Chopping The Top On A Deuce Five-Window - Enhancing The View: Part II

These three images give you a great visualization of how important the proper fit of the door is when rounding out a chop.

This close-up of the A-pillar and cowl area clearly shows just how involved a chop of this magnitude is.

There's something intoxicating about the heavy scent of vintage steel being cut and ground to raise one's awareness of just how cool it is to be present in a room where a hot rod is being born.

With the A- and B-pillar areas of the chop coming along well, it was time to focus on the rear quarter-window and sail panel areas of the top.

With Keith helping out to support the roof, Ken spends a bit of time finessing the bottom edge of the sail panel area with an electric disc grinder to help get all of the final lines nice and even prior to any welding commencing.

With the back window opening and B-pillar clamped together, Keith uses his MIG welder to lay some initial tack welds to begin holding the rear of the top in place as the next step approaches.

A number of relief cuts will need to be made to the rear curved section of the panel to allow the steel to stretch back to conformity.

From this vantage point you can appreciate the amount of relief the sail panel area is in need of, and it will take multiple cuts to bring everything back into perspective.

Using a small-diameter cutoff wheel, Keith starts work on making the initial relief cut into the sail panel to determine what it will take to get the job done.

After all was said and done, Keith made three corresponding relief cuts into the sail panel to allow ample movement for the roof to come back into shape.

With the relief cuts completed and assisted by additional body clamps, Keith begins to work the sail panel area with a hammer and dolly to bring the roof back to its final proportions prior to any tack welding being started.

With additional body clamps in place, Keith slowly begins to tack-weld the sail panel area back into place.

It's bitchin' to see how the roof has come back into proportion now that all of the initial tack welding has been completed.

The final area to be tended to is the rear quarter-window opening, which was off roughly a quarter-inch.

Keith carefully removes the rear-window section using a small cutoff wheel, leaving a clean opening that will make his reinstallation a breeze.

Keith utilizes a previously removed portion of the rear sail panel, which will be a perfect filler piece to allow him to make up the needed quarter-inch.

Keith clamps the rear window section back into place and uses his MIG welder to tack-weld the piece back to the roof.

While Keith is welding, Chris is hard at work on the driver-side top door hinge, using a drill press to remove the original factory rivets so the hinge can be re-angled to support the reconfigured A-pillar.

Keith marks the A-pillar for a pie-cut that will allow him to use a hammer and dolly to gently work the final proportions of the A-pillar to completion.

For a final point of reference, the magnetic Polycast Protractor is affixed once again to the A-pillar to accurately measure the updated post angle now that the chop has been completed.

With the metalwork and welding completed on the A-pillar area, all that will remain is any final adjustments to be made and the bodywork to be finished for the chop to be complete.

The crew at Rolling Bones has indeed succeeded with infusing attitude into the Deuce, thanks to a final chop that added a neat wedge to the mix, not to mention a blistering chop that finished with 6 inches up front and 5 1/2 inches out back.