The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop lowering the roof on a 54

hi . im thinking of lowering the roof on my 54 chevy pickup . is there a front windscreen that is the same shape as a 54 but smaller [ie narrower].. like a rear window off of a 84 chevelle or something that fits strait in for lowering . as i cannot get windscreen made shaped like it . i was considering cutting the original one down but that would be a major pain . i dont mind doing bodywork to make one fit thats a similar size ,,,,someone must have done it ?

No, you need to get your windshield chopped. there are also vendors that sell chopped windshields. You also need to stretch the roof by allowing the A-pillars to maintain their angle. Grafting glass is a more involved art than a simple chop.

Here is just one of many that come up when using Google to look for chopped windshields http://www.streetrodglass.com/

thanks Scott . there was me thinking it was going to be a breeze ..the glass is reasonably priced though ..
seems im going to have to have a long look at this project ,i will let you know .but in the meantime im grateful for your help . thankyou

Gish..........
are you looking at doing all this work yourself????????
Believe me, a roof chop is nothing to be atttempted by the un-initiated.
There is quite a science to doing this, not just a matter of putting a few parts together.

If you really must do this to a '54 Chev cab, hunt around for a professional and renowned body shop to carry out the work.
Expensive, but not as much as finding another '54 cab in merry England!

Best of luck on the build..........Doc.

Dont do it!!! The original lines of an AD truck are perfect!

Amen to that, fasteddie!

there is an easier wat to do this .1 grad a big pile of cash and time.2light a fire and throw the money in.3Stand there and do nothing for 3 months. carry on boltin!

i have chopped the tops on some of the older square type cars out of the 30's. they were a lot of work. now as for your round cab truck and speaking from past experince. i have to say the last three guys that said don't do it are right on.

..gentleman ,i have taken all of your valued comments on board and will get back to you with my findings ...carry on

wow,i would have expected alot of "dont chop it,leave it alone " in general truck talk but not here.i like the looks of an ad with a couple inches out. what i dont like is when they chop em so much the back window ends up lookin like a tank slot.i'd like to have about three inches out of mine but cut it so the back window stays as is.i've seen a couple done this way and like it much better.i have a old article (lord only knows where) where they used the cab and a extra roof from a junk cab and showed the cut lines where you dint have to add filler metal to it.pretty slick.and agree with scott just have your glass cut down by someone who knows what they're doing..just dont jump in blind ,research it.or have someone who knows what they're doing do it.if you want it do it..............dave

A 3" chop won't be that noticeable by many except, for us experienced stovebolters. There is room on the back of the cab the lower the rear window 3" thereby maintaining the full rear window and avoiding the "Mail Slot" tiny window.
If the truck suspension is also lowered then the chopped roof and lowered suspension will look balanced overall. An unchopped roof on an AD truck will give the appearance that it is actually taller that the stock roof if the suspension has been lowered. It's an optical illusion. I restore and modify AD trucks along with a friend of mine. I appreciate the stock restored look and the "hot rod" look if it's done tastefully. Good Luck with your project.

CHOP CHOP CHOP! I'm hoping it is a 3W cab. 5W are harder.

What's the worst thing you can do? Ruin your cab? NO! You can put it back if you want, just more welding.

Seriously, I'd find a donor and practice before I'd cut a '54.

DON'T DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!

I was going to have mine done, took it to the local shop that has done several. Said I would have to go to a fabric inside to cover up the mess. It seems that the metal inner cab is nearimpossible to do right. He said the outer was a piece of cake.

Gish

I am not saying a agree with the trend but if you want to see several examples of how folks chop trucks go over to ratrodsrule.com or killbillet.com. Sad to say but this trend is cutting up a lot of vintage tin

I did mine myself, 3 1/2" in front 4"in back. Go for it. Windshield and all glass are Lexan, stronger than glass and you can do it yourself. I was quoted $200 per windshield and figure on braking the first two. 6 bill and no guarantee of having a windshield in the truck, not this Texan. Where the is a will there's a way. Good luck it can be done.
http://s933.photobucket.com/albums/ad179/OEM54/

Lexan for a windshield is not legal. Front windshield needs to be laminated safety glass.

What WE b OLD said!!!

Yup! Lexan windshields are for race cars, and bearing in mind the original post is from a 'Brit',we have an annual inspection called the M.O.T.
A lexan windshield will NOT pass this test! Lets see how lexan copes after several months with windshield wipers on it.
It is Britain after all......
Unlike Texas,we get rain more often than not!

Don't chop? DON'T CHOP?!? You guys have got to be kidding me. This is the Hipo forum. One guy (no disrespect) said chopping isn't for the uninitiated, but how do people get initiated? You cut, patch, weld, repeat, until you get it right. That's called hot rodding. Hiring work out to professionals is for Honda owners.

Dude, tops have been chopped so many times, there's absolutely no shortage of information out there. I've got a book "How to Chop Tops" By Tex Smith, that shows an Advance Design step-by-step for a 3 inch chop. Go buy the book. The first 60+ pages are general info about top chopping, and the other 160 pages are examples. Get as much info as you can, then make sure that info was right, then go for it. Good luck.

A good chop takes two roofs for an AD, or at the least an english wheel.