Jon, if you end up doing this again in cooler weather, grab a heat gun and try and stretch the vinyl around the curves like you would wrapping a car with vinyl. Excellent work though.
I had a Nova dash redone by Just Dashes and it was absolutely perfect. About $600 10 years ago. I have another Nova dash that I want to recover using your techniques.
Seems the prices have gone up since then. No surprised but definitely give this way a shot. All in you might have $100-$150 into it plus the satisfaction of doing it yourself
wow. Looks really good Jon. Great idea to restore the original. Im gonna give it a try on my Camaro. I'll let you know how it turns out. Btw, your assistant is lovely. .lol
When I bought my new dash pad, I was disappointed to find it didn’t have the metal plate. I even checked the box thinking it might have been in separately. Of course that was wishful thinking. In the end I made my own backing plate for it and made it work. It can still use some work to make it fit better, like that corner you pointed out in the beginning where the detent is supposed to be. Just so hard to get good restoration parts any more. All the NOS stuff is gone now so we gotta rely on our ability to make things work. Great video!!
I had a severely cracked dash on my '69 Judge when I bought it. Temporarily used a cap that covered the whole dash till I found one on ebay. Years ago, (very lucky). Thanks for the info on how to fix it! Might need it, hopefully never!
Looks great Jon. Mine is just foam. Somebody peeled the vinyl off and wrapped it with a foam backed vinyl material. Makes the dash look too thick. I'm going to wrap mine like you're doing yours. Thanks for all you do.
After lots of research, the best company i could find making quality repos was al knock interiors. So i bought one and yup plastic frame... disappointed, so i called up my local upholstery shop for an estimate to redo my original.... are you sitting down? $1,200-1,400 estimate! Its a tiny, easy to wrap piece!! I was shocked to say the least...
That’s unfortunate the repop still doesn’t have the metal reinforcement, really needs it helps secure instrument panel. I will stick to my method it’s about 100-$150 to repair one plus it’s still soft to the touch like original. I have one of those hard plastic slip on covers on my trans am. First hot day it’s all warped and looks bad.
I have done a few squarebody dashes similar to this. On a some, there was a upholstery guy that made a vinyl cover and he put stitch lines on edges so it would all lay flat with no wrinkles. It looked great but not 100% stock looking. On others did exactly like you did. Heat gun makes stretching wrinkles out alot easier. It stretches quite a bit with heat whoever it still bunches up unless you have a seam. 3rd way was just bodywork it like you did, prime and paint with SEM textured paint. It honestly looks pretty good either way you do it but none of them 100% stock.
Thanks. I figure a fold on the edge covered by the A-pillar cover anyway is acceptable plus it’s way cheaper this way then paying 1200-$1500 for a reconditioned pad
I am extremely happy with it. And now knowing most dash repair places charge 1200-1500 and still might need painted to match I feel even more gooder about it.
if you have 2,000 to 2,500 Just dashes can hook you up ! That quote was for a A body dash ! They are nice vacuum formed better than factory if you can afford it .
Nope all by hand. I don’t trust my self with power sanders at that stage. I have watched it done I am just not brave enough ….. yet. My hands hurt for days after so might have to try it out
@@VinylVillageGarage I have a PPG store tryng to match a 1970 dark blue metallic for a GTO with little success. Seems, they scan a sample and their system matches the color to an existing formula. Way off BTW. Gonna give Axlata a try as they claim their system creates a formula from the sample
I didn’t this time. It’s an option I didn’t think about. This was the worst dash i have ever tried to rescue. Normally just a hand full of small cracks and very little filler. Figured this would be a great one to video.
Very cool, my Camaro dash pad is crap, maybe I can do this for mine. Also, I hope that's not your wife's car you're blowing all that dust on. My wife would lose it if I did that.
I use a base coat mixed to the color of choice. You have to l clean and scuff the surface and clean again and so far it’s bonded well. Most base coats are extremely flexible. I have used PPG Dbu and Wanda brands with great success on plastic and vinyl parts plus it gives you almost an unlimited pallet for color choices.
Wanda Brand base coat, this base coat is very flexible and holds up well. I have used PPG in the past but it’s gotten to spendy for me. It’s not indestructible finish and keeping the layers thin is best. I have used this on headrests too and works great. Clean scuff scotchbrite and clean again gets a good bond.
I always thought it was better to repair what the factory put on the car. It's disappointing that replacement dash pads are that bad. I just wonder if there is a market for fixing existing or repairing pads for birds or goats???
The sad part is the dash pad I was unhappy with was like 25 years ago and today it was confirmed by a few other viewers they still sell the same garbage for top dollar
Jon, if you end up doing this again in cooler weather, grab a heat gun and try and stretch the vinyl around the curves like you would wrapping a car with vinyl. Excellent work though.
Will do. I even have a nice heat gun too 🤷♂️
What a transformation. Excellent process and results. 👍
Many thanks!
Excellent save. I think a new dash pad for a '79 TA cost me over $900.00 eight years ago. That was a great example of craftsmanship.
That is actually a great price for a good dash especially second gen.
I had a Nova dash redone by Just Dashes and it was absolutely perfect. About $600 10 years ago. I have another Nova dash that I want to recover using your techniques.
Seems the prices have gone up since then. No surprised but definitely give this way a shot. All in you might have $100-$150 into it plus the satisfaction of doing it yourself
wow. Looks really good Jon. Great idea to restore the original. Im gonna give it a try on my Camaro. I'll let you know how it turns out. Btw, your assistant is lovely. .lol
She is a trained professional 😎 I really like when she helps.
You better be careful... You will have people reaching out to you to repair their dashpads! 🤣🤣
lol. I already have enough to keep me busy for years.
Thank you for showing this. I like your videos as they are always concise with lots of practical tips. Great job!
Glad it was helpful!
Excellent job John!! Keep up with the good work!!👍🏽
I will say this was the worst dash pad I ever tried to fix and could not be happier with the results and how inexpensive it was too
When I bought my new dash pad, I was disappointed to find it didn’t have the metal plate. I even checked the box thinking it might have been in separately. Of course that was wishful thinking. In the end I made my own backing plate for it and made it work. It can still use some work to make it fit better, like that corner you pointed out in the beginning where the detent is supposed to be. Just so hard to get good restoration parts any more. All the NOS stuff is gone now so we gotta rely on our ability to make things work. Great video!!
Thanks for the feedback on the new dash pads sounds like they are exactly as bad as 20 years ago. Sounds like you came up with a good solution
I had a severely cracked dash on my '69 Judge when I bought it. Temporarily used a cap that covered the whole dash till I found one on ebay. Years ago, (very lucky). Thanks for the info on how to fix it! Might need it, hopefully never!
I have a dash cap on my trans am and I don’t like it. Part of the reason I do dashes this was now.
Great job!!!
Try keeping a hair dryer handy to heat the material for some of those compound corners.
Whitney would smack me if it took her hair dryer. Or maybe I did and it’s not on camera 🤔🤣
@@VinylVillageGarage she lets you play cars whenever you want. Best advice: KEEP HER HAPPY😁
@@davidcoffey3949 amen brother!!!!
Looks great Jon. Mine is just foam. Somebody peeled the vinyl off and wrapped it with a foam backed vinyl material. Makes the dash look too thick. I'm going to wrap mine like you're doing yours. Thanks for all you do.
Very cool! I am sure it will still work.
Great job ..yeah I using the 3M super 77 spray cement...good stuff.... good content and always waiting to see more.....thanks....🔧🔧👍
The 3m stuff has worked great for me as well plus the convenience of an aerosol can is nice as well
Looks great,,i put black diamond tuck on my 68 dash,came out awesome,all black interior,,Ferrari red paint,miss that car
Could always buy another
After lots of research, the best company i could find making quality repos was al knock interiors. So i bought one and yup plastic frame... disappointed, so i called up my local upholstery shop for an estimate to redo my original.... are you sitting down? $1,200-1,400 estimate! Its a tiny, easy to wrap piece!! I was shocked to say the least...
That’s unfortunate the repop still doesn’t have the metal reinforcement, really needs it helps secure instrument panel. I will stick to my method it’s about 100-$150 to repair one plus it’s still soft to the touch like original. I have one of those hard plastic slip on covers on my trans am. First hot day it’s all warped and looks bad.
@@VinylVillageGarage exactly! lets take plastic and put it in direct amplified sunlight from the windshield... It won't warp right?
I was hopeful but terribly disappointed.
I have done a few squarebody dashes similar to this. On a some, there was a upholstery guy that made a vinyl cover and he put stitch lines on edges so it would all lay flat with no wrinkles. It looked great but not 100% stock looking. On others did exactly like you did. Heat gun makes stretching wrinkles out alot easier. It stretches quite a bit with heat whoever it still bunches up unless you have a seam. 3rd way was just bodywork it like you did, prime and paint with SEM textured paint. It honestly looks pretty good either way you do it but none of them 100% stock.
Thanks. I figure a fold on the edge covered by the A-pillar cover anyway is acceptable plus it’s way cheaper this way then paying 1200-$1500 for a reconditioned pad
Wow! Just amazing! I would of looked at that dash amd thought it unfixable!
This is by far the worst dash pad I ever attempted to repair. It came off the parts car I got from Pennsylvania it was a mess.
That turned out awesome, would a heat gun help with wrinkles I wonder?
Definitely would yes. So add that to the list of tools needed.
Looks new again! Excellent
I am extremely happy with it. And now knowing most dash repair places charge 1200-1500 and still might need painted to match I feel even more gooder about it.
Sweet! Love the resourcefulness.
Using what I have on the. Cheap but looking good is the name of the game.
Farm rags to riches! Came out great
lol. Yup
Have you ever tried raptor liner on dash pads? I tinted some and used on my dash pad on my El Camino and got the texture almost like factory.
I haven’t yet. Interesting idea
if you have 2,000 to 2,500 Just dashes can hook you up ! That quote was for a A body dash ! They are nice vacuum formed better than factory if you can afford it .
I have to do the GTO dash I have not sure this method will work. Go to know I will need to save my allowance for awhile to get that one
What a great idea 💡 buddy I will be doing this in the future
I know you can. This was the crusty dash pad from the car at your place
@VinylVillageGarage brother that 69 convertible has been really good to us
@@firstgenerationgarage2803 indeed I even used the glass out of the doors yesterday
Do you use your harbor freight da when you cut and buff paint as well?? Thanks
Nope all by hand. I don’t trust my self with power sanders at that stage. I have watched it done I am just not brave enough ….. yet. My hands hurt for days after so might have to try it out
Thanks assistant
She helped me with the last one too
Where do you get your interior paint to spray out the panels?
I use PPG brand dbc basecoat. It’s very flexible and low gloss plus you can custom mix any color you want
@@VinylVillageGarage I have a PPG store tryng to match a 1970 dark blue metallic for a GTO with little success. Seems, they scan a sample and their system matches the color to an existing formula. Way off BTW. Gonna give Axlata a try as they claim their system creates a formula from the sample
Do you add resin to the fiberglass?
I didn’t this time. It’s an option I didn’t think about. This was the worst dash i have ever tried to rescue. Normally just a hand full of small cracks and very little filler. Figured this would be a great one to video.
Very cool, my Camaro dash pad is crap, maybe I can do this for mine. Also, I hope that's not your wife's car you're blowing all that dust on. My wife would lose it if I did that.
lol. Nope it’s my crapalalche. I park her car in the street when I am playing cars. Especially when painting
Curious, what's the da sander you were using? Looks like harbor freight. Thanks
Yup harbor freight special, it’s been pretty good. I had a pneumatic DA for years but this thing is far
Way more efficient
What did you use to paint/dye the dash?
I use a base coat mixed to the color of choice. You have to l clean and scuff the surface and clean again and so far it’s bonded well. Most base coats are extremely flexible. I have used PPG Dbu and Wanda brands with great success on plastic and vinyl parts plus it gives you almost an unlimited pallet for color choices.
Which paint did you use?
Wanda Brand base coat, this base coat is very flexible and holds up well. I have used PPG in the past but it’s gotten to spendy for me. It’s not indestructible finish and keeping the layers thin is best. I have used this on headrests too and works great. Clean scuff scotchbrite and clean again gets a good bond.
Hey 1st time I've seen them scissors in action 🎬 😉
Love these things. Used them several times what a difference. Thanks!!
I always thought it was better to repair what the factory put on the car. It's disappointing that replacement dash pads are that bad. I just wonder if there is a market for fixing existing or repairing pads for birds or goats???
The sad part is the dash pad I was unhappy with was like 25 years ago and today it was confirmed by a few other viewers they still sell the same garbage for top dollar
I can see why I have so much difficulty with my body filler. I can't twist my pinky finger up like that!
It’s like sipping tea I suppose. Having two daughters I had a lot of tea parties.
@@VinylVillageGarage AHHH, that's were I missed out! I had two sons.
I contacted just dashes to redo my 68 dash and they quoted $1,300... ouch!
Wow!! I will keep fixing mine this way and deal with the fold of fabric in the corners.
💪😎
Thanks!
Lks great. Hope it didnt add 30 lbs. Just kidding
😂. Maybe 3 lbs 🤔 😁