If you do cut it, you should save and keep track of the pieces you take out to weld them back in some day. You could coat them in wd-40 or other grease, put them in a zip lock and tape them under the dash.
I've seen boxes to put stereos in that bolt to the bottom of your dash, then you don't cut anything. If you do that you could put a delete plate where the original stereo goes.
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I've seen those in AD's under the dash and they look nice. If you get the box before you start the restoration you can paint it the color of the dash before you mount it and that'll help it blend in a little. Those boxes are about $40 from a vendor or $20 on ebay, here's a link:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Car-...itemZ180005400143QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW Some people put the stereo in the glove box, but like you, I need the glove box for other things.
I saw one truck where they put in a 18-wheeler style shelf above the windsheild with the stereo a couple of cubby-holes and the speakers. That ain't for me in my '51 but in a suburban or something maybe...
I've seen people modify the radio speaker cover grill so that it has a hinge and they put the radio behind that, then when it's shut it looks like there is no radio. Like the glove box, you'd have to drive around with that one open too, so it may not work for you.
There are some stereos that have the tuner readout on the rear view mirror. I've seen a few for auction on e-bay and am looking for one. Until then I'm going with the box under the dash so I don't cut anything or have to drive around with the glovebox/speaker grill open.
The other thing I'd like to do is get a USB ready shaft-style stereo that fits in the original spot and looks sort of original, and then hook it up to an external harddrive with all my music in MP3 format that I'll mount under the seat with the amps and sub-woofers. That way it looks stock, fits in the stock location and has all my music and I don't have to hook up the I-pod or change out cd's. I don't think anyone is making those yet and I can't afford the shop that'll take an original radio and put modern guts in it.
