Same here, looking forward to seeing progress! I've wanted to do this myself!

 

Did someone say convertible?

 

I think most people would say OMG that will never run again! Now I'm waiting for my fastback top to get blasted so I can start fitting it to the coupe body. Hopefully it will be next week. I have some clean up to do before the new top goes on anyway. That should keep me busy for a few days. Anyone want to buy a really clean coupe top?

 

I wouldn't trash it. An old rodder told me that the coupe roof fills in the roof hole on early 30's fords like it was meant to be.

It looks like you are doing some clean work. Your post count is high. I am going to assume you know what you are doing. But, I am wondering why the car is still on its' suspension and not on some kind of jig to keep the pan the way Iaccoca intended it.

 

What the hell, why not at this point!

 

I know that some guys are into bracing everything to keep the body from flexing but I'm not really a believer in that so much. Sure if I was cutting the frame rails and floors out of a convertible but not so much on this job. There are only 3 points on each side that the roof connect to the body, A pillar, the B pillar (right behind the door, it is not really a B pillar), and the top of the wheel well. Structurally that is really all that attachces the roof. As long as I get those points correct when welding it back together the rest will be fine as far as alignment. I have never done this conversion before but I have clipped mustangs and I have replaced roofs, including the roof structure. This job is not that hard it just takes time to cut the spot welds and getting everything pulled apart cleanly. Besides that where would you put the bracing? There is nothing left of the car. I guess you could go from the A pillar stubs to the bumper braces in the trunk.

 

I would think it would need a table to support the front subframe and rear subframe per specs. There isn't anything solid to connect the 2. The roof ties them better than anything else on the car. My concern would be twist from front to rear. You can even have twist from the front and rear of the leaf spring. I have a rear leaf perch that sits out of level with the rest of the major suspension points. I was able to check it while on a rotisserie. All the rest were spot on.

A weak spring or even a low tire could have you moving the floor around out of spec. Add to that a roof structure with no way to brace or check for correctness and you are leaving a lot to hope.

I have never done such a conversion. I would like to build a track specific car someday from a conversion. I had done some thinking and research but nothing to heavy. Just make sure the glass fits before you weld it all up. You can always modify sheet metal to make it work but glass is tough, well for me anyway.

 

I figured the way I was doing this was going to cause heart ache with some of you. I have taken messurements on both sides of the windshield opening to ensure that it will remain the same and the front glass will fit. As long as the cuts on the A pillar, The B pillar where it meets the rocker and the supports on the top of the rear wheel all match up front the carcass to the new top then everything will be fine. I'm getting the top blasted tomorrow and hope to be fitting the top by early next week. I'll post photos of how things are going for the believers and non-believers alike.

 

Finally got some more done on my conversion project. Moved all of the brackets from the fastback over to the coupe chasis. I patched a few small rust holes in the floor and took the oprotunity to shoot it with DP90 and some color. I figured this would be the best time since I could get to a lot of parts that will be imposible to spray after the top and quarters are on. The top goes on tomorrow.

 

It is now officially a fastback. It took about an hour to trim up the windshield posts so that they matched up and the windshield opening was the right size. It is just tack welded into place. Door gaps look great but I have not welded anything back there yet. I should have most of the back end put together next week. I still need a quarter for the right side so I can only do so much.