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.