Projects Chopped it.......she's still too tall.

Whenever I am looking at something on my car and trying to decide if I should do it or not, I think of crocodile Dundee, remember his way of figuring out if a person was a guy or a "Sheila"? I reach down and grab myself.....yup, theres balls! So I cut that shit up!!! So do you have balls??? If so cut that shit up!! If you don't cut it up, then you don't have balls!!! LOL!! Jim

 

Here's what I cut out of the hood and aprons......so far! I'm wayyyyyy past any hesitation to cut up my truck!

 

And I've already shown you guys my ballzzz!

 

someone should trun off the oxy/acc bottles. unplug the welder....

 

LOL! That's the way!! Jim

 

I always figured some one would want to shut off my oxy............I just thought it would be later in life! Sorry if you don't see it. I've worked on cars all my life, and right now I'm having the most fun and satisfaction I've ever had building this truck. So I hope your not offended if I don't waste much time giving a fuck!

 

I think its great, I have a bunch of parts laying around and I have been thinking about just starting to stick shit together and see what I come up with, I have a chopped truck cab that I am thinking section a bit then put a 40 ford front clip on it, then hell if I know, but just kinda been thinking.....Keep up the cool work on yours! Jim

 

Not much progress today. Did hang the grille with 4 bars. I'm going with this. The hood center will be extended down to the grille. Reverse opening. Still thinking about bumper?? Time to build the grille opening / aprons. I'm thinking a sharp edge rather than rounded for the opening.......

 

Just cut it right to shit. have like a 4 inch windsheild. It will be a rebel rod!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Oh no. It needed 1&1/2" out of the top. No less....no more......

 

Ah come on now Tin, I'll bet, even as I type, yer lookin over your calender tryin ta figger out just what day/s you can go without sleep worrying 'bout what others think of your build, and the street value thereof?

Wackin off the bottom bar of the Olds grille was a good idea, but ya didn't need me to tell ya that

 

Yeah I don't know how I'm ever gonna make everyone happy! Maybe I should name the truck "Metal Masturbation". Cuz pleasing ME is my highest priority!

 

How wide is the front end? That might help with bumper selection.

 

Hey,

To me, building a kustom to please someone else would be beyond pathetic, kinda like tryin to teach a pig to sing. It would probably annoy the pig, and make ya look foolish

 

My mom used to tell me "most anything you do, 1/4 of the people will like it, 1/4 won't and at least half are to oblivious to notice".

cf is right though. It takes balls to cut something up and build a custom. This was hard to commit to. Best thing I've done in years. Can't wait to get back out in the shop!

 

It's about 69" I'm thinking about some type of split bumper. I have to move the grille up more to make it work with a bumper. Been trying not to move the headlights, but I think they need to go out and up a bit. Like the photo shopped picture in my avatar. The aprons will be quilts by the time I'm finished.

 

When ever you're ready to have another "class" to work on your truck I'm in. Even if it's just watching, holding and handing you stuff and I'll even bring the O'Douls.

 

I had a good time. It felt like we covered so little! Everyone of you guys welded very well! Definitely will it do again.
I've been working a lot on the bird, and making good progress!
Little progress on the stude, other than still sorting out the grille & opening. Ruined a little sheet metal before going to 3/8" round rod. Much easier to form, and I can get the sharp edge I'm looking for.
No way the top bar of the grille will fit, but I'm liking this. You'll need a little imagination

 

Looks good; the front end of my wagon is 68 1/2" wide, so '49-'54 gm bumpers should all fit. Personally, I think it would look awesome all on color with full bumpers front and rear. It would leave a lot of people wondering what the heck it is.

 

I think your right. It needs bumpers.
I managed to get a little time in the last days of spring break, A lot of time just looking at it. I came to the conclusion I had to peak the hood. I want to peak the grille opening, top and bottom, the roof is already peaked, so I have to.

It's the one modification that scares me. (that's why I turned you down Jeff!) I don't have another hood, and they're hard to find. But What the hell, worse case I modify the Olds hood to fit!..............So anyway I started with a piece of 18 ga, wider at one end and broke at a 90 degree angle.

 

When you bend sheet metal sharply, it work hardens at the bend. So if you try to bend it back, the kinked area is harder than the rest of the metal. This is one of the things that makes repair of damage difficult. The metal is no longer all the same. In this case I'm using it to my advantage. I want a sharp peak, tapered, and rounded back into the hood.

So I set up one of my pieces of "thousands of dollars in equipment" to flatten the piece and to taper it evenly. The first pass in the press is with a spacer (1/4") at the rear of the piece. This helped stabilize the 2X3 tube.
The second pass was with no spacer. The front was drawn down to about 7/16".

 

This is how it looks now. I have to curve it to fit and hammer weld it in.

Did I mention this is live! So I guess if I fuck it up you guys are going to see it!

 

I have a white painted '53 bumper you can have for mockup if you want it. I got a new chrome one for the wagon.

 

front looks right / drop the back a smidge. BUCKD

 

Yeah I'd like try it. The olds bumper makes her look like Bubba Gump!

Curving the peak was simple and quick with my handy dandy Baileigh shrinker stretcher.

 

Chop is done. I'm very happy with it. But Thanks!

 

Hey Tin,

I doe know, yer method of makin a peaked section in a hood panel looks like alota work, and probably involves gettin dirty, and breakin a sweat............why not jus try '' Slim Jim '' beef sticks layed end ta end and covered with "Kitty Hair'' & Hi-Build? No need for ''fancy dan'' 1k$$ metalshaping equipment with this method!

My other fave-or-ite method of producing a peak in a hood panel would involve the use of a beading/swaging machine, a ''tipping wheel'' and a urethane/hard rubber lower beading/swaging wheel.....Blank out the part, mark a center line middle of the part, bend/wheel the blank to match the crown of the hood panel on the wheel, over an old tyre or hell, round a tree if that shape works. Run the blank thru the beader with the urethane wheel above so you can see the bead /swage form & adjust pressure to match desired depth & taper. No pinched diggets from that killer sheetmetal break & no teeth marks left in the part from the shrinker/stretcher.

The build is lookin good!

 

Thanks pimp! This was surprisingly quick and easy to make. I have maybe an hour and a half into it so far. Of course now the hard part. Weld it in without ruining the hood.
I guess I could just glue it, cuz you know that's how all the new cars are held together!
Gonna try to get it tacked in tomorrow. I figured I'd do the peak first, then the sides. I'd hate to get the hood all sectioned and screw it up peaking it!

 

hey tin,

Have ya ever tried the method of welding one of these hood peak jobs where you don't completely cut the panel in two, but work in 1.5 foot sections? The filler piece is raised up from underneith, as the scribed section is cut out and removed. The 1.5 section is clamped and tacked in place with zero gap, fusion welded. This goes on until the whole piece is tacked in and allows you perfect alignment on low/no crowned panels.
Just a thought?

 

Get out of my head!! Yeah, I've done quarters sorta like that, when the replacement is just a skin. I'll tack it over the hood with MIG, then cut with my air saw. Remove the lower piece and hammer weld with O/A. I use some filler rod, but not really a full bead, if that makes sense.
So would you work from end to end, or skip weld?
I'm thinking from back to front, working both sides a little at a time, stretching and correcting as I go. I'd be curious how anyone else that gas welds would do this.