customizing the dash

[flamboyant]

Alright so heres my problem, my friend wants me to do up his dash/interior panels and whatnot and i suggest fiber glass becuase i did my dash and some other peoples dashes also but he wants to have his painted not fiber glassed. So i look in his civic at the dash and i see that the top layer of the dash is styrafoam shit and it also has a lot of unwanted texture since he wants it to be smooth as a babies butt. I ask around and i hear about some stuff that you coat the dash with and then sand down to get the smooth texture and all it is, is just a topical layer of gunk that when sanded makes the dash smooth, the only problem im having is finding what this stuff is called and where to get it/ the cost of it since no one i know has ever used it. Any help would be appreciated

 

[civicious]

its called fiberglass.


or maybe bondo.

 

[flamboyant]

nah man did you read it, im not talking like adding fiber glass onto the existing dash,when i(and every other custom shop) uses fiber glass its using the dash as a mold and then replacing the OEM dash with the fiber glass one. I need the crap that is an additive to the OEM dash

 

[civicious]

you can't, like, smear fiberglass resin on the dash and then sand it down so it's smooth?

 

[flamboyant]

dude youre not understanding what im trying to get at, some one told me that theres is some sort of crap(nothing to do with fiber glass in any way)that you layer onto your dash and then sand down to make it smooth. Its not resin and fiber or nothing like that its just some sort of thick liquid i guess that dries really hard and can be sanded to make it smooth. hopefully this will clairify things for ya

 

[civicious]

some sort of thick liquid

wouldn't that be resin? and why couldn't you use fiberglass?


just tryin to help.

 

[flamboyant]

thanks for the help but i dont think you are reading it right. Ive done fiber glass dashes many times and i personally think they are a very wise mod for any show car but this chump wants me strictly to paint his dash, NOT FIBERGLASS IT! When i asked around i was told of some substance that is slapped onto the dash let to dry and then sanded down to get the smooth texture LIKE fiber glass. the probelm is i dont know what this crap is, how much it costs, or where to get it at. thats where yall come in

 

[civicious]

k dude...whatever

 

[GSRCRXsi]

dude i dont see why you cant use fiberglass. just cover it with a thin coat, sand it down and wala, the same dash, same shape, everything, just smooth like fiberglass. dont make a new dash, just cover the existing one with fiberglass, sand it down and paint.

 

[civicious]

what i've been saying this whole time

 

[flamboyant]

ya and i took that as an option and when i presented it to him he didnt want to do it.this little shit is stubborn and he wants that other crap whatever it is.if i was him id just go with the fiber glass but what can ya do? thanks for your feedback and if you somehow come across that other junk lemme know

 

[civicious]

tell the kid to find out what it is, and you'll do it.


you should go ahead and do fiberglass, i doubt he'll know the difference.

 

[EGLSHB]

buy some high-build FILLER/primer..... you may have to do a few coats, but you should be able to wet-sand some of the texture out with each coat....

first, you should get a scothbrite pad and a lot of rubbing alcohol andscrub the years of caked-up armorall off of it, as the primer/paint will start coming off when it gets hot again....

then spray a decent coat of primer, allow it to dry, and wet-sand it with 800 grit... then, lather/rinse/repeat until all of the texture is gone...

you might also be trying to think of Gel-Coat..... HARD TO COME BY.... you can get it here but i don't think it is really intended to be sanded....

or a product called "liquid glass" is available from many hardware/craft/hobby stores

 

[civicious]

liquid glass is more or less fiberglass resin.

 

[EGLSHB]

i know... but it is a BITCH to do anything with,,,,,

I say s skim coat of bondo, then sand it out... but if he insists no fiberglass, use the method i described above... or just clean it and paint it, texture and all

 

[92civicb18b1]

Tell the kid that if he wants it done right, use fiberglass. a gelcoat is what he wants but its a waste compared to fiberglass. If he really wants it painted then tell him that the texture will still be there, until he figures out fiberglass will be his better choice

 

[punkyjewster41]

this kid's gonna have nightmares about friggin fiberglass :axe:

 

[flamboyant]

this stupid kid is just makin my life hard so i told him whats up and now hes down with fiberglass

 

[hondahauge]

flamboyant

 

[civicious]

told ya so.