come along as we chop this '40 Mercury oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

ooooooooooooooooooooooo following in the footsteps of the heroes of the trade

 

 

as preparation clean out the interior and brace the body to reduce possible flex

 

measure and mark the cuts - here we use tape and marker to get straight cuts

 

these are 5" in the front and 9" to be cut out of the c-pillar

 

then it takes a brave soul to start cutting with saw and angle grinder

 

cutting free the rear window, which is going to be reused as one piece

 

improvised roof support helps when the last pillar is cut

 

then the roof goes back on and is tacked at the a-posts

 

watch for correct width in relation to window channel when tacking c-pillar

 

and then it's high time for some test sitting

 

but beer crate seat proved too high for unhindered straight ahead visibility

 

next windscreen top frame is cut lose and moved up about two inches

 

watch for smoldering fires in noise insulation mats

 

rear window is cut loose and simply tilted forward into slightly bent up roof

 

cardboard patterns show three dimensional curve around the back of the roof

 

and then it's time to call it a day and stand back in awe!

 

next there's the task of getting the flow of the rear right

 

by patching in panels and a bunch of filler pieces (eventually cut out again)

 

because better: get your hands on an English wheel and start rollin'

 

a little practice will get you smooth flowing curves

 

the roof filler pieces are welded

 

vent window frame is also in the making as is the B-post

 

stainless steel window frames need special welder to be put back into shape

 

narrow b-pillar makes for slick profile

 

be a butcher

 

so cool

 

to be continued!