust... but yes possibly if you got all the seam sealer out and are looking at the rail, there is possibly a series of spot welds... if you took a cut off wheel to it, you could hack it off like i did on my nova before i fixed the roof rail. top pic shows the area i cut away.



 
#7 ·
I have a feeling, that if you gtind off the drip rails, the roof panel will come loose and need to be rewelded on. I think under that seam sealer is where the roof panel joins the sides of the car...........
 
#8 ·
poncho62 said:
I have a feeling, that if you gtind off the drip rails, the roof panel will come loose and need to be rewelded on. I think under that seam sealer is where the roof panel joins the sides of the car...........
i agree with poncho... you'll probably wind up having to reweld the seam... might want to take it in sections... like middle then a few inches away... etc... with my friends 68 camaro, running his 468 bigblock doing 12's he had no structrual problems without cage or subframe connectors. i think as long as the weld is good, you shouldn't have any problems...
 
#9 ·
Ok, so i'm thinking to take an air body saw or cut-off wheel and in sections remove as close to the actual roof as possible leaving as little material left to grind as possible to help out with heat distortion, than after cleaning up the seam, again in sections weld up the gap or where I can see a joining line. Does this sound about right? Thanks for all the help so far, Kevin
 
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