I have a 65 that I am doing a complete restore with mods and am going to remove the gutters. I was wondering if any of you out there have any experience doing this and what you did different for finnish look. Also if you used anything different in the way of window/door moulding or if you went with stock rubber.

 

the main thing to consider is that the seam where the drip rail will be missing will have to be welded up the pinch weld holds the inner skin of the roof to the outer so if u cut it off it will not be attached on the sides till you do the weld. and then you also have to be very careful not to warp it all up

 

It looks as though it was spot welded in place. I am waiting for some free time so I can sand blast the car and get a better look. I was also thinking of trying to get a roof off a wrecked car to do a little trial and error on first.

 

DO NOT sandblast any body panels.From what i hear sand will warp the sh*^ outa the panels.IMO shaving the drip rails doesnt look very good especially for the time and effort it takes ,but that said lets us kno and take pics.good luck

 

don't sandblast it, media blast it. sand will warp the panels (only because it c an cause panel to overheat), but you can use walnut shells I believe it is, or even those plastic beads maybe? not sure, just don't use sand. I think walnut shells is the way to go.

 

I have used Silica sand with no problems also it is technique when blasting the panels and how powerfull the gun is.

 

media blasting is like sand blaster they just shoot it with something different from glass beads crushed walnut shells etc etc the main reason youll see a mustang with out the rain gutters on it. is they rusted out and no one makes replacement ones so you make then or just cut them off

 

It was either blasting or dipping and I dont like to pay for work to be done on my toys. As for the look of the gutters I think they take away from the beauty of the car. I dont like alot of chrome and I am going for a custom look. I saw one mustang in a car show with the drip rails removed and it looked great. the only downfall is at the big shows the owners arent around so you cant pick their brains for info. As for warping pannels I cant possibly hurt the car any worse than it already is. Thanks for the advise though. How do you post pictures on this site? I will try to figure out how to get my camera to talk to my computer so I can post my progress.

 

my 68 was media blasted there was one spot i had to massage with a body hammer but dealing with 40 year old sheet metal you always find things. i love how ford used stamped parts with wrinkles in them. most do simple things to stand out and not mess up the lines of the car cuting off the rain gutters is one if you go to a aftermarket heat/ac system you can fill in the cowl vent. shave off the trunk lock with a remote opener kit the sky and your wallet are the limits

 

I already filled in the vent, filled in most of the holes in the engine compartment,still tossing around in the air about door poppers and shaving the handles (have to convince the wife on that one since I am building the car for her) when I paint it I will flame it either real flame or ghost flames. removed all of the chrome decals. shopping for a billet grill, heard of some after market windshield trim or moulding that eliminates the chrome from around the front and rear windshield just havent found them yet.I have to replace the trunk lid and saw a dove or duck tail but I dont know yet if that application will work on my car. If they do does any one know if the quarter caps are pot metal still or can they be welded to the car to get rid of that joint. Oh yeah my wife wants a hood scoop too. I told her only if I can make it functional.