Taking the plunge, chopping the Hudson. The "Panty Dropper" gets a haircut...

[Deleted User]

So, I've been wanting to do this for the 9 years I've owned the car. I've photoshopped and photoshopped, from different angles, trying to get a handle on the best way to chop the car. I've been told SO MANY TIMES not to chop it, and that Hudsons look chopped from the factory, blah blah blah. The car always looked *almost* right to me, and 2 inches worth of vertical drop would really clean the lines up.



Last week, I decided to take the plunge. Here's what I started with:







The first step was to remove all the glass.







I carefully laid out the cut lines. Hudsons have a really nice body line where the roof meets the body, and I wanted to keep that. I wanted the chop to look factory. So many guys smooth the line between the roof and the body on chopped cars, eliminating factory reveals and body lines, and I've always thought it looked sloppy that way.



I figured that if I cut out the back portions of the rear side windows and set them aside, and then cut out the entire body line area around the rear of the car, I could sink the roof into the body at the package tray area, move the transition peice up to meet the roof, and then fill the gap that opens at the back.



Front:







Back:

[Deleted User]

Now that everything is laid out, it's time to start cuttng.

I braced the interior and cut the door tops off. Those will be dealt with later.













The next step was to cut out the rear corners of the back side windows for use later. Rather than cut directly through them and then have to fabricate new corners, I just cut the whole thing out.









After both corners were cut, I figured the next step should be to cut along the back, then the A pillars, then the B pillars last.



I used a cut off wheel on an angle grinder for some of the cutting and a Sawzall for other bits.







The top comes off!!!

[Deleted User]

I then cut 2 inches of vertical drop out of the A pillars, which worked out to 2.5 inches of lineal drop, and trial fit the roof:









Next, I cut out the reveal line that I wanted to keep, the transition between the trunk area of the body and the roof. I measured and cut.











Then, the A pillars were pie cut on the inside edges, to let them bend a bit, and the roof was tacked in place in the front.











This shot shows how moving the body line forward will keep the line untouched, and open a 4 inch area at the back of the car, just ahead of the trunk to be filled. This basically sections 3 inches out of the rear of the roof under the window, and moves the rear window forward 4 inches. The roof line will still be incredibly long, but not rediculously so...







And finally (for now), here's a side shot showing the height of the side window openings, and a general line of the roof. A big improvement for sure.







More later...

[Deleted User]

Nice job! A Brougham would seem to be the harder body to chop versus a coupe or a four-door - I like what you've got going on your car.



That's the nice thing about Photoshop, is that it makes it SO much easier to conceptualize a finished product!

bent metal

I think it looks awesome. Smart the way you chopped it to not have to do anything with the roof. Keep the up dates coming, cool project.

[Deleted User]

Thanks.



The glass is the easy part. I've got a glass man with 40 years experience doing it for me. ha ha.

[Deleted User]

Hi Hudson Dave here . I like It . I wish you lived close to me In FL. I would call to see if you wanted to come to my house and play. I have a 28 hudson frame a 39 Hudson front clip and a 34 Buick 4 dr that I cut 10 IN. out of the roof and took the pillers out and added 10 IN . to the rear doors . I now have 40 In. suicide doors . I have rough out the dash .It has a 60 OLDS dash and steering wheel and pedals . With a 394 cube big block 315 HP It should bee a fun ride when It Is done.:eek:

[Deleted User]

Very smart way you did the rear part, especially since you don't have to custom-fit curved glass! All you have to cut is straight glass.

MikeWA

That looks great! With the modest chop, you could get away with the way you did the back window, and shorten up that loooonnnggg top in the process. Now the rear quarter windows will be about midway between a coupe and a sedan- so would it be a Victoria? :rolleyes: Are you going to slant the B pillars? Looks like the easiest way to line things up, and I always liked the looks, as well.

[Deleted User]

Thanks for the kind words.



The B pillars will be straight, not slanted. I wanted to build the car the way the original Hudson designers may have envisioned it. Lower, sleeker, prettier...

Ol racer

Hudsoncustom,



Looking Great; Might encourage others to consider chopping their project. Only thing better would be to make it a 'hardtop' ...

[Deleted User]

I could imagine a chopped Brougham made into a hardtop - that would be "easy" to do, taking this and going just a bit farther.

[Deleted User]

I think a hard top with this roofline would look like crap. the window openings would be way too long. way too long.

Unknown

I am very impressed. This is almost like a how to chop your hudson post, with pictures. You made it look TOO EASY! Keep posting the results.



If you were going to put up a vote, I would love to see slanted B pillars, as well. I think straight are gonna be tough!

Unknown

Really cool post !!! , the 50 and earlier rear window looks like it lends itself to this chop better than the later larger rear window would ??. great job !!!! and really well thought out !!

[Deleted User]

stateline wrote:

Really cool post !!! , the 50 and earlier rear window looks like it lends itself to this chop better than the later larger rear window would ??. great job !!!! and really well thought out !!

I absolutely agree.



thanks for the kind words all...I'll update more as I get more done. Hopefully, I'll get some time this weekend to get a few things done.

Unknown

Very well planned and executed. Thanks for sharing the pictures that show the whole process. Keep us up to date. Fine Job!



I love that 53 Olds dash which is quite an improvement. Did you change that over? Difficult Job? Does it have an Olds engine too?

[Deleted User]

Yeah, I put in the 53 Olds dash. The car is channelled 4 inches over a 1984 Mercury Grand Marquis chassis that was stretched 9 inches, and has a 460 Ford under the hood.

Unknown

hope you keep the pics coming on the progress . wished my wife would let me chop the coupe. lol (its her car)

mike

Unknown

Just gotta add my thougts on this one. SUPER DOOPER ALL THE WAY !! This is so well done the details deserve to be preserved where it could be brought up for referance in the future somehow by guys wanting to try it but need help. BUD

rambos_ride

Hudson Custom,

Have you found a place to cut the glass around here?

Dan

Unknown

I am saving all the pics. I will be chopping mine next winter, and probably do it the same. It is a clean chop. Right now i am converting mine from a 4 door to a two door, so the chop will have to wait till next winter. I would like to see more pics also. Bill

[Deleted User]

hudsoncustom wrote:

Thanks for the kind words.



The B pillars will be straight, not slanted. I wanted to build the car the way the original Hudson designers may have envisioned it. Lower, sleeker, prettier...

Awesome work hudsoncustom !! There's nothing sweeter than watching someone who know's what he's doing, and does it veeery well !! I too -- have looked a the Hudson lines in various models, and wished the designers of the day had seen fit to make them a little less "bulby" ( as my son puts it ), especially for the pre-stepdown years. The new lines you've created for this model might well have swayed the design department quite a bit if they could have seen what you've just done.



I think you're right-on with keeping the B pillars straight !! Slanting them is just taking the easy way out in my opinion. When you're done, I'll bet a lot of Guys who see this car, will wonder why they never noticed Hudson made a model with this sweet a line, -- not even realizing its been chopped !! To me, that'd be success achieved !! To produce work that rivals or equals factory grade, (or better).



I'm a "keep it stock if you can" kind of Guy myself, because I feel we need to preserve some of the survivors for future generations to see what Hudson produced at the factory in their day, but that dosen't mean I don't appreciate "hotrods" and craftmanship !



You've got my "thumbs up" on this one !



silverone

[Deleted User]

rambos_ride wrote:

Hudson Custom,



Have you found a place to cut the glass around here?



Dan

Yep. My friend Beelte Bailey in Smokey Point (Arlington) cut the glass for me. He's a retired glass man with tons of experience. I can send you his info if you'd like.

[Deleted User]

silverone wrote:

Awesome work hudsoncustom !! There's nothing sweeter than watching someone who know's what he's doing, and does it veeery well !! I too -- have looked a the Hudson lines in various models, and wished the designers of the day had seen fit to make them a little less "bulby" ( as my son puts it ), especially for the pre-stepdown years. The new lines you've created for this model might well have swayed the design department quite a bit if they could have seen what you've just done.



I think you're right-on with keeping the B pillars straight !! Slanting them is just taking the easy way out in my opinion. When you're done, I'll bet a lot of Guys who see this car, will wonder why they never noticed Hudson made a model with this sweet a line, -- not even realizing its been chopped !! To me, that'd be success achieved !! To produce work that rivals or equals factory grade, (or better).



I'm a "keep it stock if you can" kind of Guy myself, because I feel we need to preserve some of the survivors for future generations to see what Hudson produced at the factory in their day, but that dosen't mean I don't appreciate "hotrods" and craftmanship !



You've got my "thumbs up" on this one !



silverone

Thanks!



One of these days I'll get around to adding more pics. I've been working on the finish welding some...that takes a LOT of time. If I posted more photos right now, they wouldn't look much different.



As for the "someone who knows what he's doing" part...I don't fit that bill. I've never chopped a car before. I've not done much in the bodywork department at all really.



But, I do have an eye for design and clean lines (went to school for photography) and am going off of my gut.



I've had SO MANY people tell me not to chop the car, but not a SINGLE ONE tell me I made a bad choice after seeing the pics.



Stay tuned.

SuperDave

I wonder if a deck lid from a coupe would help with this project? It's longer and would not require the long deck between the rear window and lid? It's hard to improve the proportions of a Two door but...Darn that looks good!

[Deleted User]

No. I've never like the rear end of a coupe. The trunk is too long.



I've only extended the area between the trunk and the roofline 4 inches. It's really not noticeable.



Coupe's always looked like a "turret top" to me, with a rediculously long back end. Brougham's and 4 door sedans have a nice long roof that is just a bit too long...



So I fixed it.



It will look nice... In fact, the distance between the top of the trunk and the bottom of the back window is still less than the same distance on a 49-51 mercury....and A LOT less than on a Ford.

MikeWA

hudsoncustom wrote:

Thanks!



I've had SO MANY people tell me not to chop the car, but not a SINGLE ONE tell me I made a bad choice after seeing the pics.



Stay tuned.

If I were standing in your shop, looking at the car, and you asked if you should chop it, I would say not, because I would be thinking of the conventional chop where you keep the rear side windows the same length, but lay the backlite forward. That would just accentuate the length of the side windows, and they're really too long, already. But the way you've chosen to do it really is beautiful- I haven't ever seen another like it, but I'll bet we'll see some in the future. "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery". Good on ya'.

[Deleted User]

Your car's name kills me! "Panty-Dropper"!!! LOL!

Unknown

Man that is sooo killer, I have 52 Wasp I am wanting to do same its in body right now getting smoothed out shaved. I got all interrior out like in your pics. Im in Tacoma Wa. Id like to get a closer look at it now, I just came across your post and am wanting to see your work if possible

Unknown

Thanks! That's great!



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