Projects 1950 4 Door Merc Build...Sort Of.....

Far from all customs have a supreme body work. A lot of bondo and lead are more common than surprising. I've seen some real famous customs that looks like that under the cover... Yes, a lot of body work is required but can be a nice custom!

 

its really not that bad

You're bound to find patch up and bondo work on a custom like that so its all good. The good news is that you can rest assured that nothing is hiding now and you can only move forward from here

By the time we will be done with the passenger side door on our 4 door, it'll be quite a bit of bondo. the door was hit at some point and we spent a lot of time trying to get it as close as we could back to normal before going to bondo. we're to the point where about 50% of the panel is now bondo to get it back to the original shape. It's looking really good and we're about an hour away from finishing it.

keep your head up...lots of good progress is to come

 

Hot rod 50 It's not that bad , STOP crying, there is no crying here when reworking a old car to the way you want it.Pick your self up and start making templates for patch panels,no big deal just do it. Oh yea welcome to the world of building custom cars ! About the idea of making it a hard top.If you think you are in for a lot of work now just wait! Anyone that has ever done it knows it is a ton of work to do it correctly.I have done two hard top conversions and my opinion is (don't do it ), especially a 4 door. I am in the middle of doing a radical layed down 49 Merc 4 door chop now. Good luck just remember don't get in over your head.

 

I have a 50 4-door here that I was getting ready to crush, it has a nice roof and the doors are good and such, you can have it if you need it and can figure a way to get it there. Now the doors are rusty in the bottom so when I say they are nice I mean they are nice to cut for fixing your doors on the upper section, this car is rusty around the bottom. Let me know if you want this stuff and I can cut it all off for you, I can just take a sawsall and cut the entire roof section and the upper half of the doors off and all. Might get a HAMB relay for it or something. Jim

 

I Just want to ad having read the whole thread today that I can only admire your perseverance, yes you have suffered setbacks that have hit you hard, it does everyone, but remember that as has previously been said, there really cant be many more surprises.

You have a great team working for you to get it right and you will know that it is 100% right when finished. Just imagine the satisfaction when you are driving the car and you pull up and there are other nice looking cars, you will always wonder what is hiding under their paint, but you will know exactly what is under yours.

Furthermore from a purely practical viewpoint, as a family man isn't it better to know that you are driving your family around in something solid rather than something held together by Bondo

Money spent now will be peace of mind in the future.

You will remember the satisfaction and pleasure long after you have forgotten the pain of the cost.

 

Essexboy said exactly what I was going to - but better than I ever could.

I thought this image might help you look at your custom in a better light:


Buck up, it's gonna be awesome!

-Dave

 

To quote my previous post It wouldnt be too bad if the roof wasnt so butchered, but a new roof on there will make it a different car,its in good hands , it will be done right this time and will never have to be redone !

 

OK What is the story on that poor car! Jim

 

Nice offer by cfnutcase, that's for sure.

Is your name Hugo?

Good luck, figure out what you want and then look at whether you can do it now or need to pace yourself in terms of money.

I'm just doing the glass on mine right now, I have 5 figures into my body resto, paint, and light mechanical.

 

Pro Stock, yes my first name is Hugo.. HRod stands for H(ugo) Rod(riguez), and obviously 50, is for 1950.. I borrowed the HRod from a friend of mine...

Thank you all, for the encouraging words...

 

Wow, that car is gonna be fantastic!

 

I took the pic at a buddy's place a couple of years back.. He scrounges stuff from all over - and didn't know the history of this one. I can tell you it's even tougher than it looks in the photo . Just another project started and then abandoned I suspect .

-Dave

 

Dave,

Man, I was kind of hoping that was my car. Not that it's the kind of history anyone would want, but history is history in my book. The reason I love old cars or anything old for that matter is because of the lives that have either ridden in a car, wore a piece of clothing or jewelry, or lived in an old house.. I don't know if I'm making sense.. Next car is 1930's something...

 

HRod 50, you are so right about the appeal of knowing the history of our projects.. If only they could talk - eh? I wish I knew more about the one in my pic, but for now it's a mystery.

I didn't do a very good job of complimenting you on your project, but wanted to let you know how much I am enjoying watching your dream come to fruition. Smart of you to align yourself with good people as well. Your Merc is gonna be a beauty!

I'll keep watching...
-Dave

 

Have you guys come up with a plan of attack to get started on the body?

 

It would probably cost you less to buy a new body and start from there. Make 1 good car out of the two. Might be worth it to think about grabbing a 2 door body. That will help make the long term investment more cost effective.

I'm praying for you man. I've been following this build because I think you're doing such a good job of working with your builder to create a truly memorable kustom. You're doing the right thing. Best thoughts to you man, keep us posted

 

Dude, it's not that bad

Or...I've live in rust-belt Florida for too long!

I've pulled cars out of Montana pastures that were in far worse shape...you'll be fine. Stick with the plan!

 

that car is totally do-able. I've seen worse worse than that.

 

Check out this build and yours will look easy!!http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=294184&page=4

 

Dont know what you have spent on this project but shit, We have rebuilt classic wood boats from only the serial# in the transom (cut out the serial # and build a boat around it) I know what that costs and how long it takes. Doesn't matter when ya gotta have it and you got lust in your eyes ....make it so! Good on ya!

 

51 Leadsled, thanks man, that makes me feel better..

Sorry to the guy who owns that car.....

 

Rick will get you on track and in the end you'll have a much better ride. Theres nothing that can't be fixed.

James

 

That is UnIOnViLLEHauNT he is a member here. Great pair of hands, nice guy too!

 

You have gone through too much and spent too much not to do the job right, and you are getting it done by the best. I am glad to see the correct way it is being done. It will be a outstanding sled when you get it back. Good luck with the rest of the build.

 

Ouch... I had a caddy that my dad warned me about taking down to bare metal... I didn't listen, took it down to bare metal and shit my pants cuz I now knew that I had an ass load of body work to do. It was a good time to become best friends with a hammer/dolly, re-patch work, and filler... just takes time to get back up to par but they can be saved. In your case your having to pay but that's what leads most guys to learn firsthand at doing the work and saving the $. Maybe at this point in time you have learned your lesson and should pull the plug on it and just do a quicky on it and drive it while work is done in stages so you can appreciate the investment. Maybe find another body in the mean time. Plenty of cherry 4 door bodies out there for cheap. You got options....

 

Not an option. We re did the floors and inner rocker panels already. Plus, I think I like to keep the old girl together as much as possible.. I dont know if the chassis I have is the original chassis, but it was with it when I got it so thats good enough for me.. I havent even driven the car, but 40 miles, and it's already very sentimental to me..

 

Hey man don't get discouraged I am in the same boat but mine look a lot worst the that check out my build it is probably worst than yours.

 

Just spent the last hour reading the whole thread. Your approach is good, doing it right is the only option. You'll be happier in the long run, knowing every part of the car has been done properly. Good luck with the rest of the build!

 

This is very interesting post. It amazes me how we can get in to a project and get carried away with all the little problem we find. Next thing you know you where your at now.But I must say I love what you done so far.I have a project much the same way. At least yours was welded, even if it was brass. My Studebaker wagon was full of rivets and screws!! Keep your head up you have nothing to be ashamed with You not the first and I won`t be the last to go through something like this.I can`t wait to see your plans for the body.