customline

Yay! 😀. Nice build, David, with all the improvements and the care taken on this esoteric subject.

Gentlemen, thank you all for your interest and advice on this side trim issue. After much consideration, I have decided to just keep what's there. The winner is #1 - stock location! Lenny spent a lot of time trying to help me and I really appreciate it but after all of that, I feel the original trim is just fine. It's clean and it divides the sheet metal into very acceptable proportions. The amount of body below the trim is approximately equal to the greenhouse height. To my eye, it makes sense. I need to concentrate on the tail light mod; it still needs work and I'm not happy with it yet. Thinking about another project is distracting me now so I need to get this one in paintable condition. None of the advice and comments received is wasted. It made me think.

Yeah, I sorta had a kinda half-baked notion that could be the case 🤤

Getting the curve right is tricky, Len. I've been trying to make a template on paper. I think I'll try your suggestion with tape on the body. Thanks for hangin' 🤓

Snoring you say? You have no idea 😴. If there was a Nobel prize for snoring.... Hey, you are the side trim guru now, Len, so I'm thinking I can use some sheet say, .020, and I have .030 triangular and I just ordered some .040 triang. One or the other should work. That combo would give me a good guide for my blade when trimming foil Right? 🙂....with some very delicate molding work under high magnification. Easy peasy 😅 The full trim on a '52 Buick would also include a run on the rocker, but the ragtop example didn't use it. It's pretty dramatic 🤩

I really like the ragtop, Len. The way he placed the trim for the color break. Two-toning is a very good way to disguise the great expanse. I feel a decision coming on this. 😏 yeah. Edit: hey Len, I asked Wifey if she had a French curve template. She said "What's that?". I told her and she leaves the room and returns with a book of all sorts of curves and circles and templates of just about anything and everything...well anyway, you get the idea. Buick trim should be easy enough, huh?

Oooo....there's some food for thought there, Len ( no BBQ though)... I've been busy, you may be pleased to know. At half-time, (BTW, are you a Jets fan?) It was 49 degrees outside so I was able to heat up a fresh can of Tamiya light gray and got some of it (that the breeze didn't take) on the niner. And I got foil on the port side spear. 👇 while I'm at it, here's a few ideas for improving the side view #1👇 #2👇 #3👇 Just kidding🤣 #4👇 #5👎I think somebody spilled beer on It #6👇 I think #1 maybe. 😉..... but I kinda like #6 😛 I'm starting to think about bumpers(🤮)now, too. This always happens.

I was just reviewing and found this (don't know how I missed it 😒) and it took me several "re-looks" to finally get the picture. How in the he'll did you do that? Moving the spear up does look better but in the rear it runs too close to the wind split but it accomplishes the goal. Your side trim cred is good with me, Len, but I'm taking it slow until I have seen the big picture more clearly. I worked the rear mods a bit in the wee hours and I hope to get primer on it at half-time 🏈 🥴 🍺 when, hopefully, it reaches 50F. 🌡

Ditto! 😳

That seems to be the prevailing idea, which I agree with. My plan, however, is to temporarily foil the existing spear after priming the whole car again ( it should warm up soon 🥶 ) and reassess the situation. Let's see if the stock trim works well enough. There are other options. 👇🥴

I get it, for sure. 🥴

I think I know what you are trying to do here, Topher. Is this it, give or take?

I think maybe a bit more than that, Len. Before I do any more, I need to sand the surface spots and get an overall light coat of primer for a better visual. Yeah, I hate bumpers. You're not supposed to bump anything. Most self-respecting lead sleds sport big bulbous bumpers. I like a cleaner look.

This is what I'm using for the actual body contouring 👇. Its thick enough to use as body filler. For "glazing" duty, I use Mr. Surfacer 500. I sorta hafta purge the watery stuff, there's just no other way. ☹. But the convenience outweighs that little "drool" issue. Here's a mock-up As I look at these two photos I'm thinking that I need to re-think the area below the light pods. I gotta get some primer on it 🤔 I can't do much with the very bottom, Len, because the chassis comes into play. There's not much body below the chassis so it's a "take it slow" situation.

Thanks, Steve. The chop was not well planned out, I will admit, but I'm okay with it. Luckily, I put the box in the trash a while back so there's no danger of that, and all my other boxes are occupied at the moment 😂

I don't know how to respond to this, Len, I'm quite flummoxed (look it up). Is this about the ketchup?

Absolutely. I have a box of A,T, and deuce parts but the thing that's in short supply is front axles, dropped ones. There was some Aussie ones on Ebay that I want to try....I should do that...note to self - check ebay.

BONDO! edit: good BBQ is something that's plentiful around south-eastern VA. 😛 it's the glazing putty, the "professional" catalyzed type. I've been having trouble with quality lately with both parts. I guess when it sits on the shelf for a while it gets like a bottle of ketchup and the watery stuff comes out first, but I just deal with it. It makes the job really fast, you can stay on it with very little waiting between layers. Glad you like the tail lights, I didn't know what else to do back there 🥴

He should be fine over the speed bumps, Len, after he installs some heavy duty shocks. 🙂

The seats were begging for it, Seth. Bed length looks right and a channel job certainly wouldn't hurt..... I need to do one of these 🤔

Thanks, Len, I needed that 😊

Easy, Len, it's just an idea at this point but it would make perfect sense for all the rest of it. Maybe you could just get some nice Carolina BBQ take-out 😋

Yeah, Len, i plan to work on the bottom of the new stuff on the ends for an acceptable contour. It's still kinda rough. This latest mod adds some length and I'm still thinking about a side trim mod to break it up better although the stock trim may be enough once the foil is on and a flame job may be on the table now too. Thanks, 🥴!

As long as the welding was performed by a competent tradesman, the "suicide" spring mount wouldn't be dangerous, in and of itself. It's the unprotected stuff sticking out everywhere that's the problem. 😁

I'm in a right-to-work state, Brian. I would be considered (incorrectly) to be a "scab", so no J-man certificate for me. Not for this, anyway. It's not quite done yet and it won't see any primer for a few days due to the cold wave going through. Thanks for your support 🤓! Like I always say, Dave, a broken clock is right twice a day 🥴. I guess the sectioning thing just won't go away 😕. The lesson learned on this build is "how much a top can be chopped and still be esthetically pleasing depends on a variety of factors specific to the original design" (I'm putting that on my sig line 😏). My mild chop of a '40 coupe 👇 is an example. However, it was my original intent to do a radical chop on this '49 Ford platform and, as it turned out, was a bit much for this shoebox style ( going off half-cocked didn't help 🥴.) To section it now would require way more work on the nose with all the mods that have already been done to this point, including the delicate front hinge. I already learned that lesson, David. It's just too late. The sectioning must include the nose from the very beginning. The only way to do it now would necessarily prohibit the '52 Desoto grille from being used and you don't want that 😉. Thanks for your input, Dave, I appreciate it.