looking for dash ideas?

My dash is old and tired, none of the guages work, the radio cutout is not where i want it and i think its time for a fresh start. I would love to see some pics of some of your tricked out dashes. here is my before pic and hopefully soon I will post the after. thanks for sharing....

 

I'll be going with these guys for custom dash. There are lots of pics on the site.

http://sites.google.com/site/doubledfab/

 

Got mine from Logans Metal http://logansmetals4x4.com/. Pretty standard cutouts but I was pleased. You may not see an intermediate dash on there website but if you call they can make one.

 

I did order a standard replacement one from Quadratec, but it got beat up in the shipping to the UK, so decided to make one from scratch. Mine is actually stainless steel sprayed to match the exterior, plus it's thick enough to provide extra bracing for the steering column. It's a single piece, which I got a shop to bend 1" at the bottom for bracing, and then I cut the necessary holes where I wanted them.

I think the best thing is the removable panel for the gauges. Someone on this site suggested it to me, as if you ever need to make a fix/change, then you just unscrew the panel rather than lying upside down with your hands in the gynecologist position...

The other cool thing is the switches on the left of the steering column. They are a marine unit, and each one has its own beaker/trip switch. This avoids he need for a fuse box entirely.

Anyway, hope these help with some ideas. Good luck with your dash.

 

JMO - your existing dash looks great. If it were mine, I'd fix the gauges, buff off the stickers, touch up the paint (where the stickers were), apply a new repro VIN sticker, put a radio in the hole, and be proud.

 

cover it with polished alum I used door kick plates to cover mine
cost $30 homo depote

 

Thanks for posting link. I had it bookmarked but lost it when I upgraded to linux 2010.

blubaron66, I agree with Tim. If my dash looked as good as yours, I'd refurbish it.

 

Yep, that is a pretty good dash.

 

My dash was hacked up as well so i decided to replace everything and bought all new guages from morris jeep and new stainless dash and glove box lid from Logans. Will post pics when im done still waiting on the dash to arrive, but your dash is in great shape i would just put new gauges and lights and like Timgr said just repaint it.

 

I love the simplicity of the stock dash. Yours looks great in my opinion. I think too much bling really runs counter to the simplicity of an early/intermediate CJ5. I'm going for an original appearance in my 74, with upgraded Autometer gauges (Classic Chrome series that are very close in appearance to stock units).

 

Its a tough call between leaving the integrity of the old stock look or going all out with modern technology. I own a 1970 vw bug and a 1973 vw bus all redone with that stock look, So I can appreciate the value of keeping it simple. My 74 cj has a freshly painted and rebuilt engine (258), a rebuilt dana 20 and I just haven't really decided to stay with the stock theme or go over the top. The custom dashes on Double D's web site as posted by nwedgar http://sites.google.com/site/doubledfab/ ....... his custom dashes are really cool!!!

 

well good luck with what ever you decide and post pics when your done to let us see the outcome

 

IMO that stock dash looks pretty good. I would weld in a patch for the radio cutout, freshen it up a bit and go with it.

But on the other hand if you do decide to do your own thing please let me know I am always in the market original dash pieces

 

I agree with Tim here your dash looks pretty good

 

One of the distinctive features of a cj is its large speedometer, switching to new gauges takes away from the original style. IMHO ofcourse

 

Well, it's probably not in the interest of most CJ purists, but here's a thread I posted on another site showing a dash that I built, anyway...

http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f8/im-building-dash-lots-pics-1037163/

Rich

 

Wow...very nice dash you built.