great white
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Well, if you can't find a replacement this is what I would suggest. It's a big job but not much more than replacing one anyways:
Pull the dash out of the truck. Strip any components left on it.
Bond any areas that are cracked or misaligned. Epoxy is fine for this.
Flip it over and rough the plastic up with some 80 grit. Right down to 30 grit will work fine. Make it good and rough everywhere because you are making "tooth" for fibreglass resin to grab on to.
Now grab some fibreglass mat and resin. Cut your pieces of Fiberglas to fit in the dash and around it's curves. Cut it so it overlaps slighty at the cut ends and/or make small pices to cover the joint. Don't worrry if it doesn't lay flat, once it's wetted with resin it with bend to the curves easily. you just want to avoid it "bunching up" and creating a void.
Mix up your resin and start laying up on the inside of the dash. Follow the directions one the can for mixing. Since your're in a very hot and dry area it will probably kick off quickly. Make sure you mix is cold (ie: slow hardening time) according to the directions. If it kicks off too fast the resin will overheat, turn brown and will likely "spider crack". This will make it weak and that's not what you want. Be cautious of going too cold though, or it will take forever or never cure. About 5- 10 minutes is all the working time I get out of a mix.
Also a good point to remember is the longer it stays in the mixing container the faster it will kick. It's because the thicker mass build more heat and quicker than when it's spread out. I usually mix my batch and then pour half it on my work piece. Then I spread it out with my brush, tamp the mat into it and then pour the remainder out in spots to tamp over the mat with my brush. Use a disposable brush by the way: it will be garbage once the resin sets up in it.
Don't try to work the whole dash at once or your resin will kick off and harden on you before you finish. About half the dash is a good chunk for a beginner. If you use up all the resin before it kicks off you can mix up another batch (in a different cup).
Stay away from spots where components need to mount of overlap the edge you're working on. You don't want to build up the thickness in these spots and not be able to refit the dash.
Let it all harden for an hour or so.
Now you can flip it over and deal with the cracks and nastiness on the surface you look at because the fibreglass will keep the dash strong and stable.
In your case, I would suggest sanding it down and body working it to a smooth finish (since it's cracked to high heaven already) and then painting it. This will keep the Az sun from baking the plastic and drying it out, although not much can be done about the heat except a sun shield in the window and leaving the sides open a crack.
Only thing is it will be shiny if you use gloss paint. I've had shiny dashes before and don't like them due to sun glare and reflection on the windshield. I would likely select a semigloss or eggshell/mat type paint were I to do it again.
What you'll kind of end up with a hard shell with a plastic centre!
Pull the dash out of the truck. Strip any components left on it.
Bond any areas that are cracked or misaligned. Epoxy is fine for this.
Flip it over and rough the plastic up with some 80 grit. Right down to 30 grit will work fine. Make it good and rough everywhere because you are making "tooth" for fibreglass resin to grab on to.
Now grab some fibreglass mat and resin. Cut your pieces of Fiberglas to fit in the dash and around it's curves. Cut it so it overlaps slighty at the cut ends and/or make small pices to cover the joint. Don't worrry if it doesn't lay flat, once it's wetted with resin it with bend to the curves easily. you just want to avoid it "bunching up" and creating a void.
Mix up your resin and start laying up on the inside of the dash. Follow the directions one the can for mixing. Since your're in a very hot and dry area it will probably kick off quickly. Make sure you mix is cold (ie: slow hardening time) according to the directions. If it kicks off too fast the resin will overheat, turn brown and will likely "spider crack". This will make it weak and that's not what you want. Be cautious of going too cold though, or it will take forever or never cure. About 5- 10 minutes is all the working time I get out of a mix.
Also a good point to remember is the longer it stays in the mixing container the faster it will kick. It's because the thicker mass build more heat and quicker than when it's spread out. I usually mix my batch and then pour half it on my work piece. Then I spread it out with my brush, tamp the mat into it and then pour the remainder out in spots to tamp over the mat with my brush. Use a disposable brush by the way: it will be garbage once the resin sets up in it.
Don't try to work the whole dash at once or your resin will kick off and harden on you before you finish. About half the dash is a good chunk for a beginner. If you use up all the resin before it kicks off you can mix up another batch (in a different cup).
Stay away from spots where components need to mount of overlap the edge you're working on. You don't want to build up the thickness in these spots and not be able to refit the dash.
Let it all harden for an hour or so.
Now you can flip it over and deal with the cracks and nastiness on the surface you look at because the fibreglass will keep the dash strong and stable.
In your case, I would suggest sanding it down and body working it to a smooth finish (since it's cracked to high heaven already) and then painting it. This will keep the Az sun from baking the plastic and drying it out, although not much can be done about the heat except a sun shield in the window and leaving the sides open a crack.
Only thing is it will be shiny if you use gloss paint. I've had shiny dashes before and don't like them due to sun glare and reflection on the windshield. I would likely select a semigloss or eggshell/mat type paint were I to do it again.
What you'll kind of end up with a hard shell with a plastic centre!
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