My ‘36 Ford 5 window is now a driver and it has inspired my Dad to get interested in a project that has been sitting since 1996. We have a Henry Ford steel 32 Ford 5 Window Coupe. It has been in the family since 1993. The car will be fitted on a new SoCal frame and get a 59 AB Flathead with automatic trans. It will have a full hood and whitewalls no fenders. Exterior color will be black with interior TBD. The car will get a mild chop. Somewhere between 2 and 3 inches. We are favoring 2 1/2”. I would like to know if anyone has a picture of a 32 Ford chopped 2 3/4”. I saw one years ago in a magazine and remember thinking it was perfect. I’m looking for pics of Deuce 5 window coupes with a mild chop that shows the amount lowered. Please don’t tell me you wouldn’t cut it. Honestly it’s a really hard decision but a coupe high boy really needs it to look right in my opinion. I don’t wear my top hat very often these days. The car is solid with original floors and is in great shape. Any pics would be great. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
My avatar is 3 1/2 in front and 3 1/8 in the rear. Whatever you decide to chop it put a little wedge from front to rear in it.
IMO, 1/3 above belt line, 2/3 below belt line give the optimum proportions.This ratio is supposedly naturally pleasing to the human eye and commonly used on various items. IMO, wedge in the top of a car with rake gives the perception of being “bent” or “swayed” at the cowl area, especially when fenderless. The belt line and hood should be parallel to an imaginary line running across the top the towards front. Just my opinion ........
One of the most recognized 32 Ford's of all time is the Doyle Gammell coupe which is described as the perfect proportioned chop. Admittedly it's a 3 window. It has (according to The Rodders Journal #32) a 3 1/2" front chop, and a 3" rear chop. Page 217 shows a side view of the car. Issue 32 co-incidentally(?) has a ton of 32 pictures and info that anyone building a 32 can get some ideas from. Great Magazine.
I've had a number of chopped deuces both coupes (3 & 5 windows) along with several sedans all chopped with a little wedge. We're not talking a huge amount on coupes,3/8 isn't much. On deuce sedans I go 3 1/2 in front tapered to around 3 in back. On sedans it takes the hump out of the drip rails you get with a square chop and on coupes it gives it that sneaky look. You know there's something about the look but you just don't know what. On all the chopped cars I've built I'll guarantee you they never looked swayed or bent at the cowl. I think my current 5 window and a sedan I built now owned by Scott Lorenzini in CA are 2 really good examples of a wedge chop. When you get the sheet metal right there's not that problem. Give Gary Roberts in Toledo or Bobby Walden in Pomona a call and ask them about wedge in a deuce chop
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