I started gutting my interior today and in the process I pulled off the upper dash pad and realised why it was put on in the first place. So my question is shoud I get a full dash pad or is there a place where I can get a whole new dash board. I'm changing the interior coor so I'd have to paint the gauge pod and a/c pods but that can be done pretty easily. Any suggestions, thanks.

Refurbished pads are available, but they runn $1000-$1200 ( Mikesmontes.com, justdashes.com). A good dash cap, properly applied, will service you well unless this is a show car.

I was looking at restored dashes untill I read about a guy who restored his dash for $50 so I tried it and it worked well for me. Hers a shot version of how to do it I was very impressed with how it turned out so for the price of a plasic cap you could have a restored dash all of the materals It uses and automotive grade and made to hold up to heat.

http://i853.photobucket.com/albums/ab94/SHAYNA5184/photo123.jpg

http://i853.photobucket.com/albums/ab94/SHAYNA5184/photo12.jpg

http://i853.photobucket.com/albums/ab94/SHAYNA5184/photo.jpg

http://i853.photobucket.com/albums/ab94/SHAYNA5184/photo12345.jpg

step one is to remove the dash

step two is to sand the cracks flush with a DA sander carefull not to get the remaining materal too thin.

step three is to fill the cracks with a 2 part epoxy that is available at automotive paint stores for repairing urathane bumper covers. I also went a step further and filled the grooves on top and down the front sides to give it a more modern look.

step four is to sand the filler smooth just like when doing bodywork.

step five is to spray the dash with Duplicolor truck bed liner to give it a uniform texture. I found that holding the can 18-24 inches away gave me the texture i was looking for.

step six is to recolor your dash with the interor paint color of your choice.

wow that looks good, that what i'll do when i do my dash this summer:You_Rock:

i think i may try that one on my dash! it looks perfect!!!!!
:nanawrench:

That really does look good. And thanks for the process. Could you tell me more detail. For example, you said you used "interior paint" Was that just any old spray paint or something specifically made for the plastic? I've seen adds for "dye's" to do this so is this the same thing? I do plan on doing this also, so all the detail you can share will help.

Dyes and paint are generally the same thing, comes in a spray can and changes the color. The chemical composition might be different.

its duplicolor vinal and interor paint. the big differance between it and regular paint is it will flex and not flake off soft parts.

I did something similar when i re-did my interior- fixed a few cracks with 2-part pastic epoxy, sanded, but used one of those vinyl kits you can get at the auto store to restore the "grain" to look like factory. Painted with SEM Vinyl dye/paint.
It worked pretty good, but unfortunately it cracked again at another location a few months later. The sad fact is that with a 25+ year old dash, cracking is a way of life. Fixing one ( or even a few) cracks now will not prevent more from occuring. I thought about fixing mine again, but realized that it is a never ending problem with the age of the dash. Thought about getting it covered with leather ( too expensive) or with vinyl ( still expensive- new cracks may show through). I'm going with a cap, just because I can't afford a restore, and I don't want to keep pulling the dash every few months to fix the "next" crack. I'm going to pull the dash to install the cap, and will try and do a very good job of glueing and clamping. I may even add one of those carpet covers to help protect the cap, cause I need it to last a long time ( getting too old to do it again:smileyb:).

looks great...

Has anyone ever tried putting on a layer of fiberglass cloth underneath the top part of the dash to prevent future cracks? Seems like the heat of the sun is what creates the cracking so you would only need to do the underside of the top. Does that make any sense?

Mr. Cryptic fiberglassed his dash for $50, maybe that's where georgiamadman heard about it. Search his posts (Mr. Cryptic's I mean).

Georgiamadman, great post.. Thanks

I didn't mean using fibreglass on the top, but on the inside of the dash to give it structural support to stop the cracking later. I'm wondering if a layer of fibreglass cloth ($5) and a can of resin ($10) layed on the inside of the top will kind of hold it together and prevent it from cracking. Anyone done this? I'm definitely taking the dash out and I've already got one crack in the middle. Looking for a way to do this only once.

Found the Duplicolor Vinyl paint at the local Advanced Auto and tried it on a scrap piece. Like the color but wondering about durability and scratch resistance.

I can't say about Duplicolor, the SEM stuff I used is pretty tough. I can't scratch it with my thumbnail. I think proper preparation is the secret. I spent a lot of time cleaning and recleaning every disassembled part, but the end result looks good.

Found the Duplicolor Vinyl paint at the local Advanced Auto and tried it on a scrap piece. Like the color but wondering about durability and scratch resistance.I just sprayed some of my lower panels and vents with the Dupli-color vinyl paint that I picked up on clearance at Pep boys. Just cleaned them up real good and dusted with a lot of coats. I scratched it with my nails too, so far so good! The bedliner paint on the dash is pretty genius. It's flexable, so it should help in preventing more cracking and it gives you a textured look. I'm going to hit the junk yard for a cracked dash for super cheap and do the same thing. Here's some pictures of what I have painted so far. Top panel still needs a couple more coats and see why I need a new dash!http://i761.photobucket.com/albums/xx253/bigjw72/DSC00033.jpg.http://i761.photobucket.com/albums/xx253/bigjw72/DSC00002.jpg

OK, I got my cracked dash out finally. There are a lot of cable connections that are attached to the back of the dash, but the hardest part was removing a plate that holds the signal flashers and some relays. It was bolted to the back of the dash and you can't see it without some serious contortions. Maybe it's just on an '87 cause none of the messages I read mentioned it. After I got it out I figured out why fiberglass underneath won't work --- there is already a solid plastic shell that the vinyl is glued to so the cracking of the vinyl will still be possible after the paint job.

OK, I got my cracked dash out finally. There are a lot of cable connections that are attached to the back of the dash, but the hardest part was removing a plate that holds the signal flashers and some relays. It was bolted to the back of the dash and you can't see it without some serious contortions. Maybe it's just on an '87 cause none of the messages I read mentioned it. After I got it out I figured out why fiberglass underneath won't work --- there is already a solid plastic shell that the vinyl is glued to so the cracking of the vinyl will still be possible after the paint job.That's your courtesy center. People tend to forget about that being there. I'm not sure whats all on the courtesy center but I know the key buzzer is there.

I am trying the get as close as possible to the existing texture on the dash.

I am currently testing something called Rustoleum "Hammered" paint, Rustoleum Textured paint, and the Rubberized undercoating.

I would include pictures but they were pretty useless with this kind of detail

The hammered paint looks like small craters and looks more like the texture on walls with a "drag" finish.

The textured paint did not stick very well but it looks pretty good.

The rubberized undercoating looks pretty damn good. Not an exact match so I will have to fully cover each piece, but it gives a pebble grain appearance that is a lot like the original.

None of the 3 are dry enough to cover with coats of paint so I will send those results later.

Further testing of textures:

OK I've changed my mind on this one. I won't be using the undercoating. Has a strange odor and IT NEVER SEEMS TO DRY.

Besides, I put two coats of finish on all the samples and with the finish coats the Rustoleum Textured paint seems to be the winner. Before the paint, the Textured paint seemed to have too rough a finish, but with the two coats of color it looks and feels very close to the original texture of the dash.

:nopic:

Pics of WHAT? Texture? You will just have to try different things and see what you like. Got the dash finished and ready to go back in but I am working on the rest of the interior.

Hey georgiamadman that dash looks good but do you happen to have a picture of the dash before you started for a comparision.That would really set off the improvement,Thanks.

Jstanfield; I did this w/epoxy on the corners (inside) of my cluster where the tach had cracked the pod; worked well; I like the deal you have of fiber on the inside if you had the dash out already; sounds like a cheap/excellent idea. thx

http://i761.photobucket.com/albums/xx253/bigjw72/DSC00033.jpg

that dash is...is just gnarly! poor thing, how did it get that way??? lol

Looks like you set it on fire and put it out by wacking it with a bat!

After reading all of this, I'm wondering what would happen if I laminated the dash top with aluminum foil! The paint may go bad, but it shouldn't crack? Maybe I'll try this on a Camaro dash I have laying around, and set it in the sun for a few weeks.

I used one of those glue on plastic caps and it looks perfect

Were you able to put the cap on with out removing the dash?

we never saw pics of how the dash looked before the painting and sanding took place. i want to see how bad it was?:dontknow:

Be weary of latex paints, alot of them seem like they're sticky FOREVER, and generally don't stay on a damn thing except the walls of a house, and even then I'd avoid latex.

Finally got mine back in, I still need to do some touch up, and the major spots where red is still visible will obviously be covered up, it looks a lot better than it used to though.http://i763.photobucket.com/albums/xx275/texmech11/car/100_0509.jpg

Looking good

Has anyone bought one of those refurbished dashs. I had read somewheres that there was a company refurbishing el camino dashes but they weren't doing a good job on them. I don't remember the companys name though. I lucked up and found a new, in the box, OEM dash on EBay. I ended up paying dearly for it, $1,025.00. You can check it out on page 3 of my Cardomain link below.

1987 Caballero
1986 Conquista

I am forced to Cap mine, I can't see spending so much when the caps fit so well.

Okay, what grid sand paper did you all used to sand down the craks with out damaging the rest of the dash. Also what I ment about the pictures were steps during the process of the make over.:dontknow::dontknow:

I don't think fiberglass from underneath will do anything. The dash is a hard plastic with a thin layer of foam padding covered in vinyl which is vacuum formed over the hard palstic and foam padding. Typically the hard plastic doesn'r break unless it was in an accident or something. What happens over the years is the vacuum stretched vinyl becomes brittle from sun and UV rays and doesn't expand and contract like it did when new.

SEM is the better quality of the interior sprays. As far as fiberglass mat & resin on the top of your existing dash, you,re basically making a fiberglass cover- one off style, meaning you will need to bodywork the entiresurface. Personally, I,d rough sand All the vinyl off & use 2to3 layers of thin mat. Then get a gal of evercoat rage filler & work the whole surface smooth & uniform. Then you have the option to texture or paint smooth, possibly with matching exterior paint, just like old metal dashes were done. Alot of labor to do correctly, but would give a great result if you have the skill & patience. You could also slightly modify& reshape it if your going through all the trouble. And if possible, better& cheaper to buy your fiberglass materials from a boat store or fiberglass shop that turns over stock frequently. alsojstanfield, rust oleum hammerite is about the most durable exterior spray can paint you can get,if done on a proper surface.I did a wood rack/console in a company work truck 11 years ago. STILL INTACT.