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Combinations Wed Sep 28, 2016 5:47 pm

Has any of you enlarge the opening of the car stereo on your dashboard to fit a car stereo. I know I could always put it under the dash. I am wondering how the one who did the cut made it.

Aurel

OB Bus Wed Sep 28, 2016 6:07 pm

Please don't cut it!

skills@eurocarsplus Wed Sep 28, 2016 6:21 pm

surgically pie cut the corners, gently fold top and bottom back with proper panel "duck bill" vise grips. warm the dash before you bend. 100% crack free and 100% reversible

vwwestyman Wed Sep 28, 2016 6:25 pm

I'm pretty happy with the RetroSound Hermosa radios I've installed in both Buses. Obviously I like it, as I bought a second after installing the first. No cutting required.

If you only want a radio, I have a Custom Autosound that I had in the '73 before I'd sell. Radio works fine; the Aux input stopped working.

DenverB Wed Sep 28, 2016 6:46 pm

I second not cutting it.

Blank it out and hide a head unit in the glovebox.

Or simply wire up your speakers to an out-of-sight amp and hook up an RCA>aux cable to the input on the amp -- plug your ipod/phone in and you've got soundz. Friend did this in his Ghia and it's smooth as hell.

skills@eurocarsplus Wed Sep 28, 2016 7:21 pm

100% mint dash....



do like I said and you'll be fine, unless you want to reach over into the glove box to screw with the radio....

dam, my dash is dirty :shock:

Combinations Wed Sep 28, 2016 8:20 pm

I will go for the glove box option as my stereo has a remote control, thanks for your ideas.
Aurel

aeromech Wed Sep 28, 2016 8:50 pm

Most if not all cut Dash's I've seen are hacked up badly including my new 1971 bus. I wish mine wasn't cut.

Sage79 Thu Sep 29, 2016 5:06 am

Skills' approach works and the cutting can be minimized if the radio you get has a trim ring like the one in Skills' photo. The trim ring can be sanded to fit the opening better and minimize the cutting needed. You only need to square out the corners of the dash opening for the rectangular box mount. The cutting won't even be visible if someone wanted to put in a blank-off plate later.

skills@eurocarsplus Thu Sep 29, 2016 5:54 am

^^^^^^

bingo. if you carefully cut the corners this will give you 4 "flaps", to, bottom and both sides.

gently heat up the dash with a heat gun (to prevent cracking the vinyl) and bend the tabs forward....not much either. the result is a dash the is not heavily damaged, and the chassis for the single DIN goes in nice.

it's not that big of a deal if you take your time....all the "flaps" need to move about 1/8 of an inch or so to make it the proper size for the single DIN

EZ Gruv Thu Sep 29, 2016 6:23 am

Reaching over to the glove box to change the station, etc would be such a pain in the ass! If you cut it carefully, everything will be fine.

Tcash Thu Sep 29, 2016 7:15 am

Drill a thousand holes in it and use a hammer and screwdriver to bend the metal back. =; this is not the way to do it!

I like skills approach the best! Cutting the corner and carefully folding the metal back.

Other exceptical methods.
Air nibbler
Jigsaw with a fine tooth blade
Thin cut off wheel
File

Tcash

Hikelite Thu Sep 29, 2016 7:28 am

This thread is making me wonder how I cut mine back in my 20's. Mine basically looks like Skills (except different brand). I recall having to remove metal to fit the DIN chassis, but I can't recall what tool(s) I used. This would have predated my acquisition of either the Dremel or the Sawszall :P

If I were doing it again. I'm pretty sure I would bust out the Dremel.

SGKent Thu Sep 29, 2016 7:35 am

IMHO the fact you asked the question tells me you should not cut your dash.

gintaras Thu Sep 29, 2016 7:46 am

This thread makes me question my decision to drill holes for gauges under the radio.. well, too late now, what's done is done.

OB Bus Thu Sep 29, 2016 8:33 am

If you decide to cut please do it cleanly. Skilx did a very nice job with his. Many of the dash "cuts" I have seen qualify for the Hackers Hall of Fame. Our 69 and 67 both came with buggered radio openings. Short of replacing the entire dash you just have to work around the mess.

airschooled Thu Sep 29, 2016 8:39 am

If you haven't decided on a head unit yet, there are also some options out there that are smaller tha DIN size with removable and exchangeable faceplates. If you really want to avoid cutting, try one of those.

sodbuster Thu Sep 29, 2016 1:25 pm

I installed a Alpine head unit in my '71 camper some years back. The stock radio was mounted in the dash when I got the bus. But it wasn't even hooked up and didn't work once it was. Once it was hooked up I had to use a loose speaker to do the check as the stock dash speaker had long since been removed. To sum up I only had to lightly hand file a few spots on the stock radio opening to get the Alpine unit to mount.

I had already resigned myself to cutting the hole bigger but in retrospect I am so glad I did not have to.

skills@eurocarsplus Thu Sep 29, 2016 1:49 pm

I am working on my new euro dash for the camper....I literally trimmed 1/8" off the bottom to make a single DIN fit





going to get rid of this, because I don't like where the gauges are.



that dash was a mess when I got the bus, and the p/o put the holes in it. I stripped that one, texture coated it and painted it. you wouldn't believe the people it fooled thinking it was a padded dash

Combinations Thu Sep 29, 2016 3:18 pm

Electrical experts, I have this question, Which one should I connect to make the stereo works. yellow to Yellow (12V) then the ground to the black one, or the brown one? Seem that the ground is the brown one. right now comnecting only the yellow to yellow and black to brown or black doesn't make the stereo works.





From the stereo, the red one is suppose to get connected to the ignition, where do i get it besides directly after the ignition switch. It seems tricky to connect something there?

Thanks
Aurel
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