instrument panel

tblshur

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Aug 24, 2011
Messages
688
Hi all i have a 83 ranger bass boat 330v and the wood grain -like coating on instrument panel has come off. i dont know what kind of material the panel is made of, could someone tell me how to prep it and what kind of paint or stain to use. thanks for any help:D
 

tblshur

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Aug 24, 2011
Messages
688
Re: instrument panel

pckeen sorry i dont have pictures.its about 3/16 thick and looks like fiberglass.thanks for your responce.
 

Woodonglass

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Messages
25,924
Re: instrument panel

If this is what you're referring too,
ranger003.jpg

then it would be fairly straight forward. In this pic it appears there's a removable faceplate. If your' has that then just take it off, sand it first with 80 grit then again with 150 then 220. Primer with 2 coats of the Recommended primer and then the use some of the spray metal flake you can get at the autoparts stores. I've used it on Car wheels and it works Great Follow up with a couple coats of clear and it'll look fantastic.
MS-silver_210x190.jpg
 

tblshur

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Aug 24, 2011
Messages
688
Re: instrument panel

Woodonglass,that is a beautiful boat and instrument panel it looks like the same panel, mine does not have clear cover.I really thank you for your time and explanation.I think that will work for me my boat is silver flake.Thanks again and keep a tight line.:joyous:
 

gm280

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Jun 26, 2011
Messages
14,585
Re: instrument panel

tblshur, there is another option (well there are many many other options), you could buy some laminated plastics in most any color combination you can think of to replace the one you have now. My wife, before retiring, use to make plates for trophies and LASER into then with people's names and/or logos and other art designs into the laminates. So we have our own large LASER etcher and buy our plastic from laminating companies all over the place. So you could buy a piece of that laminate in any color, wood-look, or even clear that you could possible want. Then take your old one and use it for a template to make your new one out of that laminate plastic. You can also get the laminate in 1/32" thicknesses to well over a 1/4" thick. The choice and colors are all yours. Just search the net for LASER laminates and look... The cost is pretty reasonable and they ship amazingly fast too...
 

Bob_VT

Moderator & Unofficial iBoats Historian
Staff member
Joined
May 19, 2001
Messages
26,019
Re: instrument panel

And if you are real ambitious........ doo a search for Hydrographics and see if there is a local applicator. The entire panel would have to be removed and stripped of all switches and gauges ......... really some durable stuff which comes in colors, patterns, camo, carbon-fiber and thousands more....... do an image search for Hydrographics fairly cost reasonable.
 

tblshur

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Aug 24, 2011
Messages
688
Re: instrument panel

gm280 and Bob-VT WOW!!! ask for an idea on this forum and get blown out of the water.you guys have opened up ways to spruce up things i never dreamed of , i have saw some of these applications and always wondered [howd they do that] i will be checking these out and if i do one ,will post back.thank you guys so much for your time and knowledge:thumb:
 
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