Planning and dreaming....

It is time to start planning the most ambitious build I have ever been involved with. This phase of the project won’t be starting for another 3 months so its time to start the planning. (I mean I gotta have SOMETHING to do all day at work…LOL.)
I want to build this:

And am starting with this:

As you can see from the photoshop work, the car has been both chopped and sectioned.
What I think needs to be done is:
1. 3” body section.
2. 2” top chop.
3. Flattening out the bulge in the roof.
4. The installation of wider 2-door doors and moving the door piller back 4 “.
My feelings are that the stock wagon is a bit ‘ungainly”. It’s bulbus. Top heavy. It doesn’t floooooowwww. It’s a bit like Carl Mulden’s nose….functional but not attractive. I have ALWAYS loved sedan deliveries and have owned two…. A ’50 Chevy and a ’36 Chevy and loved them both. Any way I go it WILL ve a Sedan Delivery style when done. I’ve been looking at the blue photoshop above for over 2 years now and I still love the proportions.
The car currently has fresh floorboards and rocker panels. The entire structure is now sound. All rust has been removed and/or replaced. It will be sitting on a stock chassis running a y-block and stock suspension. I also have the chioice of doing a tailgate setup or using a Sedan Delivery rear door. I have all 4 four-door doors, a nice pair of two-door doors, a scrap pair of two-door doors, 2 hoods, and an extra roof from a ’55 Ford wagon to use as parts/practice pieces.
I taped the last episode of Monnster Garage where they chopped and sectioned a ’54 Ford wagon. It looked like they did a chop and a section all at once. Obviously there weren’t a lot of details shown.
It seems to me that I should do the section first so that I have as much upper structure strength as possible before bracing. Once the sectioning is done the chop should be easier.
Or am I wrong?
Questions:
Is the sectioning necessary in your opinion? (Yes I know it’s a shit-pot full of work.)
In what order would YOU do these changes?

 

I don't know about sectioning as it sits kinda low now but the chop looks good. You could lower the suspension later and I'd use the 2 door, doors to complete the look.

 

Awesome!!!

I don't think that sectioning this car is absolutely necessary but I would think that it would be close. That's what is going to set this car off and really have their head scratching as long as everything else is done in proportion.

If it were mine I would lose the Chop and just decrown the car a bit so that it's understated and tasteful. I find that when a section, chop etc are all thrown into the mix you start taking away from the car instead of making it better. The section job would likely be around 1.5-2.5" and I think that would more then enough to give the car a whole new look. The chop would make it look squashed with is not a good thing. That is unless you were only to chop it like an inch. That would look cool and take some of the weight off the top.

Welding the rear windows up will be cool, color is cool and the white scallops will be nice also.

Good Luck on the build and keep us updated.

 

Thanks for the input guys.
After 2 years of looking at the Photoshopped version I'm STILL not certain about either the section or the chop.
Closing the back windows and widening the front door window WILL make it seem a bit "lower".
You are right about taking out some of the crown, Jeffery. I really like the rooflines of the 58-59 wagons with the flater roofs.

 

I would definitley decrown the roof especailly if it is chopped. I have never been a fan of sectioned cars very few look right to me so I personally wouldn't do that but hey it aint my car. I would move that slanted back door pillar up and use it as a b pillar after you have lengthened the doors. Could be a very cool project.

I would decrown the roof first to see what it makes the top look like and then go from there.

 

nother interesting idea!!
Thanks K13!

 

Looks good, almost there but not quite perfect in my eyes. I would stretch the front doors and use the slanted b-pillar from the back door, get rid of the vent windows, slam it, and move the rear trim back so it doesn't crowd the front door gap. Just my opinion.

 

Thats what I would diffently Photo chop + loose the crown. Got to stretch the frt dr. and make it 2dr ish.