Dash Fab analog to Digital

Express 390 said:
Boy you did some Job you should be proud of what you did. I thought i did a good job on mine, But that just blows mine out of the water! Looks like a Video game LOL:eek:
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Thanks so much!
 
Lake Luv Kentucky said:
I recently found out as a first time boat owner OEM stuff is impossible to find! So as my old gauges started failing, I searched ebay.... The price for a few used Sea Ray OEM gauges quickly justified my converting my Dash pod to digital. View attachment 87927 View attachment 87928
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I can't tell you how impressed I am with how your custom dash came out. I'm replacing all my gauges and Chartplotter now and would love to do something similar. If you don't mind, I'd like to pick your brain on a couple of things:

1. What did you use to stretch over the MDF for the form?
2. Did you just smooth resin over what you stretched? What kind?
3. Was all the tape on the form necessary in the end? It looks like the resin wouldn't touch anything except on the edges.
4. How did you fashion the screw holes? I love the counter sunk look. It looks strong too.

Thanks for any advice you can pass along!
 
Ok first thank you for your praise it feels good after all the hard work! I will do my best to help in any way I can!

1. I went to a local fabric store to find any spandex or lycra type material you know the stuff you don't want to see big girls in! Lol the stretchy stuff! I used hot glue to attach it to the back of the MDF vs staples as they slip or can pop out as the fiberglass resin cures and contracts.

I used just regular old bondo brand from americas home improvement store in a gallon size. Please follow the mixing directions and wear appropriate masks and ventilation, etc please. Nasty stuff fo sho not worth risking your health over!

3. Tape was very necessary as the resin will drip through the fabric even if heavy girls wearing it dont or do too graphic to think about it lol! Also allow 24 hrs for the first coat to fully harden or you risk the shape warping due to the thermal reaction of the second coat. The masking tape is super important for the mold or you will spend alot of time digging it out and probably ruining the fiberglass work.

3.1/2 after pulling the skeleton I used chop mat fiberglass to reinforce the mold from inside for strength.

4. I stood the mold up and used tape and aluminum foil to kinda make a U shape around the holes to countersink the screws because obviously its not a flat dash panel after fabing it.

5 please use automotive grade body fillers and paint as this is going to be exposed to the elements after all that work getting cheap paint and clear from a hardware store will ruin all the work and effort. Its not hard to do but takes patience. I will help any way I can. Please feel free to contact me if I missed anything or you have questions GO FOR IT! Buddy!!!
 
Lake Luv Kentucky said:
Ok first thank you for your praise it feels good after all the hard work! I will do my best to help in any way I can!

1. I went to a local fabric store to find any spandex or lycra type material you know the stuff you don't want to see big girls in! Lol the stretchy stuff! I used hot glue to attach it to the back of the MDF vs staples as they slip or can pop out as the fiberglass resin cures and contracts.

I used just regular old bondo brand from americas home improvement store in a gallon size. Please follow the mixing directions and wear appropriate masks and ventilation, etc please. Nasty stuff fo sho not worth risking your health over!

3. Tape was very necessary as the resin will drip through the fabric even if heavy girls wearing it dont or do too graphic to think about it lol! Also allow 24 hrs for the first coat to fully harden or you risk the shape warping due to the thermal reaction of the second coat. The masking tape is super important for the mold or you will spend alot of time digging it out and probably ruining the fiberglass work.

3.1/2 after pulling the skeleton I used chop mat fiberglass to reinforce the mold from inside for strength.

4. I stood the mold up and used tape and aluminum foil to kinda make a U shape around the holes to countersink the screws because obviously its not a flat dash panel after fabing it.

5 please use automotive grade body fillers and paint as this is going to be exposed to the elements after all that work getting cheap paint and clear from a hardware store will ruin all the work and effort. Its not hard to do but takes patience. I will help any way I can. Please feel free to contact me if I missed anything or you have questions GO FOR IT! Buddy!!!
Click to expand...


Oops put about 4 coats on the outside resin before attempting to remove the MDF you will know when it is strong enough to do so.
 
Lake Luv Kentucky said:
Ok first thank you for your praise it feels good after all the hard work! I will do my best to help in any way I can!

1. I went to a local fabric store to find any spandex or lycra type material you know the stuff you don't want to see big girls in! Lol the stretchy stuff! I used hot glue to attach it to the back of the MDF vs staples as they slip or can pop out as the fiberglass resin cures and contracts.

I used just regular old bondo brand from americas home improvement store in a gallon size. Please follow the mixing directions and wear appropriate masks and ventilation, etc please. Nasty stuff fo sho not worth risking your health over!

3. Tape was very necessary as the resin will drip through the fabric even if heavy girls wearing it dont or do too graphic to think about it lol! Also allow 24 hrs for the first coat to fully harden or you risk the shape warping due to the thermal reaction of the second coat. The masking tape is super important for the mold or you will spend alot of time digging it out and probably ruining the fiberglass work.

3.1/2 after pulling the skeleton I used chop mat fiberglass to reinforce the mold from inside for strength.

4. I stood the mold up and used tape and aluminum foil to kinda make a U shape around the holes to countersink the screws because obviously its not a flat dash panel after fabing it.

5 please use automotive grade body fillers and paint as this is going to be exposed to the elements after all that work getting cheap paint and clear from a hardware store will ruin all the work and effort. Its not hard to do but takes patience. I will help any way I can. Please feel free to contact me if I missed anything or you have questions GO FOR IT! Buddy!!!
Click to expand...
HA! You are a character. I love it. I'm going to give it a shot. I can't imagine I'll have as much success as you did, but if I can get it in near to the same as yours I'll be happy! Thanks so much for the tips. -Dave
 
HawkX66 said:
HA! You are a character. I love it. I'm going to give it a shot. I can't imagine I'll have as much success as you did, but if I can get it in near to the same as yours I'll be happy! Thanks so much for the tips. -Dave
Click to expand...

heck if you run into trouble you can always send me the piece and I can try and help. I wont charge ya but youll have to pay for shipping etc ( this is not an open invitation to everyone wanting a new dash fabrication btw but I respect anyone willing to try their own DIY!)
 
Lake Luv Kentucky said:
heck if you run into trouble you can always send me the piece and I can try and help. I wont charge ya but youll have to pay for shipping etc ( this is not an open invitation to everyone wanting a new dash fabrication btw but I respect anyone willing to try their own DIY!)
Click to expand...
That's one heck of an offer. Thank you! Hopefully I won't have to take you up on it. The process "appears" pretty straight forward so I'll be giving it a shot soon I hope.
 
Ive decided after a few weeks on the lake that the glare from my screen being tilted is too much. Im a perfectionist, So I am going to modify the dash trim
Piece to come out about 4-6” to shadow the screen. I am taking measurements to make sure it can still be viewed while siting with the seat bolster up. The saga continues! Ive posted a crude cell edit of the photo to give an idea of what im thinking or hoping will fix the issue.
0CC0DE68-1767-4BA3-9510-14189ECDE114.jpeg
 
Another angle from iphone photoshop obviously the finished product will be more aesthetically pleasing.
AEDEDDB3-C24D-4716-8A39-A3DCE0E94251.jpeg
 
I was worried about that issue with my set-up. I was going to flat mount my chartplotter on my current dash and forgo the custom work. Then I thought about the glare and being able to see it while sitting down. Custom setup here I come lol Materials are here, I just need to replace my transom assembly first... I just found out my steering shaft area is fubar.
Where you have your new sun shield/overhang going I'm going to try to incorporate that area all the way across into the one piece dash assembly so I can fill that ~6" wide space. Mine came with a wood reinforced fabric piece for a sunshade that needs to be replaced anyway. I might end up doing it in two pieces. We'll see...
Good luck with your new piece!
 
Thanks im trying to visualize what your doing not sure your boats model year but take pics of your progress for us and always put your idea on paper first I did and had to revisit alot of my progress.
7E47A6C6-B70C-4C8F-ACF7-BFFD0DE32F6B.jpeg
93BD4B6C-A398-4706-97F2-4382D17951C1.jpeg
 
Hi Lake Luv Kentucky - Having grown up in a boat yard and working with fiberglass/gel coat my whole life. I am nothing short of impressed to the point of being in awe of what you did. Simply fantastic!

I would like to hear of what you think about the G2, I have a thread over at THT on the G2 and have had one since 2016/17. I have often thought of going with a screen like you have, but instead went with GMI20's and DSM410's. I went with the smaller displays because of more data then just the engines can be displayed.

Anyway, great job - I would be extremely proud of your work. Never under estimate what can be achieved in the garage!
 
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