Picked up this solid 1953 Chrysler windsor 4 door a few weeks ago very cheap to learn the skills necessary to build a full custom car Plan as of now is to make the car a 2 door hardtop the hard way (extending stock doors with section from rear door) Install rebuilt ford 400 and c6 from 73 ranchero Air bags with custom triangulated 4 link and ford 9inch Will post pictures of my progress Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I got the car 95% complete But my deal with the previous owner was I had to take out the glass and drivetrain and some other little things and give them back and he gave me back the headlights and tail lights some trim pieces and a imperial gauge cluster that will fit in the windsor dash I found a guy on instagram who's also got a build post in here who has a 2 door 54 and he gave me his door length measurement Four door front doors are 40 1/2 inches and the two doors are 48 1/4 Picked up a cheap engine mount crossmember off amazon for less then $50 with a gift card That will hopefully make the engine install as easy as it looks
Here are some pictures I've found of cars with modifications I'm going to be doing to the car Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Think it was in the deal to give it back to the PO but seems like the windshield and back glass might be tough to find. Guess they can be found and will work out with enough determination.??? This does make me wander what guys do for finding glass seals that arent available, How would one go about finding some that would maybe be kind of universal, I suppose automotive glass experts could help with that question???
The local junk yard has a 47 chevy I can get the rear window metal for $100 My uncle gave me 2 vw bug side windows that I've been messsing around with And stick them together to possibly turn into a rear window Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I'm keeping the front windshield but won't use it after the car has been chopped most likely My glass guy said it's too cracked to attempt to cut down But he can get me new glass and cut it down for me So he says Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Just try to keep some arch in the roof, flattening it as shown in some of those shots really kills it.
Yes that's what I'm wanting to do That's why I'm leaning for more towards the 47 chevy rear window Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
It was part of the deal for the car Previous owner wanted all the glass back for his car I would rather put a smaller one piece in instead of trying to chop and make a 3 pieces curved glass work with my chop top plans Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Got bored at work and started making a patch for the rear door handle hole Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Pulled the front end apart today and cut the coils 1.5 coils cut each side I'm way happier with the way it looks now Just needs the v8 ford in it to see how much it really dropped it
Supposed to get some ice and rain tonight so I got the car covered up some Cut the 7 3/4 inches out of the rear door Need more gas for the welder and need to clean up my edges before I can weld it back together Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Yes rebuilt the engine last year and had the c6 rebuilt as well Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Weldied the rear door up And set it on the car It's not perfect but I'm happy with the results Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Got front door removed Need to strip the chrome off and start measuring for my cut and smooth out edges on the extension Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I like the sound of this project and I'll be following along. I like customs, I like 2 door conversions (I've done a bunch of them myself), and I like the low-budget angle, breeds creativity that way I think. If you post a clean side shot picture of your car I'd like to take a whack at photoshopping it with the 2 door conversion and different chops, just for fun. Personally I'd like to see this car gain the back window and partial roof skin from a 49-52 Chevy car, with the Chevy skin part starting at about the B pillar position, to eliminate the boxy hump in the roof that these Mopars tend to get. Plus that window is a bit bigger than the 48 Chevy car and won't make the rear pillar so bulky. Just a thought. I'll be watching!
True , the Mopar cars were the last of the ten gallon hat roofs.....got some ideas also...ok. Hair cut is in order.....
Where did you find that first pictures It's one of my car I guess before the guy I bought it from got it and changed the wheels Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Very cool I never took a good side shot before I started cutting this thing up thanks for find it Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Here's some quickies. First is just a straight 2 door conversion. Then with a vertical chop. I thought the roof was kinda long looking so I shortened it up a bit. Then I changed out the back window to a smaller, earlier style window, since you say you're unlikely to try to reuse a wraparound. Then I did one as a hardtop, no post, which you mention in your first post is your goal. I had a hard time getting a quarter window to look right, I should probably import something from another picture but these are just rough ideas. Lastly I shortened the roof again on the hardtop one because I can't get past the roof length, especially as a hardtop. Personally I like the shortened roof, small window one with the posts the best but I could see this working out as a hardtop as well. One thing I will say is, going into this I was sure any chopped version would have a huge hump just forward of the rear window but that is not the case, I did not retouch that area at all on any of these, the roof on this car seems to have a really good flow, even chopped or hardtopped.
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