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  #61  
Old 05-08-2009, 08:00 PM
Johnybeas Johnybeas is offline
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

fixed the first post I put the url wrong for one of the images and thought the image wouldn't show, but I fixed it

Last edited by Johnybeas; 05-08-2009 at 08:02 PM.
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  #62  
Old 01-31-2010, 01:18 PM
sowise sowise is offline
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

Ok I gave it a shot, I painted my dash (most of it) and it looks really good I think, now there are things that I have not done with it yet like wet sand and recoat with another layer of clear. That would smooth it out and give it a nice shine but I don't know if I want it that smooth or shiny atleast for now. It isn't as much of an eye sore as the fake wood was to me.

Also the lettering which has been an issue with the painting of dash panels is a little bit of a pain but I found something that works pretty good.

Here is the very basics of what I did:

Step 1: remove all dash panels (instructions can be found in the forums so I won't repeat them, I did all but the cigarette lighter piece which I still have to pull out.

Step 2: Use dish soap and water to clean the wax's and oils from the panels.

Step 3: I wet sanded with 600 grit sand paper to rough up the surface for better adhesion of the paint.

Step 4: wipe down with rubbing alcohol and then paint (make sure panel is completely dry) I used a duplicolor wheel paint, I feel the paint I selected is resistant to chemicals and can harden nicely but you paint choice is up to you. Follow the instructions on the can when painting i.e. temperature and time between coats should be followed.

Step 4 (a): with the climate control unit I did a thin layer of paint, the lettering is slightly counter sunk so you can still see the letters even if covered. After the paint tacked up some I was able to hold the climate panel from the bottom and used a bamboo skewer (yeh like ones for making kabobs on the grill) any sharpened piece of wood can work though. Use the wood to push and rub where the lettering is it will remove the paint from the white lettering. Don't worry if the paint looks like it is pushed up at the edges of the markings, Do this after each coat approximately 3 coats is what I did. Each time paint is applied it will soften the edges of where you pushed the paint and will make your lettering area slightly deeper.

Step 5: I used duplicolor clear coat, follow instructions on the can, I did 2 light coats and one medium thick coat. When clear is used it will smooth out the final edges on the climate panel. The clear coat and paint should be allowed to dry a minimum of 24 hours before attempting to wet sand and buff or adding another layer of clear.

Here are some poor cell phone pictures as examples, it snowed here so I am not looking forward to sitting in the freezing car to reinstall, cold panels can break easier.

Pictures are really poor quality with sunlight and junk all over but trust me they look alot better in person. Almost a perfect match to the interior panels in my 2000 Legacy L as well.

It isn't done because I am waiting on stereo install. Cigarette lighter is gonna be a pain The rest will be easy to pull.





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  #63  
Old 01-31-2010, 10:03 PM
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Bonestock Bonestock is offline
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Crazy_pilot View Post
I would love to re-do my whole interior, replacing all of the woodgrain with gloss piano black,

That would kick ass.
Thats funny, I am considering doing the EXACT same thing. I only wish I had some spare trim pieces to start. The lettering for the HVAC has me concerned though. I would make a decal but that would only help during the day... unless they glowed in the dark......... HMMMMM
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  #64  
Old 02-02-2010, 07:49 AM
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bonestock View Post
Thats funny, I am considering doing the EXACT same thing. I only wish I had some spare trim pieces to start. The lettering for the HVAC has me concerned though. I would make a decal but that would only help during the day... unless they glowed in the dark......... HMMMMM
You didnt read the last post from Sowise, he painted the climate control pieces with a process that allowed the original lettering to remain unpainted, it requires a lot of patience but the result is wonderfull.
I will try that technique in my dash..Thanks for sharing Sowise!
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  #65  
Old 02-02-2010, 11:13 AM
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

Your welcome, I am sure there are other ways that can be done with masking I also read about using a rubber cement technique but not sure how that would work out plus it seemed much more involved.

I am sure others out there will be able to have more patience with it than I did I was not exactly taking my time but even knowing that I still like the results of using the wood to rub the paint off the lettering.
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  #66  
Old 02-22-2010, 12:21 PM
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

Quote:
Originally Posted by sowise View Post
Ok I gave it a shot, I painted my dash (most of it) and it looks really good I think, now there are things that I have not done with it yet like wet sand and recoat with another layer of clear. That would smooth it out and give it a nice shine but I don't know if I want it that smooth or shiny atleast for now. It isn't as much of an eye sore as the fake wood was to me.
Looks pretty good! Can you tell me what color you chose?
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  #67  
Old 03-01-2010, 06:22 PM
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

is there any dash kits that are reversable? i saw an aluminum kit on ebay. Im afraid it wont fit and or it wont be reversable. Does anyone know anything about the aluminum dash kit thats all over ebay in the interior section of svx?
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  #68  
Old 03-01-2010, 06:36 PM
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

'



These photos are from Dayle's website at Planet SVX








I haven't seen an overlay kit that looks decent yet. The woodgrain or gray finish can be seen all around the edges, as well as where the wording is on the climate control.

Once installed, they are not removable without damage to the original finish. You carefully test fit each piece prior to removing the protective sheet which protects the adhesive. Once installed, that's it!! No second chance to adjust it once its down.

And then there is the unwanted glare from the sun coming through all that glass...


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  #69  
Old 03-01-2010, 07:09 PM
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

impressive answer, very informative. Thank you for helping me not make that common mistake! LOL
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  #70  
Old 03-01-2010, 07:41 PM
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

Whoa, im sure this is buried in search results somewhere, but can someone tell me a good source for those glow-gauges ??
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  #71  
Old 03-02-2010, 10:40 AM
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

Quote:
Originally Posted by MadMaxSvx View Post
You didnt read the last post from Sowise, he painted the climate control pieces with a process that allowed the original lettering to remain unpainted, it requires a lot of patience but the result is wonderfull.
I will try that technique in my dash..Thanks for sharing Sowise!
Oh I read it and understood it quite well. I assume you did not understand the meaning of my post. To reiterate, I was merely spit-balling an idea of using a glow in the dark sticker for the HVAC lettering.
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  #72  
Old 03-06-2010, 06:17 PM
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Re: the ugly wood dash is killing me!

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Originally Posted by wdb View Post
Looks pretty good! Can you tell me what color you chose?
Sorry I saw this just haven't taken the time to answer it, I used Duplicolor High Performance Wheel Coating Paint Color Code was WP102 Graphite. There was another slightly lighter color that I almost went with but I think the darker Graphite works well.

This is still a work in progress that cigarette lighter piece is pissing me off.

Weather is getting better out so work on the car can start back up.
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