kjr442

Have any of you had your dash restored, if so can you recommend a company that does dash work please. My dash is not cracked, but discolored from the Texas sun. I would like to recover it, I don't trust the interior paints. I have the dash out of the car, so this is the time to do it.

kjr442

What? know one has any answers on this??

70Post

Just Dashes is one of the places that re-covers dashpads. Very high cost ($900-1300). I don't think they succeed, however, in recreating some of the sharp "lines" along the dashpad. Also...are you expecting an exact match of the original grain/texture?? If so you better get a sample from them first.

Dash Specialists is another outfit that does this for slightly less money from what I have read.

Prep and paint it if it's not cracked. Clean well and use a good adhesion promoter. Not a terrible job to do and the materials aren't too costly. It would be best to use a spray gun and air compressor setup to spray a large part like the dashpad. Best not to do it in real high heat in the middle of the day. Sure, the finish isn't "bulletproof" but there's a huge price differential here.

SEM Landau Black for the color.

rroth01

Pad restoration can get very expensive .They got you on that one.
I am with Patton.My Dash pad was in very rough shape.Not cracked just grundgy.
I used denatured alchohol to remove all of the old dirt, waxes and silicones.
I cleaned it many times using a few white rags and when they were no longer dirty .It was time to paint..SEM Landau Black does the job and it sets up very quickly.It is also flexible.
Here in Detroit I pay abot $13.00 a can.

Olds luvr

I did my black dash and it is perfect. look at my thread " interior gutted with questions" and you will see. Mine was faded and is now great... I used SEM dye shot through a gun and could not be happier. The dyes and paints fail when the process is not followed. I did all my panels and dash and they are durable and look great

halfmoontrail

[Flame suit on] If it is discolored, then it has had enough sun exposure to be very prone to cracking (all the plasticizer has leached out). You're likely to crack it prepping it for "dyeing". These dashes are plentiful and relatively inexpensive on the used parts market.
Steve

Gary's 2 442-S

I did have have my dash redone by an upholstery shop here in Houston and I think they did a really good job on. But my dash was all cracked up so had to do something with it. Had it not been cracked I would have used the SEM upholstery paint, I did use use it on all my other interior pieces because I changed colors on it and that paint,dye was really great. I even used it on my seats.

kjr442

Yes, I found one on Ebay, The starting bid was 50.00, it was the correct color too! This was a no reserve auction, and I was the only bidder. The seller pulled it because it wasn't going good for him. I would not buy from him now if it was only 1.00

kjr442

Thank you for all the advice, I guess I will try the interior die. I am just not to trusting of it. Here in my town I've seen a man that has a mobile service for dashes, I may give him a call and see what he has to offer.

My Dads 2001 Chevy Suburban has areas on the dash that have pealed,exposing the black color under it. and that's factory!

70Post

Don't get in a hurry and get the thing CLEAN....multiple scrubbings to get out any residual contaminants, etc


>FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS ON EACH PRODUCT.

>If you wipe the dashpad with any sort of prepaint cleaner before applying adhesion promoter and/or paint, do it the way prepaint cleaners are meant to be used....one wet wipe towel and immediately follow with a dry towel while the surface is wet.

>Let the dash sit and dry out a bit if it seems to soak up and hold water, etc when it's wet. Especially important if you wipe it with anything prior to applying adhesion promoter or paint (you should use an adhesion promoter). You'll be able to tell if it's doing this the first time you wash it and try to dry it....if parts of the faded top stay a bit darker until the water evaporates from the pores of the plastic/vinyl then you know to allow at least the same drying/evaporation time if you use a prepaint cleaner.

WHY?---You don't want any soaked-in liquids to still be in the plastic/vinyl before you apply adhesion promoter or paint.

>Lacquer thinner is not a prepaint cleaner, etc...don't use it for anything related to this process.

>Blow the dash off or tack rag it to remove any lint from your towels...don't handle with bare hands once it's clean.

>If the dash plastic is excessively dried out on top it may show up as a duller or flatter look to the black paint finish in those areas. If so, let it dry overnight and shoot the whole pad again the next day.

>Again, follow the instructions for EACH PRODUCT and don't hose on the SEM paint (it's very thin stuff so it doesn't fill in the grain/texture like regular paint will...consequently it'll run more easily).

>Don't spray it in the middle of a hot Texas afternoon and definitely not in the direct sun.

kjr442

Thank you Patton, I think I can do this.

70Post

One more thing....cleaning it....use one of SEM's products or use water (preferably hot) and Dawn with a good scrub brush. I'd clean it a couple times (at least) and use PLENTY of clean water and the brush to rinse/scrub it off. 409 and those type cleaners- leave them on the shelf.

The idea here is to get it clean and free of any residual cleaning products so with the possible partially dried-out condition you want to use plenty of water as your last step...not a 409 type product that may leave soaps on the pores if you used them as your final cleaning step.

Allow plenty of time for evaporation also after you are done cleaning it. If you leave it out in the sun to aid evaporation then let it cool off in the shade before applying any adhesion promoter or paint. Remember the whole pad may get hot in the sun, not just the surface, so let it really cool down.