Dash Wood

[Nitrate]

What are the differences between the dash wooden pieces: the shifter plate, area above the radio, glove box door , and gage cluster? Will they all exchange with the exception of curved lower gage cluster, and 6 hole to 5 hole? RB

[seabeelt]

Depends. Shifter plate, glove box door and gauge cluster are all the same size for the years that have that configuration. Don't have experience with 82 and up. The center wooden pieces in the chrome section are the same size physically I think, but some gave holes in different places -year depending. Some have no holes at all. Sorry if that's confusing.

[Nitrate]

I found out that the earlier cars have a curved cut out at the bottom of the gage cluster panel, Above the steering column. RB

[njoconnor]

Yup, early cars (to 72 at least) had the curved, 6 hole dash insert. The vendors are all fairly clear in descriptions, if that helps.

Mike's right about the narrow center stack pieces: some with holes, some not. IIRC, the two wood strips are the same size. Since I was deleting the seat belt buzzer/warning circuit, I installed a blank piece in the lower slot. Looks cleaner.

While I like the OEM style kit I bought from Chris Obert, I still think about making the next set myself. Got the drill press and all the right hole saws.....

Neil

[Nitrate]

Thanks Neil. Would you be using solid wood or veneer for your project? RB

[seabeelt]

I've made a couple sets. Solid Mahogany

[njoconnor]

Mike's braver than me. I saw some European Beech ply/laminate at Woodcraft (I think) back when I was thinking about it. If/when I decide to try making my own, I'll probably consider solid wood as well.

Neil

[seabeelt]

Yup, The mahogany is not cheap. Over $100 in material to be able to make a dash and shifter panel. You need three things. very SHARP tools, Patience, and Patience. Measure three times cut once. Since I'm a bit old school. I cut the smaller gauge holes with a brace and adjustable bit to make the hole as tight as possible. Cut front and back so it doesn't splinter. For the larger holes I used a starter hole and a scroll saw. Hole saws tend to wobble just a tiny bit and can make the hole too large. I used an xacto knife to scribe the hole outline so it doesn't splinter on the up stroke. Real care must be taken in particular with the early dash with 6 holes ands there is not much meat left on the right hand side with the two gauges stacked one over the other. Sanding is also important. I start with 80 grit and work my way down to 400. They get 6 coats of finish 5 gloss and satin on top. 400 grit sand between each coat. Glove box blind nuts are a challenge so as not to drill all the way through the wood and be just deep enough for the nut. I m thinking of making a couple of sets for sale if anyone is interested. Need to fund the body work on the car and of course all of those performance and other shiny parts

[evm1024]

I've made a bunch over the years. I use solid woods (Kahaya typically) and varnish with a marine varnish (7 coats of Captains or Schooner).

Some tricks that I use:


- use the old dash as a template to cut out the panels that you want Both for the instrument holes and the mounting holes
- Drill through the old dash mounting holes for the glove box panel
- Start with a piece of wood that is thicker than needed - use a planer and then a sander to get it to the thickness you need

If you have a good planer you can cut the instrument holes and mounting holes then plane to get a smooth finish

I really like the depth of 7 coats of a marine varnish but have used minwax spar varnish out of a spray can with good results.

[chrisg]

a minor point...the curved section above the steering column is correct up to '77. I'm pretty sure (maybe there are variations as there seem to be on all Fiat 'factory' specs for '78). And, of course, '70-'77 had 4 2" gauges, while '68-'69 & '78-up would have 3...originally, that is. By now, you can sort of expect any combination of dashes & gauges in any year. Back in the days before people cared about "factory correct" on 124s, it was not uncommon for a nice uncracked Spider 2000 dash to be considered a viable repair for a cracked dash on an earlier car.

..in case that helps.