roof swap

[chestrekai]

i have a 70 skylark that unfortunately was involved in an accident. the car was totalled i luckly walked away with just some scratches and a broken heart. however the recently rebuilt motor(prior to the accident) survived as well. so i found a cheap 71 skylark with a blown engine to swap the motor with. the 71 previosly had a vinyl top and rust managed to eat its way through and the previous owner just slapped on a rather healthy layer of bondo down and called it a day. not acceptable. the roof on the 70 is still good so im thinking of cuting form the bottom of the pillars and some where in the back and just transfering the entire roof over. comments, life stories and suggestions greatly appreciated. wheres the best/lowest place to cut in the back? the interior is stripped, i'm thinking welding in temperary cross members would be wise to keep the body from tweaking?http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...kaiboom009.jpg

[fueler191]

quick question, where is the rust on the roof? is it down the a pillars and the rest of the pillars? or is it in the center of the roof?

-jeff-

[chestrekai]

the rust has gone through the middle near the front, the pillars have are rusted through near the top, and there are a few places near the back of the roof. might be more its hard to tell now with all the bondo, this weekend hopefully ill find the time to blast or hit it with an orbital

[fueler191]

well roof replacements are never pretty, but you'll want to talk to someone thats chopped a top before. Same basic idea, just with less steps. theres always the option of a carson top as well, those are always nifty

-jeff-

[EddyBuick62]

Easy to do ..... you need to remove windshield and back window . You can use these as a guide to re-align roof . Just cut the front post in a easy to weld location . I usally look for a common seam on the inner panel that will be the same on both cars , On the WS post you should make a plug ( Similar to a dowel in wood working) so the can really be welded solid. . On the rear just cut the outside skin so they can be butt welded and over lap the the inner panel . . Just think your way as you work and it is really simple to do . Just make clean and accurate cuts.