Chrysler 4 door Chop

Decided to Chop my Chysler.....I know many a MOPAR enthusiast are steaming right now, but I just think it looks waaaaaay better chopped.

This is my first chop on a car so I will take lots of pictures and post so that other newbies can learn from my mistakes (which I am sure there will be). I have been able to learn alot of great info from others who have posted here, and I would not even attempt this without what I have read from people on this site.

First step was photoshop to decide about how much and where.

Original Car for photoshop:


Chopped 3 1/2" in front and 5" in back. Lowered the car 2" moved the front bumber in 2 1/2 inches:


How can anyone say this does not look better?

I thought about changing to a 2 door but after looking at the car, the back seat is HUGE and is one of the reasons I liked the car in the first place. I want to make it as easy as possible to get my wife back there! LOL As a comprimise I will eventually make them suicide doors and move the handles forward.

I also considered slanting the posts forward, but the back window would end up too big. I live in Socal and it gets hot around here and I would not have the ability to roll down the windows back there as well, so strait it is.

Here is a picture of my car before:


We start saturday morning and should be completely done by sunday night paint and all. LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL

Seriously we hope to have the main chopping and welding done this weekend and I will be posting pics on beer breaks.

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated as I am going into this with faith in my friends and a torch in my hands!

Brandon

 

Just an opinion: the photo chop is one of very few cars I've seen that don't look good with a rearward taper. It simply is not harmonious. I'd bring this one down very nearly square.

 

Ditto...try a level photo-shop-chop and put that photo up.

 

My buds chopped 4 dr dodge.

 

Just looks squished????

 

any profile pics?

 

I like the idea but would look at shotning the rear side glass and bring the roof around to meet the cut frame, kinda like they did the roof on the mayfair.

 

That looks much better. I assume you will be leaning the backlight forward? This will give new shape to the rear of the top, and help provide some taper.

 

Just a suggestion but as I was looking at the 1st photochop I thought it looked a bit awkward. The 2nd is definitely better but what if you could match up the rear roof contour to match the contour of the trunk lid or the rear of the rear fender. Just a little smoother and might take a little bulkiness out of the rear of the roof which is what it looks like you were going for in the 1st photochop anyway.

 

Hows this?

 

THE MORE ME LOOK, THE MORE ME LIKE...SERIOUSLY!

Do you have any other photos?

 

OoooH, YEAH!!!

 

Just saw this on youtube a little more aggresive than what I was looking for but basicaly a similar profile:

part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDYNCsimRYs

part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkanH4URUco

this looks great to me, what am I not seeing?

thanks for your input!

Brandon

 

This is what I think would look best too. Bring the roof down vertically at the post (square) but then lean the back window way in forward.

Then get some 2 door sedan doors and move the door pillar back about a foot. Maybe do that first.

 

forget the photoshop - both ways - you wont use it at all for reference anyway - i think the youtube vid got the prfile right on - the roofline/ rear door windows need to taper like that (ie more chop rear than front) and that back window needs to be laid down
is this your first chop? notice the cuts and reshaping involved int he video at the rear roof line - go slow, and remove LESS metal on first pass, and slowly bring down to where it looks right - best advice i had before i started cutting - cutting more a second time is easier than adding cuz you cut too much
dont try for a land speed record on getting it done - and get some masking tape and run some lines down the car - step back - drink a beer while you stare at it, tweak, repeat before even breakin the cutting tools out of the box!

itll be fuckin great when its done though - MOPAR to you!


just bringing it squarely down still makes it look too rolls royce or bentlye-ish

 

heres the one we chopped 4 dr 50 windsor good luck

 

I liked the first PS chop with the slope; just needs some skirts to go with it

 

Its tough to make something thats already kind of awkward and ugly look good. The styling on these cars is goofy and the chop just makes it worse....that loong back door window, and flat roof...no grace or elegance. A same era chevy roof swap and a two door conversion would do wonders.

 

I must have watched it 15 times alread frame by frame, Slow will definately be the pace. Luckily for me one of the guys helping me has done some of this before and even better has cell phone numbers to some of the more famous orange county car guys who live less than a couple of miles from my house....If we get to in over our heads at least we have some goto guys to help.....just more beer and pizza.

Thanks for all the input. One question I have not been able to figure out is what to do with the rear door glass??? do I just keep the little windows in there. How can a 1 piece window roll down with the wheel well in the way?

Branson

 

you know i was skeptical at first about this chop but that you tube video made it look really good!!!

 

kind of takes on the look of the current 300. It looks pretty good.

 

Shot a couple crappy pics of it tonight.

 

So ... How'd it go?

 

I will load some pics in the morning....It was 105 out this weekend and we were doing it on the side of my house.....Can you say HOT! I decided to slant the b post forward which looks much better that way, the only problem is that it makes the rear door window huge. I came up with a solution that I thing looks nice and allows me to keep the rear window working.

I need some help. The front passenger side window frame looks exactly like the driverside rear door frame.....but it's not! I now need a new front passenger door frame as I used it to make the rear door which obviously won't work. Anyone parting out a 4 door 1949 Chrysler and have the passenger side door frame available?

I said I was going to be honest and post both the good and the bad.

 

I like this chop a lot..Not too much and well proportioned to me..I especially like the rear sail panel area and back window. An area that in my opinion always looked chunky on these cars..this dosn't. It appears from the pics to flow very well..
Nice job..

'49windsor, looking forward to seeing what you've done.

Tony

 

First the tape:




Then the knife:

then where the hell did my roof go?


I will post more pictures in the morning the ones I have with it back on came out blury so I will retake in the morning and repost.

 

thought more pics were posting?!?

 

Here is what I have done so far:





I have to round off the top corner of the rear door as it rubs a little. Should be done tonight when I get home. The cardboard piece is going to be some fabrication to bring the rear of the window forward a little bit which will decrease the size of the rear window and at the same time allow me to still have the back windows roll up and down.

 

i was hopin youda taken alil more out all around, and slant the roof towards the rear a touch more too, but that said its lookin good - I wouldnt fab the window closed, what if ya modified the window regulator - or even simpler, leave it and only allwo the window to roll down half way (sorta like childproof ones work today)

 

Here is what I was thinking with the rear window: