1ST Time Hammer Welding 52 Chevy Coupe Chop Top

So this weeks project is a 52 chevy buisness coupe. It already had some major body mods done to it, Im just doing the top at this point. He wanted a heavy chop so thats what I gave him, about 6" outta the front and about 7" outta the back and he also wanted to keep the belt line trim, cuz he is going to run alot of the stock stainless.

Ive been working with the Tig alot more lately, after talking to Fay Butler at the autorama he convinced me to give hammer welding a try, he gave me a bunch of pointers and drew me up a nice diagram.

we started by tacking each piece in so it wouldnt move and hammer and dollying each tack, (we tried to get each piece to have nice tight gaps) and then do 1/2"-1" beads and hammering each one, and then moving on to another panel. back and forth, back and forth, hours of welding.

I still have ALOT of hammer and dolly and shrinking work to do to the panels to try and get them as smooth and seamless as possible.

Ill update more pics this weekend when its all done.

BOBBY

 

Looking great so far man...... that is a heavy chop.

 

Glad to see you are getting the hang of it. Just a hint..I always carefully grind the short bead, or even tacks down almost to the level of the panel..that way when you hammer that weld to relieve it, there isn`t a huge excess of weldment trying to move back into the space at the seam. Would like to see you use a bullseye pick and vixen file to get those panels even straighter...and even some shrinking disc action as well....chop looks a bit too much for me, but more power to you for trying the better method...

 

Looks bad ass... wish I had the sack to cut my '48!

 

Sweet.

Very cool.

 

Gee, that didn't take long

 

Metalwork on the chop looks great, and I also like the Olds grille with the Buick bumper. Would like to see what that looks like when it's finished.

 

I've always wanted to ask, but never have. Can someone please explain to me the reason for hammering the weld? Do you put the dolly on the back side? Please excuse my ignorance, but I've never really found a clear answer, and I'll be moving into some big time body work in the near future.

 

Nice,clear photos.Yeh thats sweet,not the easiest car to do.

 

Very nice indeed.

 

Really nice looking work Bobby!

When you weld the area shrinks. This means the metal gets slightly thicker at the weld, and reduces the overall surface area, which flattens out the panel a little bit. Stretching the weld counteracts this effect. It does not matter which side the hammer or dolly is used on... simply a matter of convenience. Sometimes it is easier to hammer from the inside, sometimes the opposite.

John www.ghiaspecialties.com

 

kiwi, Im defenatly going to try and smooth the panel out alot, I dont have a vixen file, where can i get one?? should I grind the back side of the weld before i start smoothing it??

John Kelly, I was actually reading your website before i chopped the top, you do amazing work!! I plan on making a shrinking disc in the very near future!

Thanks a lot

BOBBY

 

Scumbag alert. Scumbag alert. ding ding ding

 

I love the chop. 100 % better than before. That thing is sick. I wish I could have done that to the 53 before I sold it. Man that wouldve been sweet.

Maybe someday Ill have the sack to chop something, till then Ill just drool over all the other cuts.

 

Yeah look whos talking buddy!!

 

Really nice work.!! Like the others, its a bit too severe a chop for me, but the execution is top flite!

 

Big Z, I think the valve covers are waiting for me at the post office. I think they showed up yesterday.

Looking good Bobby, for a scumbag! ha ha ha

 

damn ya chopped that one heavy but the metal work looks goood

when we chopped mine we layed the back window down but i am still able to use the original stainless trim and didnt put that gap between. keep at it!
are ya gonna cut the trunk for a better flow?

 

that is some very nice work! i love the aggressive chop, if you're gonna chop it, might as well go big. definitely gives it more attitude!!

right on!!

 

Every time I read posts like this on the HAMB, I want to go out to the shop and cut,weld,grind etc. Instead I gotta go to work. My family is too spoiled. They like a roof over their heads and 3 meals a day. I'm going to the shop after work today...

Motivatingly.... Tim

 

Looks good i'll stop by the shop with the rear end for you to fix and check it out.

 

Now I understand! Thank you very much for the reply, I do appreciate it.

 

Cool. let me know what you think. I'll send you shipping dough for them when I buy a shirt.

 

Sorry bro, but the "more is more" mindset when approaching a mod like this is totally wrong. I can't count how many cars I see ruined by silly chops that result in cartoonish proportions. The purpose of chopping is to improve the flow of the roof line while maintaining proper proportion to the rest of the body. I wouldn't say that this car is ruined, but less would definitely have been more. The decklid needs to be sectioned, and the quarter window looks super small, though there is little you can do about it with a chop that severe. I'm not feeling the Buick bumper either. The Buick is such a chunky car it needs a bumper that big, but the Chevy is much slimmer and the massive bumper looks much too bulky. The steep chop only emphasizes this. The Olds grill can be a nice touch though.

Bobby, please don't take my criticism as hating on your work. I think the craftsmanship looks top notch. You've obviously very talented and your hammer welding looks fantasic. It just sucks that you have to build cars the way the customer wants when the customer isn't always right. Keep up the good work

 

No offense taken 57joefomopar. If you've seen my car it is very proportional, i would have probably went no more then 4-5". but like you said the customer is always right...

I didnt do the work on the front end and I dont even want to show pictures the rear end treatment, the work done to that is very poor, so im going to end up redoing both of them.

Thanks for all the compliments everyone

 

Pretty cool metalworking there. You caught right onto the hammerwelding thing.

I sure liked the car better before the chop though... It HAD a cool early sixties thing going on. Now it looks like a lot of cars being built these days. I hope your customer is happy.

I'm pretty sure that poor old Chevy isn't... Just saying.

 

nice chop Bobby!

 

No criticizem (sic) here. I like it. I do think that it needs a bigger radius on the door window opening at the rear top. The corner looks a little to square to me. Wished I had your skills.

 

Rad, I'll be keeping an eye on this one.

Drew