Thanks Gary, that is good information. I will try the 303 ~after I have everything painted and see if it helps keep the finish in good shape. I've been doing my homework here on the SEM products and prep work. There are some awesome threads on the subject. I am just taking my time researching and collecting some replacement interior pieces before I start.

As far as the speaker hole, my foam is still pretty intact. But it is fragile and starting to fail. I might experiment with the OLD dash pad and see if I can saturate it or coat it with some kind of resin or glue to hold it together a while longer. Either that or scrape all the foam out and glue in a metal speaker grille from underneath to support the vinyl skin.

 

I glued four thin pieces of plastic foam sheet called Sintra with 2-part epoxy to the backside of the speaker hole. I put weight on the area until the epoxy cured and the began the fun job of drilling out all those speaker holes. It turned out to be very strong and looks good too. Sintra should be available from a sign shop

 

I had a excellent dash pad(till my kid dropped it off the shelf ....) but with the rotted foam speaker area too.

My though was to remove all the old foam and use some of the super sticky spray foam to recover the area. With nothing to stop the foam expansion on the back side the speaker grill should be reenforced and you just cut away the excess foam. Then take a small brass pipe or equ and poke out the holes if you want too.

But now I am back looking for another dash pad....

 

I give another for Babyoil, My 63 has had it on there for many years the dash pad is still like new with one small tear in the corner where it rolls under to allow the speaker grill to be uncovered.

Besides that I wouldn't replace it if it wasn't for the fact it faded from saddle tan to a puke green color.

 

The patch almost looks as good as my 3-D printed dash pad patch.

 

I would so do this if all the old vinyl could be removed as mine is splitting pretty good now. Probably be cheaper to have my old one restored by having it recovered and doing this plastic speaker reinforcement you did than spending $400 for a reproduction.

 

Hey everyone,

We actually manufacture 303® Products, as well. Thank you to those that already use and recommend 303® Aerospace Protectant.

As was mentioned, 303® Aerospace Protectant will do a fantastic job of protecting rubber, plastic, and vinyl surfaces without leaving behind a greasy or oily residue like other products out there. While it may restore a little luster, it is really meant to be used as a preventative product.

We'd be happy to get a free sample out to anyone willing to give it a try. Simply PM us with your full name, address, and a reference to this thread and we'll punch the order in. All we ask in return is some feedback in this thread.

Have a great weekend!

 

In a shaded environment, use alcohol to clean any and all residue, then Mineral Oil to replenish moisture as a preservative. (keep in mind that there is foam under the vinyl that could be dried out,causing sags,dips,etc). Prior to repaint, use 3M General Purpose Adhesive Cleaner to "strip" the surface for prep to paint. Scars can be "laid down/blended" with a heat gun at a safe distance (best to practice on a throw away piece prior to your dash or other vinyl or plastic trim). ArmorAll is a water based product that contains Whale blubber....it will dry out vinyl and leather. Mink Oil also works well as a preservative. I have kept a vinyl tonneau cover soft and water proof for over 15 years with Mink Oil.

 

At one point in my career the oil company I worked for had a PVC subsidiary. I spent many a day in the PVC plant and talked to several of the engineers. Turns out the output of that plant was used by some manufactures as feedstock for making vinyl upholstery for automobiles.

As luck would have it, the '69 Bee I had sitting in the lot had significant problems with its vinyl - to the point it was hard and cracked like thin plastic. So I asked the engineer what I could do, to which he replied "Nothing". According to him the film we see on the inside of the glass in the summertime is the plasticizer being baked out of the vinyl. That's the stuff that keeps the vinyl pliable, and when it is gone you just have a thin piece of easily-broken plastic. And, there's no way to put it back.

So, the moral of the story is to keep something on the plastic to prevent the breakdown. He wasn't high on ArmorAll, and didn't really have any suggestions. Perhaps mineral oil or mink oil will do it. But I'm hoping the 303 they promised will keep my 2015 as well as the to-be new pad for Dad's truck like new.

 

As soon as I read this thread, I sent a PM and expressed interest in these products. Soon, I received a very personable message assuring me that the samples would soon be shipped. Yesterday afternoon, the UPS truck showed up with a box.


I expected a small foil wrapped sample, like the packets of anti-seize that are sold at the check-out counter of parts stores, but what I received was two bottles with sprayers. One is a 32 oz. 303 Multi-Surface Cleaner and the other is a 10 oz. bottle of 303 Aerospace Protectant.


I will try these out and provide feed-back.


Great service, STA-BIL! Thank you!

 

Wow! That's service. I, too, sent a PM and got a nice response. So, I'm awaiting the UPS man today with great expectation. (Actually, he's bringing new props for the boat, so I'm really awaiting Tom's arrival this afternoon. [Yes, I'm on a first-name basis with my UPS man, who usually asks if "it" is a Ford part.])

 

Friday evening, I had an opportunity to try the products. Let me start by saying that I have made a practice of maintaining the interior plastic/vinyl parts and they are still in pretty good condition. I also use a sunscreen to prevent direct sunlight from striking the dash pad.

What I have done in the past is to apply different products, all of which claim to project the plastic. When I wash the truck, I take a damp cloth and wipe off the dash, door panels, etc., to remove dust. However, I have not made a practice of using anything to actually clean the surfaces. I did not think it needed it as it looked good.

This time, I used the 303 Multi-Surface Cleaner. I tried it on a small inconspicuous spot and then proceeded to do all vinyl/plastic surfaces including the sun visors, steering wheel and vinyl seat cover as well as the rubber boot at the base of the transmission shifter. The soft white rag [piece of an old t-shirt] showed that the dirty surfaces were being gently cleaned.

Next, I applied 303 Aerospace Protectant to all the clean surfaces. It went on smoothly and wiped off easily. After it quickly dried, I gently buffed the surfaces with a soft towel. It all looks clean, bright [red] and has a soft sheen.

The next morning, we had a light rain and as I opened the door, a few droplets of water landed on the top of the door panel. The droplets beaded and were easily wiped off with the palm of my hand.

Time will tell as to how this holds up, but I can say without reservation that it does clean and the application is as easy as any I have used.

Thank you, STA-BIL!

 

Looks 303 is on the list for me!

 

Well, my sample arrived (in Canada!!) the other day and I had time to try it out tonight. As with the others, I received a large spray bottle of 303 cleaner and a spray bottle of 303 Protectant. I followed the directions and cleaned all the surfaces (dash pad, dash vertical surfaces, door panels, pillar trim) which removed some old coatings and dirt, and left the dash and door panels looking a bit dull and faded. I then followed the directions for the 303 Protectant and sprayed and wiped. Some of the badly faded areas on the door panels came back to red from white which surprised me. The dash seemed to soak the Protectant in like crazy, I put about 3 heavy coats on. It looks quite a bit better now, not shiny, but darker in colour. I also did the black dash and door panels in my '71 Mustang with similar results. So far I am very happy with both the service (hey, who doesn't like free stuff?) and the results of both the cleaner and the protectant. Now the test of time begins and I will see if it helps keep my currently uncracked dash from cracking. Of course the directions mention frequent re-applications, so I will have to try my best to follow some sort of reapplication schedule. Thanks to Sta-Bil for the samples, I will definitely be heading to my local suppliers (which they also gave me a list of).

 

Hopefully you have received the samples by now. If not let us know and we can check on the status of those samples.

Have a great day!

Thank you for taking the time to test out our products and THANK YOU for the detailed feedback. We are happy to hear you were pleased with the results. Please let us know if you ever have questions about our products.

Have a great day!

Thank you very much for the feedback and for taking the time to give our products a try!! We appreciate the positive words. Please let us know if you every have questions regarding our products and their applications.

Have a great day!!