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Painted dash, or face?
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-Zodiac-
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PostPosted: Sat Oct 04, 2014 9:26 pm    Post subject: Painted dash, or face? Reply with quote

Doing a 73 coupe and started glue removal, the PO removed most of the black plastic and the paint is pretty nice below the glue. There is some surface dust and I'll have to do touch ups. I've been kicking the idea of a wood grain dash cover around in my head, but the painted dash looks pretty nice Aswell. Looking for some opinions

Start
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Slow progress
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Close to finish
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Yes I need to fix the dash pad :p
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DorianL
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 2:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I toyed around with the idea of a painted dash as well - and I LIKE the idea. However, I found that to make it look the way I wanted, I'd have to plug quite a fez holes near the dash pad. The holes peek out from under the pad. There are quite a few other holes that would need to be plugged up as well. To my taste, it would really have take a lot work to get it where I wanted.

I finally opted for the woodgrain and never looked back. Get a decent quality face and take your time to apply it, it looks sharp.
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DorianL
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 2:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

That fasten seat belts light is cool.
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O2COOLED
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 3:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

DorianL wrote:
I toyed around with the idea of a painted dash as well - and I LIKE the idea. However, I found that to make it look the way I wanted, I'd have to plug quite a fez holes near the dash pad. The holes peek out from under the pad. There are quite a few other holes that would need to be plugged up as well. To my taste, it would really have take a lot work to get it where I wanted.

I finally opted for the woodgrain and never looked back. Get a decent quality face and take your time to apply it, it looks sharp.


X2 on this, like Dorian I looked at painting and decided woodgrain for the same reasons. I think it really boils down to personal preference and how much time and effort you are willing to put into it.
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sactojesse
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 8:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

IMO, the vinyl covered dash face of '67-'74 ghias is one of the worst features of later model ghias. I filled the holes in the dash of my former '69 coupe. The "Show us Your Dash" thread has several examples of '67-'74 with painted dashes:

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=566389&highlight=dash
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c21darrel
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 10:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Agree with all these guys. Painted looks so much cleaner but all the slots and holes that need to be welded up is a chore. I felt a worthy one. I drilled spot welds, removed my dash 68 and welded in a 67 dash. That was the last year without all the slots in the dash. Heres a recent pic with new additions...EMPI wheel, trip speedo and ghetto mounted Formula Vee tach. HOG's dash cap with a french stich may be the next add-on.
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John Miller
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 11:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm getting ready to weld up the ones in my '68, hopefully in the next few weeks, so i'll let you know how much of a pain in the ass it really is.
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lonotch
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 11:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

c21darrel wrote:
Agree with all these guys. Painted looks so much cleaner but all the slots and holes that need to be welded up is a chore. I felt a worthy one. I drilled spot welds, removed my dash 68 and welded in a 67 dash. That was the last year without all the slots in the dash. Heres a recent pic with new additions...EMPI wheel, trip speedo and ghetto mounted Formula Vee tach. HOG's dash cap with a french stich may be the next add-on.
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


That dash looks really nice, what's with the hole on top?

I also think a French stitch would look great.
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-Zodiac-
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 11:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The feedback is much appreciated. I might keep the painted dash look for a while. just a little bottle of good off and it's almost cleaned the whole thing, and the wholes don't bother me as much as they should. I might try and utilize them somehow if I can :p it's a driver so not ready to tear into it just yet,but I might weld the holes in the future.
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 11:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
what's with the hole on top?

OG hole that holds the dash cap on. Thanks
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O2COOLED
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 3:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

sactojesse wrote:
The "Show us Your Dash" thread has several examples of '67-'74 with painted dashes:

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=566389&highlight=dash



Right, check out the thread. There are lots of nice examples of various styles in there with info on what it took to accomplish the results. Should give you enough basis to make a decision.
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-Zodiac-
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 7:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thinking of a way to plug the holes and thought about putting a three way toggle switch in between the gauges .bottom dim,middle off,and top high. And putting double filament bulbs on the other two holes next to the radio with a length of wire behind them, so I can pull it out and have little lights to see with. I know it's kind of pointless because my phone has a light and I normally have a flash light in the car. But how does this sound to you guys?
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KGCoupe
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2014 7:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

-Zodiac- wrote:
Thinking of a way to plug the holes and thought about putting a three way toggle switch in between the gauges .bottom dim,middle off,and top high. And putting double filament bulbs on the other two holes next to the radio with a length of wire behind them, so I can pull it out and have little lights to see with. I know it's kind of pointless because my phone has a light and I normally have a flash light in the car. But how does this sound to you guys?

I kind of like the idea of using tethered lights to fill the extra holes, even though as you pointed out they are not really necessary.
If you wanted to get fancy, you could even add a rheostat so that the lights could be dimmed.

One of our modern cars has tiny LED lights under the rear view mirror that shine down and illuminate the entire face of the dash (very dimmly, so as not to be too distracting), and inside the door handles to make them easy to find at night.
You could fabricate some sort of small hood to go over your bulbs and direct some very dim light across the dash face.
Then, if necessary, the brightness could be turned up and you could pull the light from the dash and direct it wherever you may need to.

It would be kind of a lot of work for something that really isn't needed, but it would fill in the extra holes in a pretty clever way.
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2014 11:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I disliked the dash pad and faux woodgrain. I had the body man go ahead and weld up all the extra holes in the dash. Here's a couple of views of my 67.
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-Zodiac-
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2014 12:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yeah I think I am rather taking to the idea. I like rheostat idea, and I could even fit a ghia knob on it. I would put little shields on them Aswell. I'll going to look at radio shack, or a hardware store and see what they have. I think it's a nice solution and it would be easy to change in the future.
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2014 12:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

kingkarmann wrote:

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Beautiful car ! I'll keep the dash pad black because it matches the two tone. I dig the Hand brake, where'd you get that?
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kingkarmann
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2014 1:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The handbrake cover is a rosewood piece from Flat4. I'm not sure who is a distributor now. Maybe CIP1 or CB?
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retrowagen
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2014 2:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

On a '72-'74, my personal preference would be a faux-woodgrain applique.

I find the original all-black vinyl facing a little too dreary, but a painted face out of character with the rest of the interior accouterments. The woodgrain strikes a nice balance, and is in character with other late 60's / early- to mid-70's interiors from other German manufacturers (think BMW 2002).

Actually, thinking of other early 70's German interiors: I wonder if one could find a nice textured aluminum stock, and make something like the accent panel of a 1965-1967 Porsche 911 as an instrument panel face overlay for a Type 14?:
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2014 2:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

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I filled every thing in. Didn't like the way the glove box door fitted so I filled that as well
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c21darrel
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2014 3:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Idea for filling holes
use the holes for a "ejection seat release"switch/lite, "panic button", "self destruct" button/lite, "oil slick release"....or.....
oil pressure warning lite, oil temp warning lite, E-brake release lite....

these would be a little eaiser than teathered lights.
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