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In the process of undoing some PO electrical engineering of the dash harness while upgrading to LED instrument panel bulbs. I uncovered why the ash tray lamp was left dangling in the dash. The mounting post had broken off in the past, leaving an obvious spot on the front of the panel to the right of the ash tray where a repair had been attempted in the past.
Has anyone developed a repair method for this and it not looking so obvious? I hate to resort to finding an undamaged original instrument panel, but may have to. I’m tempted to try some old school Testors model cement (the orange label kind that melts plastic to form a bond) and a vinyl upholstery repair patch to help recreate the camera case texture while it’s wet. Definitely open to other techniques if anyone has had success doing this previously. I understand this is a weak spot for this design. Makes we wonder if that is why ‘69’s have the wood grain overlay.
Personally, I don't consider any form of glue a 'permanent' type of fix. Something like JB Weld might provide more durability.
Also, the 'wood' overlay used in '69 was for the 442. The Cutlass and S models still had the black textured plastic.
The dash plastic is made of ABS plastic. Get some Oatey #30999 ABS cement and you can repair it like new. Don't try to use PVC cement, it's the wrong solvent and won't fuse the parts together.
April 18th, 2024, 09:26 AM
