When it comes to chopping...
When it comes to chopping a roof, the simple act of lowering the roof line will mean more real estate is going to be needed. As shown in caption 07, you could visibly see how far off the roof skin was to the front of the windshield frame, which would normally be where some sort of filler would have to be added. However, because I removed the overhang, the two more or less butted right up. I couldn’t have planned it any better!
With things mated up, I welded...
With things mated up, I welded across the front of the newly formed roof.
The reason I didn’t remove...
The reason I didn’t remove any material from the side of the skin was more or less for the same reason as the front. When I pulled the roof skin down and forward, the sides overhang past the door. In order for a precise fit all that was needed was to trim the excess and again butt-weld.
All that may sound like a lot of work, but once more it’s just a matter of trimming to fit. In order to get the top down a bit more, an inch will be hacked off along the rear rim of the skin. From there, the rear of the skin gets tacked in position and the front is trimmed and sucked down into place. Because the front corners are being so drastically reshaped, a small filler gets inserted where the corner of the overhang is removed, but that’s small potatoes at this point! From start to finish I’d estimate a total of roughly 30 hours to chop the whole top! Then once things are all buttoned up, only a windshield will have to be cut and fit. All in all, this chop is the perfect way for any of you looking to up your game to the next level without having to go full bore. Let’s dig into rounding this chop out. CCT
Here’s another angle of how...
Here’s another angle of how much filler would have been needed if the overhang would have been retained. Also, notice how the new roof line creates a seamless flowing look as opposed to factory style. To flow the corner of the roof into the top, the corner was cut down along the same line as the front of the overhang.
The only filler piece needed...
The only filler piece needed in the whole chop was a small corner sliver between the windshield and the top. At this point the sliver is tacked in position.
Once welded and ground smooth...
Once welded and ground smooth the corner looks as if it were never touched. Even more so it looks as if GM designed the top that way!
Well here’s how things measure...
Well here’s how things measure up. At first glance it’s as if the top was never touched, but upon further inspection, you’ll notice all sorts of new lines and highlights. The new cap has less than half the meat of the factory top, the glass lines are at an even height, the transition from windshield to skin is smooth and sleek, and to boot, the top now has a new streamlined rake to it. It may not look like much at first, but all around it’s a totally different top; not to mention there’s a 4-inch chop up front and a 1 1/4-inch out back!