Electrical Downsizing

[rlux4]

To get the full picture in you need to resize it to about 1/2 of the original size. If you're using Photobucket there is a photo editing option and you can size it down. I'm not sure about any other photo sharing sites having this option.
Ron

[Blast]

Thanks RULX4, it worked.

[rlux4]

You're certainly welcome Balst.
Ron (rlux4)

[Flyingthere]

Wow that dash looks great! With respect to your comment about how tight the components fit I found that after installing a dash cap the added thickness really caused everything to fit very tight. I had to cut down the glove box door to get it to close. While doing this I did note that the wood used is a laminate that has been true for 30 years. That’s great but laminated wood does not work with curved, routed or shapes as the finish surface would be difficult smooth, it would be like having end grain everywhere. Most of the wood dash components are very thin and attached to a hard product like steel of aluminum. If you used a laminated wood for stability and then glued a laminate to it you could really have a great looking piece. As for boats they use a number of wood species to build them. I used mahogany that I had to ship from NY to Texas it has three coats of epoxy to protect it from moisture, each coat was finished sanded and it has a really great sheen, lots of work with the sander, and every little mistake shows, take your time and keep sharing. Have you thought about putting the dimmer and wiper control so the knobs are in the golve box? just a thought.

[Flyingthere]

I was looking around re: dash kits and the info below, I do not know anything about what he is doing but it sounded like a good idea.

depends on the effort you are prepared to go to yourself...

you could:
1, Remove the current vinyl and foam
2, add GPS mount, ports for gauges etc etc
3, build up new UV stable foam to surround the above accesories (that blue insulation foam sheeting is good)
3, sand to shape
4, fibreglass 3-4 layers on top of foam
5, bog, sand, bog, sand until happy with finish
6, primer
7, paint

or replace steps 6 and 7 with "wrap in UV stable vinyl"

[Blast]

Today, I only had a little time to mess with the dash. I tried to fit it in the vinyl opening where it belongs. I took pictures already of it fitted in place, but it was wedged in just to see how it looked, and for some photos. Today I started a closer look at the fit. The bottom corner of the glovebox part was too long, which was causing the gauge part to hang to low to fit where it belonged. I filed it many times removing small amounts of wood, and it kept getting better and closer to fitting in place. I finally got frustrated though, and put the jig saw to it, removing only about 1/8 inch, but that may be a hair too much. The reason I say maybe is because, the gap between the gauge part and the glove box, when I cut it, may actually increase the overall length of the whole dash. If I cut the board to form seperate pieces,(gauge part/glovebox part) I'll use a thin blade, and the gap may need to be wider than that to open and close properly. So getting the whole thing to fit into place is coming along pretty well. There is only a small amount of cutting to do to get the new (additional) gauges in the vinyl. The metal bracket that held the center piece before, will have to be cut some or removed altogether.

After I got it to fit ok, I found the next "fit" problem. The board or the dash one is crooked. Tomarrow I will check each one with a straight edge. Assuming the board is straight, then the dash is sunk in about 3/4" at the gauge part. This means I must bend the board, or somehow bend the dash. A hardwood board may not bend any, and I'm not crazy about stressing the dash to meet the board either. I may cut the dash part/glovebox part at a slight angle, which might solve the problem. Also, I might be able to steam the board into shape, or lay it on the ground on a sunny day, and the sun will bend it. As a matter of fact, this may be partly how this has happened. I have had the pine board in the sun, laying on the same side for long periods of time, while filing and sanding it. I gotta give it some more thought, and more eyeballing.

I hope to find a piece of mahogany for the dash, and a piece of mahogany plywood for the cener console piece. Flyingthere said he ordered mahogany from NY, I'm gonna be looking at flea markets. They have a lot of wood booths in these indoor flea markets around the Louisville area. I'm just jet setting on minimum wage folks.

All in all, its not a piece of cake, but I REALLY like the dash in that Spider, and like my car itself, I'm determined to get er done. I'm learning like everything else, nothings quick and easy.

[miragesmack]

Just found this post - great job on your dash. I too had saved that exact same pic, thinking it was the perfect dash. I guess great minds think alike! I just don't have a SPider yet, so all I can do is dream and look at pics. Should would be nice to have the real thing to play with.

I like it because I think the center of a Spider dash, with the black metal frame, was the ugliest part of the dash. It kills the whole look of the dash, IMO, along with all the fussy knobs, warning lights, etc.

So what are are you gonna do with your test mule dash when you make the final copy? Use it for future pieces, or sell it? I'm sure someone out there would be happy with a nice pine dash. (I'm not hinting for it, just curious)

[Blast]

Hey Miragesmack,

The pine board got dropped to the kitchen floor from 2 feet, and broke in two places around the small gauges. So Cal Mark had commented on how weak that area looked, and well, he was right! The pine board never really fit properly like I wanted, so I couldn't use it as a pattern to make the hardwood one either. So, all in all, the pine board was only good for practice. It was cheap, it was easy, but a waste.
I have started on the hardwood one, but all I could find was maple, so I'm not too sure how it will look, I really wanted mahogany. I am still going to make it the same as the pine one, but I will try to be more careful with it. The pine dash dented very easily, but then my daughter dropped the maple one off the sawhorse and put a few small dents in it too. I need a shop, trying to do this on sawhorses outside, just isn't the best way to go about it. As a matter of fact, I thought this whole project would be simple and easy and quick, but it hasn't been any of those things. I have learned quite a bit about how to go about doing the whole job, and when I'm finished I'll give some tips for anyone else who wants to try this project. I still think its worth it, but I'm not through yet either.

[miragesmack]

So Blast, any updates?