Leather Dash Cover Installation

[djwarner]

Got the dash reconnected to the point I could start the engine and verify my electrical connections. I still have to do some smoothing with a steamer and clean things down, but I promised some pictures.

 

 

At this point, you can get a pretty good idea of what is will look like when I'm finished.  

When I started this, I said I would let you know the vendor if I would recommend him. And to those who have guessed it is an English firm doing business on Ebay as "topgaiters".

I paid $225.00 including postage.

 

I have been providing feedback to them as I installed the cover and hopefully your will be better and easier to install than mine.

[Captain Obvious]

Nice work. That's gotta be waaaay better than what you started with!

[TomoHawk]

It looks nice.  It looks like a good solution to cracks as well as those nasty reflections.

[GeeZ]

I emailed the company to ask if the edges wraped around, but haven't received an answer. So do the edges wrap around?

[djwarner]

There is sufficient leather to wrap around the bottom edges, side pieces to wrap around the left and right sides. For the Tach, Speedo, Side Vents, and Hazard Switch cones sewn in to fit in the recesses. The three small indicators, glove box border, and glove box latch areas have to be molded in place. The front lip follows the vinyl edge and fits under the metal cowl finisher.

 

Even though they are located in Britain, I have had language issues that lead me to believe they are non-native.

[hr369]

I repaired my dash this past summer and experienced the same fast-set problems with the SEM 'Bumper-Bite' product.  As noted above, you really do get only ~ 30 - 45 seconds before it gets chalky and will no longer spread properly.  Interesting that the label instructions offer no cautions about this.  I experimented with different proportions of hardener and resin (even as little as 1:5) and found that it really didn't make much difference (!).  I wonder if a lot of this stuff has been sitting on the retailers' shelves for too long and has started to chemically change?

 

What was the temperature of the room when you did this? Was it a hot day?

[bartman]

For djwarner or anyone else that has also completed this install, I am currently installing my leather cover and would appreciate more details on how you installed the leather around the three small center gauge openings.  There are no funnels for these, and the 3 holes provided in the leather (at least on mine) aren't even the same size.  I assume you must have made the holes in the leather all the same size to start?  I was thinking of finding something around the same size as the dash openings to stretch the leather and then to place in the openings while the glue sets up.  Maybe some type of cup or glass if I could find the right size, or just stuff the openings full of rags.  Just curious how you tackled this. 

For the speedo and Tach I see how you cut to fit at the bezels, but you must again have used something to hold the leather in place on the sides of the opening until the glue could hold it in place?

Any help or insight is appreciated.

[djwarner]

Basics with wrapping with leather are water and heat. When it came to stretching the leather around the three small gauges, I used tennis balls to mold to the openings while the leather dried. It took multiple cycles of wetting, stretching, drying to get  a reasonable result. Even then the holes were not evenly centered and had some gaps around the gauges after they were installed.  

To resolve the miss fit, I first trimmed some scrap leather removed from other areas and fit them into the gaps. While this improved things,  I could see the patches and it irked me. Then I saw some black hub rings on eBay. They looked close to the right size so I bought a set thinking they could serve a bezel ring. They fit perfectly.  In gloss black, I could not have made a better set. As proof, I completely forgot about them until I read your post. 

Dont hesitate to ask for more help, I know how big a project you have going on.

[Captain Obvious]

Those hub/bezel rings sound interesting. Have you got any pics of them installed?

[Mark Maras]

 ^^^, more info on those would be appreciated.

[djwarner]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/72-6-66-1-HUB-CENTRIC-RING-FITS-NISSAN-ALTIMA-MAXIMA-SENREA-/110724555574?hash=item19c7b2a336:g:BJgAAOSw-vlViIU~&vxp=mtr

[Mark Maras]

Wow. Those are perfect. They should offer those with the leather kit.