Best way to chop 2" out

[deyo21]

Hello,
I'm new to the forum, I recently picked up a 1995 Yukon for cheap, and thought I would have a little fun with it. I'd like to chop 2 maybe 3". Anyone ever done this on one of these before. Or know a good source (pics, articles) I figure I could use a roof out of a suburban (for the grow factor) My concern is all the glass.

This will be my first chop, but I'm not afraid. My job is restoring Pre WWII cars for pebble beach, Stutz's Dusie's etc. I know my way around a english wheel, plenishing hammer, and pullmax.

Thanks in advance for the input

 

[General Stalin]

Sounds like a real pain. So you saying you want to take off two inches of the physical height of the body of the truck? As in, cut all the pillars down 2" and cut all the glass two inches and get a slightly longer and wider roof?

 

[deyo21]

That's the idea. My personal opinion its looks a little disproportioned, glass is too tall for the body.

 

[sasquatch094]

wouldnt the suburban roof be tooo big?? hanging off ?? since the tahoe has shorter back doors and the suburban back doors a little wider arnt they?? idk im jsut spit balling this

 

[sasquatch094]

Then again, it would be sweet to see a chopped hoe..

 

[deyo21]

Yes, a suburban roof is too big, that the idea. I would taking the roof removing the skin (ribbed portion) then cutting what left and streching it out fit the new wider pillar points. Then take the sububan roof cut out the ribbed porion to fit the new wider, longer roof.

The way it was explained to me, picture a tahoe looking at it from the back. What geometric shape does it remind you of. A trapezoid. Now draw a trapezoid o a piece of paper. Lower the top line. It no longer connects with the two sides. You have two options.

A=tilt the sides in until it connects with the top line again. This option woul change a lot of things ie. windows would not likely roll up and down due to a sudden change in the track angle.

Option B- extend the top line out to meet up with the exsisting side lines, and remove excess of the side lines. Here you have to extended the roof, and remove materail from the glass, but at least it will still work. And You probally don't have do anything with the side doors (mine is 4 door) the rear door window is square, so it just won't roll up as far. And the same should hold true for th front doors. So you still have to deal with windshield, quarter glass, and cargo door glass

 

[sasquatch094]

Dude, just chop the whole damn roof off that bithc.. chop all the way down to where the windows start on the doors and take out off the glass besides the windshield.. and actually theres a law that states u dont need a windshield, but yet u need wiper.. lol.. that would be tight if your tahoe you just bought had that back hatch and tailgate, so then you could just leave the whole tailgate in and weld it all shut.. idk.. lol.. make it like a convertible with a removable top or something crazy like that

 

[General Stalin]

Hahaha that would be wild, make it like an old jeep with no top half. It'd be like a way oversized Willy's haha.

Also, the suburban is dimentionall too much bigger to serve your needs, even for a 4 door tahoe, unless you modified and chopped op the suburban roof. It's like 2 feet longer than a 4 door tahoe roof, and somewhere in the realm of 6 inches wider.

 

[deyo21]

I'm planning on subtile changes. Just lowerig the roof 2 to 3 inches, not too many would notice that. Also plan on putting door poppers in and shaving the handles.
Does anyone know if you can do this on the first opening barn door?

I'm also debating on putting a sliding rag top in, possibly two. In which case I would hve to make a whole new roof skin. Wouldn't fit properly against the ribs, let alone seal.

The idea behind using a suburban roof is so I could cut it down, opposed to trying to lengthen and strecth the yukon roof. This way I could center the ribbing in the subrban donor roof, instead of addig a strip down the middle and throwing the spacing off.

 

[DefEddie]

Dude, just chop the whole damn roof off that bithc.. chop all the way down to where the windows start on the doors and take out off the glass besides the windshield.. and actually theres a law that states u dont need a windshield, but yet u need wiper.. lol.. that would be tight if your tahoe you just bought had that back hatch and tailgate, so then you could just leave the whole tailgate in and weld it all shut.. idk.. lol.. make it like a convertible with a removable top or something crazy like that

Lol,exactly what I did with my 92 2dr.
Not anywhere near finished with it,haven't finished dressing up the new "bedrails" from the cut or welded the tailgate shut.

He is entirely correct about it being a little goofy looking and too tall.
After you cut the back half off and take the glass out the front "cab" roof just looks too tall.
I would like to chop mine a couple inches also but trying to keep body stuff to a minimum.
I would get a body drop to hide the frame rails though before i would chop the top.
But those are two things that I would need to pay someone else to do also,so more than likely neither will be done anyway-i'm cheap.

I've seen chopped top 2drs,so I know it can be done.
Not sure what is involved though,not my forte'

 

[TahoeGoBoom]

all i can say is...
DO IT!
i wanna see a chop top hoe. i think itd be badass.

 

[Vanilla_Gorilla312]

I want to see pics of that s#!t when its finished!!! Chopped and Channeled!!!

 

[Wheels]

yeah, i'd like to see something like that too...

 

[bigblackhoe98]

http://truckbuildermagazine.com/Media/PublicationsArticle/TB_0808_ChoppedTahoe_2.pdf