Very hacked dash! any ideas for radio install

[Locutus]

The previous owner hacked the dash to install gauges on a panel that was screwed to the dash. I don't really like having a panel screwed on dash but I have considered it. I just wanted to see if there were any other ideas about how to aproach this.

[Shane]

dude ... you need a new dash ....

[Frank_Zeller]

Try a Double DIN radio like is used in the newer GM and Dodges. Seen a 70 at the junk yard with one. Looked pretty good.

[Locutus]

Well I have an aftermarket stereo I want to install. If it had the orginal cut outs for the stereo I would have no problems cutting it to fit but with this its way to big for a standard stero

[Palf70Step]

I think I would square it off with a dremel tool and weld body panel adhesive a panel back into the dash. Little bondo/liquid steel, sand & paint and it should look good and hold up well.

[NSANE68!!!]

Or maybe a full BILLET custom dash, like mine

[72MARIO]

From the looks of it Get A New Rust free Cab !!!

[COBALT]

Yeah, I'd find a cab with an uncut dash (or at least one with the radio area uncut) and try to either put in a new dash, or cut a section out of a salvaged dash and weld it in.

[AndrewDT]

Mine was chopped up too. What I was going to do was take a Radio Delete Plate and cut stock size holes in that and mount my radio in the plate. It'd cover the hole and look... semi-correct.
But you got a big hole!

[bouncytruck]

I have heard about bezels you can buy at the stereo stores, but I don't know if they will cover that big of a hole. It looks like someone had a plate stuck on there previously. You could have someone fab up a billet plate to cover the hole. If you used a billet dash insert, ashtray plate and glove box plate, it would look really nice.

[landon4421]

let it be for now and look around at the wrecking yards in your area with a cab that still has the stock holes for the radio and cut it out and re weld the dash. That is what I had to do and you can not even tell that someone else had hacked it up. "Cobalt" has the right idea. I will post a pic in the morning. Landon

[weasel29gm]

Get creative and fix it and save money. Like Plaf said find a plate and put it back or make one out of stainless etc.

[jku72]

Man, that hole's big enough for a phonograph!!! I guess Id make a plate, and put it on. Make the plate pretty enough, and it wont look that bad. You can then make cutouts of the correct size in the plate. A stock look is out of the question.

[67cst]

i agree with jku72, make a nice rectangular plate and have a shinny carrige bolt in each corner with the proper size cut out for the deck

[minibike]

I have a junk cab with a good donor dash area. I would be willing to cut out the radio area for $20 plus shipping.

[Project1970]

That is one HACKED dash...I would go look for a truck with either an uncut or even a less-cut radio opening, cut it out, and weld it in there. It looks like they cut out some of the beveled area there...

What you should do, at the least, is try to reconstruc the beveled-in area as well as you can (unless you want to cut it all out and weld in a flat plate, I've seen that done, it isn't half bad but I prefer it sunken in), and then weld in a plate to fill the beveled area, and then cut away for your new radio.

Hmm...random thought...I bet if someone made patch panels for that area, they'd be decently popular.

[Blue68]

Something I'm curious to see, is one of two things. Both are a plate (which judging by the screw holes was on yours) that fits flush across the recessed area and has mounting options for stereos (din, two dial original). One option is for those guys that use the billet aluminum glove box and bezels and use the same material, the other would be a flat steel option. Or I suppose you could go Caddy and put in a wood face plate around it with a nice stain to match a nostalgic wood steering wheel. Then the hacked dash disappears and you don't have to figure out how to mount one.

Just my idea.

[nosto]

I, too, was blessed with a total hacked dash in the radio area. All I got was the hacksawed hole, not even a radio. Since I went to bags, I needed somplace to put the gauges and switches, so I filled in the hole with them. The radio/CD will be elsewhere; under dash, in glovebox, in console, don't know yet.

[EdB]

I would find a donor piece and weld
it in.

EdB

[da-burb]

I'm betting that it wasn't a radio in there. It looks like it was a .6 cubic foot 900 watt microwave. I think the last owner couldn't live without his micro-wave popcorn.

[69 Short Fleet]

I agree with palf70 and jku72, weld in a plate, Holy Hanna did that guy go nuts with his jigsaw or whatever!!!, nosto thats the first one I've seen with gauges/switches, very original idea and looks super!!! Later, Doug

[O'l Buck]

We replaced the radio in my sister's 91 chevy with an aftermarket CD Player. The radio's in those things are huge. I picked up an installation kit from Wally World for about $15 I think. It had a big bezel that surrounded the radio. You might be able to brace the radio up good and put one of those kits in there to fill up the hole. Man, that's one hacked up dash.

[bobs409]

When I got my truck, it was hacked just about as bad.

I bought some aluminum tread plate from Lowes and installed that.

There are only 2 options; cover the hole or weld in a piece from another truck.

[yellowgmc]

take a 12 guage and strategically blow holes in the truck. sell it on ebay as a bank robbers getaway truck. the other ideas are probably better, but this would be fun!

[Brad]

I used to work at a TAP Plastics. It's a west coast plastics store for the do-it-yourselfer. We carried ABS plastic that had a grain pattern to it. Sold in thickness of 3/32, 1/8, 1/4. You could make a panel out of this and it would look much better.