Hey guys! Its time for me to plan my chop top for my Fiero. I did some measuring, and chop top planning... now I think a 2 inch chop would look sexy. Here are the pictures I photoshopped, to scale. Quick photoshops:

Fiero Origonal Roof:


1 Inch Chop:


2 Inch Chop:


3 Inch Chop:


My head is 3 1/4 inches from the ceiling, so max chop I can do is 3 inches.

Pick, no chop, 1, 2, or 3 inch for me! Whichever gets the most votes, is the one I will do!

CURRENT RESULTS OF VOTING:
0 inch: 0
1 inch: 0 - and 1 "Why even bother?"
2 inch: 3
3 inch: 3

[This message has been edited by Racing_Master (edited 05-16-2009).]

IMO 1' chop is not worth the trouble.

2" chop works if you are tall. Car-lo did this and his car looks good.

3" chop IMO looks best and gives the most exotic appearance.

Just my two er,...three cents.



Me and my V-8 Archie 3" chop.

I prefer the six inch chop...



but the 3" also looks good.

I vote 2

Just curious what your going to do for windows if you dont do the standard 3"

Well I am 6' tall, mostly legs :P.

I think the 3" would look pretty good, if I did the archie style and layed the front glass back instead of cutting it. I am wondering what I would need to do to the wiper arm mounts to make the 3" work right, or if I should switch out to a monoblade. My wing will be custom glassed to match the roofline, and angled slightly back with flared wingstands at the bottom. I might also rework the contour of the stock wing to give it more of an aerofoil design, to actually create downforce, instead of just for looks. Thanks for the images and input. I could do a 3" chop though my head will be really close to the ceiling.

Also, my welding would be done the old school way, Stick welding with a 220 stick welder, with 3/32 6011 rod. 60 amps should be enough to weld the pillars. Also just a thought, should I just pie cut the front and lean it back or seperate the roof from the top of the A pillars, and then pie cut the bottom of the A-Pillar, and lean them back at the proper angle? Also, I am gonna rid of my quarter windows if I Do this, I would change them to large engine scoops, similar to a Lamborghini Countach. But when I do that, I am also installing my custom widebody kit. This is gonna be a long project...

EDIT:

And for windows, I am gonna glass out templates, using origonal windows as plugs, and cut the fiberglass templates, and go to Portland Glass (down the street) and have them make me windows.

[This message has been edited by Racing_Master (edited 05-15-2009).]

I vote 2 inch, 3inches really never looked right from the side. I think 2in would be perfect.

quote Originally posted by Racing_Master: if I did the archie style and layed the front glass back instead of cutting it. EDIT: And for windows, I am gonna glass out templates, using origonal windows as plugs, and cut the fiberglass templates, and go to Portland Glass (down the street) and have them make me windows.

I think you need to do more glass research...

first of all Archie doesn't cut the front glass, he lays back a stock windshield.

Second, having flat glass cut is easy, anybody can do that. Getting curved glass made is very expensive and I don't think that Portland glass down the street is going to be able to just pop out curved glass. If they can then I'll eat my words and be contacting them for glass side windows for my chop top.

quote Originally posted by exoticse: 2" chop works if you are tall. Car-lo did this and his car looks good.

Yes, it certainly looks good, but it doesn't work for me.

3 or nothing!

quote Originally posted by jscott1: I think you need to do more glass research... first of all Archie doesn't cut the front glass, he lays back a stock windshield. Second, having flat glass cut is easy, anybody can do that. Getting curved glass made is very expensive and I don't think that Portland glass down the street is going to be able to just pop out curved glass. If they can then I'll eat my words and be contacting them for glass side windows for my chop top.

I know archie doesnt cut the front glass, thats why I said, lay it down like archie, instead of cutting it :P. And, Portland Glass is not extremely huge, but if you give them a fiberglass template, they can usually send it to their manufacturing facility to make a custom glass. Them down the street is just a warehouse. They do make custom orders. The side glass would be nice to get custom, though might be a little expensive. The front window would probably be too much to cut, and it looks better layed down anyway. As I was taught in hotrodding class, if you make the template, they can make it, if you just use words or cardboard or cheap stuff, they cant make it. And to do a front window template, gotta throw in a bit of wood into the fiberglass to support it over the long span. The back window I can probably just get cut, the side windows I do need to have made custom. If they dont do it, I know New England Glass will, but they are more expensive (So I have heared.) And if all else fails, I go to my hot rodding contacts around here and ask them their glass company they use.

quote Originally posted by Racing_Master: EDIT: And for windows, I am gonna glass out templates, using origonal windows as plugs, and cut the fiberglass templates, and go to Portland Glass (down the street) and have them make me windows.

If they can do that I wil be placing an order !! !! I really doubt they will be able to make you tempered side glass that way. Maybe safety glass, or lexan. Let us know what they say !

quote Originally posted by Mike Gonzalez: If they can do that I wil be placing an order !! !! I really doubt they will be able to make you tempered side glass that way. Maybe safety glass, or lexan. Let us know what they say !

Ditto..

I personally contacted every bent glass place I could find and nobody wanted to touch tempered side glass without a huge setup fee. In case you haven't been following, the Fiero chop top side glass has a pretty severe bend in it and no glass shop has been able to make it as of yet. This is the holy grail of glass. So if your shop down the street can make it, then it truly is a miracle.

Sorry I misunderstood the windshield comment, but the rear is tempered...nearly impossible to cut. It will shatter into a million pieces before it cuts. But a flat glass it easy to have cut and then tempered.

[This message has been edited by jscott1 (edited 05-16-2009).]

No comment on the glass, but for chop height I would say 2". I think 3 makes it look too much like a wedge......

Now that I think about it, I wouldn't mind seeing a 1" photoshop from a further back picture.......

[This message has been edited by 86fierofun (edited 05-16-2009).]

A stick welder? You must be pretty skilled.

Beg, borrow or steal a 220 volt mig w/gas, your chop will be so much easier.

David Breeze

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Pantera Rebody Kits

quote Originally posted by opm2000: A stick welder? You must be pretty skilled. Beg, borrow or steal a 220 volt mig w/gas, your chop will be so much easier. David Breeze

My stick welds are usually pretty good, and look like MIG Beads :P Though I got to be careful about heat when welding on such thin material, I dont wanna warp it.

quote Originally posted by exoticse: IMO 1' chop is not worth the trouble. 2" chop works if you are tall. Car-lo did this and his car looks good. 3" chop IMO looks best and gives the most exotic appearance.

By the way, Racing_Master, thanks for your photoshopped pics illustrating those differences.

[This message has been edited by project34 (edited 05-16-2009).]

quote Originally posted by project34: By the way, Racing_Master, thanks for your photoshopped pics illustrating those differences.

Be advised, however, that the three chop top illustrations above DO NOT lay back the windshield, (which is by far the most common approach). Simply lowering the roof and shortening the windshield would require a cut down windshield...good luck with that; doable but with only the utmost in patience. One wrong move and it cracks.

quote Originally posted by jscott1: Be advised, however, that the three chop top illustrations above DO NOT lay back the windshield, (which is by far the most common approach).

Yours is a good point, and I'd forgotten to acknowledge that earlier.

Nonetheless, IMHO, I'd still recommend going with a 3-inch chop because of its more exotic looks.