Shaving the gutters?

[JHertzman@domain.elided]

In AD7-985 Stefano Iachella asks:
" Are the raingutters in the Alfetta and GTV6 models really necessary?

"I mean, if I remove the chrome whilst repainting it and decide to shave
the ridge/seam, is there any structural problems? If there are, would
putting a weld in place and smothing it out and painting it pose any 
problems?

"I think it would look a whole lot better without it."

I have considered parts of this question, planning on using Alfetta stainless 
gutter and window trim and rear-quarter vents on a silver GTV-6 project car, 
eliminating some of the (to me) unconvincing and ill-advised cosmetic 
updating of the original design which had already been compromised when Alfa 
fiddled with Giugiaro's concepts, probably for production economies.

The integral gutter (under the painted stainless overlay) runs from the top 
of the windshield to the end of the rear quarter windows; after a short break 
another seventeen inches of gutter is added on the GTV-6 version. This was 
added by sandwiching a piece between the inward-turned flanges of the roof 
and the quarter panel which are spot-welded together as they were on the 
Alfetta. That seventeen inches can be ground off and the joint leaded as it 
was on the Alfetta.

The rest probably could be shaved and welded with no great problems- it is 
done often enough in hot-rod/custom-car bodywork-  but it would be tempting 
fate. A relatively competent bodyman got just a tad overconfident in filling 
the tea-tray on my GTV-6 hood and it warped beyond salvage- painful with a 
hood which can be discarded and replaced, more painful if it happened with 
the hull itself. I would take the plunge with much caution if I felt like it, 
but clipping the rear, using the Alfetta gutter trim and painting it 
body-color instead of black would be a less expensive and less risky option.

John H.
Raleigh, N.C.

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