Dashboard replacement (with pictures)

[djeCST]

To make a long story short, what I thought was going to be a wiring project became something more: The PO hacked up the dash installing a billet dash bezel and glove box door. So much so that all of the attachment points for a stock bezel were gone. This kind of craftsmanship really chaps my hide.



So before I could start my wiring project I needed to replace the dash. I found a lot of threads here about how to remove a dash, but didn't find a real project thread. I decided to document the process in hopes that someone will find it useful.

First of all: The dash is held on by three bolts on each side, below the A-pillar. Remove these bolts first.



That's the easy part. There are also 28 or so (mine had 29) spot welds along the bottom edge of the windshield lip. So the windshield has to come out in order to get at the spot welds.

Let me say that I did not intend to re-use the rubber since it was a little old looking, so the method I used to remove the glass involved cutting the old window rubber out. I have read other threads on this forum where the rubber can be removed intact from the inside of the cab.

To remove the windshield, I cut around the inside edge of the rubber, deep enough so that my knife hit the rib of the stainless trim. If you don't have the stainless in the window rubber, this part doesn't apply. Just take your time and try not to scratch your windshield, okay?



Once I cut all the way around the windshield I was able to gently pull the rubber away from the trim.



Once I got the rubber out I was able to remove the corner pieces. It took a little wiggling around, but they eventually slid off.



The windshield was pretty well stuck in there so I worked from inside the cab to pull the rest of the rubber out.



Get someone to help you take the glass out - it's not heavy, but kind of awkward.

So far, so good.

The windshield lip and the upper lip of the dash are spot welded together. In this picture you can see the indentations where the welds are.



It only takes a few simple tools to remove the spot welds:



The Dremel bought the farm about half way through, so I switched to my pneumatic die grinder with a ball-nose rotary file. It's a little more agressive than I liked, but it worked.



I decided to work from the dashboard side so as not to put a bunch of holes in the flange that is part of the body. I wanted that piece to stay nice as I planned to pre-paint the new dash and install it with automotive epoxy. More about that in a bit.

Carefully grind at the spot weld until you're just through the first layer of metal. Work the flat bar into the gap between the two pieces and whack it with the hammer a few times. Most of the time the weld popped apart pretty easily. Repeat 28 times.





Voila! About 2 1/2 hours from start to removal of dash.


With the old dash out it was time to prepare the new one. I was lucky enough to find one from a guy who was parting out a '69 (mine's a '70). Sneak peek with about half the paint removed:



Some sanding and a little filler to smooth out a few pits on the top and it's time for epoxy primer. I am using Southern Polyurethane products which spray and sand beautifully.



More to follow; I'm going to work on the truck for a bit.

[davepl]

I feel your pain.... on the other project I'm working on I was tracing back the tach wire and it was green for while, then crimp connector'd to white, then back to green, and finally twisted to the factory brown wire.

Always nice to clean that stuff up and know it's done right though!

[El Dorado Jim]

I hate hackers! , some people should never touch anything,you are doing a great job....

[KEL]

How's your wiper motor and pump ?
Pretty easy access right now !

[davepl]

Meanwhile, I'm in the middle of this, so I feel your pain. The tach wire started out green, then went white, then back to green, then brown to the tach. Like wire was gold.

I have one car we've had since new and I'm so used to only my own mistakes that the nonsense I've found under here is pretty amazing!

[djeCST]

Thanks for the replies, gentlemen.

El Dorado Jim - I always wonder why people decide to flail away on these trucks without any care. Better just to leave them alone at that point.

KEL - talk about full access! Wiper motor and pump are both good, but I did take the opportunity to clean up the heater/defroster box and put in a new heater core.

[djeCST]

Originally Posted by davepl

The tach wire started out green, then went white, then back to green, then brown to the tach. Like wire was gold.

Sounds like the same guy worked on my truck, Dave. I was chasing a wire from the battery across the radiator, but the color going in to the chase never came out. Turns out it was spliced three times over the width of the radiator! Jeez. That was about the time I realized a new harness was in my future. On the rest of the truck, I think the PO only had red wire because that's about all there was under the dash.

[OregonNed]

Nice write-up so far. Thanks for sharing the steps!

[57larry]

that was sure a messed up dash. looks like you're doing a great job replacing it. we need more pics. thanks, Larry

[Clavo106]

This is y I now own a parts truck! good Wright up..

[35boulder]

x2 on the write up. nice pics also.

[Gromit]

Thanks for sharing this - Nice job on those pop rivets; and it was very helpful that you took the trouble to show the tools used and the windshield removal steps.

It is interesting that sophistication (in work practice) often actually makes a process simpler. For example compare what you just did with this nine-part youtube of a talented guy doing the same thing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iZIzaFzbro

It a C10 truck; but it is a later model; (1977); he ended up drilling a hundred or more holes in the sheet metal across the dash and leaving the two spot welded layers attached, then sawing between the holes and removing the dash, then peeling off the remaining 1/2" wide strip of dash metal that was still attached by the spot welds, then replacing the spot welds with fasteners.

He did a nice job and it turned out great but wow your method is a lot more elegant and do-able (now for those of us seeing how you did it) - on a weekend.

In my opinion it is a major improvement to make the entire dash assembly modular - (removable by loosening a few fasteners) - both for cleaning and access to other assemblies during repair and maintenance and modifications.

Thanks again for your post

[djeCST]

Thanks, guys! More to follow.

Thanks for that YouTube link, Gromit. Wow - that seems like a lot of extra work, but just goes to show there's more than one way to get the job done.

[70net440]

You don't know wiring problems until you start messing with Mopars. Nice write up. What harness are you going to use?

[djeCST]

So to continue on with the dash replacement progress.....

After removing the dash I decided it would be a good idea to clean up the area where the ends of the dash met the cab. I was (pleasantly) surprised at the relatively good condition of these areas, just a little surface rust.



A little sanding and some epoxy primer to protect the metal:



When I bought the truck I also got a quart of the paint that was used to repaint the truck a few years ago. Good thing: it's close to the original color but not exact. I'll need to be very selective on where I use it. The dashboard got a couple of coats of the metallic gold, followed by three coats of clear.



I took a few minutes to clean up the flange on the body so that there was a nice surface for the epoxy to bond to.



Since I pre-painted the dash I decided to use an automotive epoxy to stick the two flanges back together, rather than spot welding. Epoxy is at least as strong as a weld for this application since it is non-structural. A lot of door skins and panels are done this way. An added advantage is that it seals the seam very nicely, kind of like seam sealer. I used a general purpose epoxy from SEM with a long open time - 45 minutes. Full cure in 4 hours.



The epoxy cartridge requires a special application gun, kind of like the mother of all caulking guns. Between the adhesive and the gun I spent about $95.00, including shipping from TP Tools. A similar 3M setup from my local body and paint jobber was over $150.00. The system comes with a nifty mixing nozzle that automatically mixes the two parts of the epoxy. When you're finished, throw the nozzle away and cap the cartridge for use some other time. Always keep a couple of nozzles on hand since I don't think your local home improvement store is going to have 'em.....



The flange on the dash was a little wavy after being removed from the donor cab, but it only took a couple of minutes with a crescent wrench, hammer and dolly to straighten it out. The metal is pretty soft, so it's easy to work it back into shape. I basically opened the crescent wrench the thickness of the flange and gently bent the piece until it joined nicely with the flange on the body. I went for little to no gap that could be easily pressed together with finger pressure.

Here's the dash ready for the epoxy. I bolted it in with only one bolt on each size so that I could pivot the dash a little.



A bead of epoxy on each surface does the trick. Don't get too crazy putting it on or you'll have that black goo all over everything.



I smoothed it a little with my finger (glove up, or you'll be wearing black on your hands for a week) to reduce the amount of squeeze out.

Simple spring clamps to hold the two pieces together until the epoxy cures. About a buck each if you have to go buy some. Get the Harbor Freight ones - cheap and pretty good spring tension. I used the small ones.



All clamped up. I added the remaining bolts to the sides of the cab and did a little cleanup. While the epoxy is still wet you can clean up the squeeze out with acetone. After it cures maybe dynamite would work.

Okay, I made that sound reality-TV easy. In fact, getting the remaining bolts to line up was a little bit of a chore but with some pushing, prying, shoving and some colorful adjectives it all went together.



I let everything sit overnight, even though the advertised cure time is 4 hours. The joint is rock solid. I guess the windshield can go back in now.





Now I can get back to my wiring project......

[djeCST]

Hey 70net440, Mopars are special. That's why we love 'em.

I'm using American Autowire's 'Classic Upgrade' harness. Part #510089. It has everything the original harness has, plus extra circuits for all the modern upgrades we like to do. It also comes with an ATO-style (blade) fuse block, so no more glass fuses.