Restoring a 1963-1/2 Ford Galaxie With Help From AMD, Roadster Shop, and Anton’s Hot Rod Shop

By Ron Covell – Photography By Anton Lanesky

Anton’s Hot Rod Shop in Hiram, Ohio, has created an impressive series of exceptional builds. In this article, we will closely examine how aftermarket patch panels can help restore a car (even one in poor condition) to modern-day standards and offer a solid foundation for future modifications.

02 1963 Galaxie body lift revealing original chassis with V8 drivetrain and rust patina — One of the first steps was removing the body from the chassis, and a two-post lift is a great tool for this job.

This 1963-1/2 Ford Galaxie project serves as a good example. Although the car they started with appeared decent, it didn’t require much investigation to realize that replacing the floors, quarter-panels, and several other panels with high-quality reproductions was wise. This car will include a Roadster Shop RideLine chassis with fully independent suspension designed for a supercharged Coyote engine prepared by Roush Performance.

03 Art Morrison custom chassis upgrade for 1963 Ford Galaxie with coilovers and rack steering — The car will be built over a Roadster Shop RideLine chassis. This is made as a direct bolt-on assembly for the 1963 Galaxie, with IRS both front and rear.

The first step in the build was to remove the body from the original frame and test the fit against the new chassis. This chassis is designed to fit the Galaxy without modifications, but it’s always wise to conduct a test-fitting before any serious work begins. As expected, the body fit perfectly, so the next step was to send the body off to be chemically stripped and e-coated, protecting the metal from any future rust or corrosion.

04 1963 Galaxie underbody with installed Art Morrison frame and 9 inch Ford rearend — Before any significant work is undertaken, the body is fitted to the new chassis to check the fit and determine if any adjustments are needed. The fit was perfect, as expected.

The floor and trunk panels were replaced first, while the outer body skin remained untouched. The quarter-panels were removed following the reinforcement of the bottom of the body with the new panels. All replacement panels were sourced from Auto Metal Direct (AMD), and as you’ll see, they feature factory-style flanges, ensuring a hassle-free fit.

05 Bare metal 1963 Ford Galaxie shell stripped and mounted for bodywork and restoration — Anton always has the sheetmetal for their project cars chemically stripped and then e-coated to ensure that the bare metal is completely clean and protected inside and out.

While the quarter-panels were removed, the wheelhouses were widened to fit the large wheels and tires intended for this build. Fortunately, the inner edges of the original wheelhouses provided the necessary clearance, so only the outer wall needed adjustment. This eliminated the need to modify the floorpans.

06 Epoxy primed 1963 Galaxie body shell on stands ready for assembly and paint prep — The rusty floor areas are removed with the body back from stripping and coating.

The main task was to correctly align the large quarter-panels before clamping and tack-welding them into place. Achieving the right fit is crucial; otherwise, alignment issues will persist. After the quarters were tack-welded in position, the fit of the doors and decklid were double-checked to ensure no problems arose. Once the fit was confirmed, all the joints were TIG welded together.

07 New reproduction trunk floor pan installed on 1963 Galaxie body restoration — AMD makes top-quality replacement panels for the most popular cars. These floor panels fit nicely.

On the original Galaxie bodies, the sail panels (adjacent to the rear window) were attached to the roof with an overlapped joint smoothed with lead at the factory. Anton cut out this problematic joint and replaced it with a strip of body-thickness sheetmetal. This change will eliminate the need for lead filler and help prevent potential problems in the future. Overlapped joints can cause various issues, including trapping moisture (which can lead to rust), and sometimes the joints may show through the paint as the panels expand and contract with weather-induced heat cycles.

08 Rear quarter panel replacement in progress on 1963 Ford Galaxie project car — With the floor panels replaced, the quarter-panels are removed. Note how clean all the interior panels are after the stripping and e-coating.

Now that the car’s basic body structure is restored, Anton has many exciting ideas to make this build unique, featuring a variety of custom-fabricated details. Stay tuned!