Hi I'm in the process of making a new dashboard and I'm going to cover it in black vinal. It's a wooden dashboard and was wondering what was the best glue to use so I can have a nice flat finish without any bumps in the surface ?
I used double sided neoprene foam, you can buy it in large rolls suitable for sticking down wood flooring. If gives a nice finish with it having a few mm of foam below the vinyl.
When I did my dash I used 1/4 mdf, and then using spray glue in an aerosol I stuck it to 1” upholstery foam, then used a sharp razor to trim the foam
to match the mdf. I then sprayed the top of the foam with spray adhesive and covered in vinyl and used a staple gun to secure the vinyl at the back of
the dash it came out really well but if I had to do it again then I would not spray the top of the foam with glue before wrapping the vinyl as once
it’s stuck it’s stuck and it’s hard to get the creases out. And also when you pull the vinyl tight to staple at the back it tries to pull the foam
with it.
The above applies only if you plan on using foam on top of the wooden dash panel. If not then normal spray adhesive onto both surfaces will work fine.
3mm fiberglass/2 mm mdf homemade dash, with all holes pre cut and measured to allow the dial to sit with vinyl and foam in the hole, then 10mm foam
spray glued to it
holes cut in foam for dials etc
green vinyl stretched over and evostuck glued and stapled to the back
once dried
vinyl cut into triangles for the dials and stuck behind the dash
with 10mm foams my dash is built to SVA standards, (not sure what IVA ones are)
pics in my archive
quote:
Originally posted by mcramsay
When I did my dash I used 1/4 mdf, and then using spray glue in an aerosol I stuck it to 1” upholstery foam, then used a sharp razor to trim the foam to match the mdf. I then sprayed the top of the foam with spray adhesive and covered in vinyl and used a staple gun to secure the vinyl at the back of the dash it came out really well but if I had to do it again then I would not spray the top of the foam with glue before wrapping the vinyl as once it’s stuck it’s stuck and it’s hard to get the creases out. And also when you pull the vinyl tight to staple at the back it tries to pull the foam with it.
The above applies only if you plan on using foam on top of the wooden dash panel. If not then normal spray adhesive onto both surfaces will work fine.
quote:
Originally posted by Daf
I used double sided neoprene foam, you can buy it in large rolls suitable for sticking down wood flooring. If gives a nice finish with it having a few mm of foam below the vinyl.
Thanks for the advice .I'd never thought about using foam but unfortunately can't use it otherwise I don't think all my switches would fit due to the extra thickness.But I 'll be using some spray on glue .
quote:
Originally posted by nick-york
Thanks for the advice .I'd never thought about using foam but unfortunately can't use it otherwise I don't think all my switches would fit due to the extra thickness.But I 'll be using some spray on glue .
Gorilla glue is good stuff and easily removed. I use it to hold carbon side panels on the edges of my boot box on my Westfield.
Don't use MDF as any moisture will degrade it overtime and the edges of thin MDF are prone to damage in thin boards. Your better off with 6mm - 9mm ply. I used 6mm MDF but I would use 9mm ply if I did it again. The extra rigidity will give a more premium feel. I don't really like the spongy foam look so I bought a reasonable quality faux black leather the sprayed the dash blank with carpet adhesive, I also sprayed the black of the leather. This alone is not really enough to hold it in place so then pull the edges around the dash blank and staple along the back. The more staples the better, at least one every 20mm. Start stapling at the top of the dash and pull tight and put a couple of staples in, then the bottom, then the left and then the right. Pulling each tight, then fill the gaps in. Cut the holes for the gauges a couple of days later.
Made the dashboard for my MK Indy from 6mm plywood, 3mm foam and covered in black vinyl. All stuck together with aerosol carpet fitters adhesive.
Make sure you've got a flat space to work and lay the materials flat to avoid air bubbles. The aerosol adhesive worked fine for me and never
came unstuck in sun or even the odd bit of rain.