Im planning on taking a crappy dash pad I got out of a junkyard and fiber glassing it then bondo-ing it then airbrushing some wicked graphics on it. I have searched and searched but I have not seen anyone do this before. If you have or know of someone who has let me know how it went, post some pics etc. Also let me know what you think of this idea I plan on posting pics and my progress as I go.

 

I would be interested in seeing what you could produce, but I would be afraid of the glare afterwards while driving.

 

I plan on trying to keep it kinda dim if i can

 

here is what i got so far after fiberglassing sanding bondoing an sanding,sanding, sanding, sanding and more sanding..lol

 

I still have to sand it all out and shape a few spots but hopefully i will be able to prime it next week.

 

Agreed... Just a subtle color change to a lighter shade and you will be surprised what it will do to your visability. Just take different color towels and put them on your dash and notice the difference. And texture plays a large part. Smooth glossy dashes can blind you with a reflection or even make an odd glare on the windshield. For this I would also try getting something to lay on the dash and try it before going thru the effort of slicking anything out.

Some custome dashes are even made shorter so there is less to reflect in front of you. Give this some thought in your final paint and finish design

 

Thanks for the advice I am thinking about painting most the dash black or satin black so it shouldn't be to blinding by time im done.

 

cool idea

 

great idea I`ll bet it`ll look great once your done!

 

Here is some pics of my first test fit. Everything went in fine

 

Here is some after a few coats of primer and some wet sanding I still have alot left to do before I start painting.

 

im interested to see this.
subscribing

 

Make sure you get a good sanding block to keep it easy to hit the high spots! what are you gonna do with the speaker holes?

 

I am going to put speaker grills over them, so that basically all you see is the new 4x6 I put in

 

Here is what I have done this week I finished all the prep and I laid the base coat of silver.

 

Cool idea... interested in seeing what it looks like!

 

Curious how this turns out. Mine is cracked all over and I cant find a good dash anywhere. Did you peel the plastic/leather off or how would you go about fixing the cracks and making it smooth?

 

I just filled the cracks with a bit of black scilicone calking then fiberglassed the whole dash. I think if you pilled off the vinyl it wouldnt look right when you fiberglassed.

 

Good job!!
Decided what graphics to do??

 

I gonna have to agree with lasher, It would look cool, but i think the glare would become a problem, unless you bought a dash pad cover for driving and just showed the gfx at shows

 

Well I've named my car "Demon Speed'n" like the rob zombie song so I think I am going to air brush some skulls along the length of the dash. I know that it isnt everybody's taste but I have always had a thing for skulls. As for the glare I have concidered that and right now with the base coat of silver and the 2 coats of clear it is pretty shinny and I put the dash pad in like it is and drove around some and it wasnt that bad...Im also going to do a good majority of the pad in flat black so it shouldnt be that bad...if all else fails I can always put a towl over it when I drive...lol

 

AGREED!

 

Off the subject somewhat...but Im wondering if you can do this to fix the cracks and then cover it somehow or paint it with black wrinkle finish paint to kinda give it a somewhat stock look to it. I cant find a mint dash pad to save my life right now and the ones I find people want too much for them. Just looking for other options...

 

Subscribed!

 

Here is a link to a way you may like, and if you arent satisfied with the results u could always just wrap it in vinyl. This way in the link will seal the dash and make sure it wont crack again. Im gettin ready to do it this winter. http://gtam.silvahalo.com/dashrepair/

 

Interesting... Thanks for the link. Sounds like a good repair. Especially if you take your time and be sure things are level and even before you spray. I wish the pics were a bit bigger so things could be read in the pic and seen a bit better. Oh and make sure you use the bed liner and NOT undercoating. The Undercoating never really cures right, you end up having to paint over it! I used a bunch of it when I was doing some sound proofing.

I debated about a vinyl wrap myself...

 

subscribed. interested in the finish product

 

I started air brushing this week but my air brush crapped out on me so Im waiting for a new one to come in ill try to post some pics soon, oh and if this turns out well I will be selling my original dash pad, its in good shape there are some damage mainly where the previous owner over tightened the bolts in the defrost area and caused some minor cracking

 

Ok finally got it in so here is what I got done today I still need to do some highlighting and touch up before I lay the candy coat. Oh and add some details to the skulls.

 

that looks amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

now thats freakin cool

 

Looks good

 

why not mount speakers from the top, this way i sure you could easily fit some 6 1/2 and it would look better plus sound better

 

Not a big skull fan myself buuuttt... but Dang you got some airbrushing talent and it looks awesome!

 

looks bad ***. Can't wait to see final product.

 

Thats gonna look pretty sweet, how long does it take to do all that air brushing?

 

That looks just Great! However, i think it would look BETTER if you would Reverse the Color Theme. Make the Dash Black and the Skulls Grey.

 

Well so far I got about 4-6 hours into the airbrushing....the initial lay out of the skulls only took a couple hours...as for the final look if everything goes as planed
the skulls are going to be candy apple red and the rest of the dash will be flat black. Why it is silver and black right now is because when you lay candy red over silver it makes it pop more.

 

well I already installed new speakers and I have designed the dash the way im going so I think ill stick with it...thanks anyways for the idea.

 

That looks freakin' beautiful. Great airbush skills. So, are you carrying the theme through the interior and exterior?

 

Really nice job! I wish I would have seen this earlier, and been able to subscribe, but I just haven't had the time to get on TGO. Can't wait to see the finished product.

 

well I plan on in the future doing some more fiberglassing of parts center console t-top headliner etc so if it turns out alright then yeah I will do some more in the interior

 

Ok here is what I got done this week I highlighted the skulls, added some details, laid the candy apple red and and clear coated it.

 

The pictures may not do the color real justice It looks deep red almost crimson but with my camera flash it makes it look a little pinkish

 

Looks Awesome!

 

very cool idea and great work, you should check out my thread (last papes) hope it gives you some idea's to play off and make your own

 

Good job man I like where you went with your car I think Im gona keep most of my airbrushing in the interior and maybe under the hood, but I like your work.

 

So you had no problems with the fiberglass bonding to the vinyl top?

 

That's sweet looking, nice! You've got some talent

I just hope the dash doesn't crack on you again... That would be terrible