some new stuff done

[RickHigginsHtbr]

Alright, here's some pics of some new stuff done to the GA....

1 - LED Tipped switches w/ Engraved switch plate
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a44/rickhigginshtbr/100_0253.jpg
This is the temporary spot for the switch plate.... I want an overhead console to put the switches into, but this works for now.

2 - Forget dying and painting, vinyl wrapped pillars and headliner
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a44/rickhigginshtbr/100_0257.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a44/rickhigginshtbr/100_0256.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a44/rickhigginshtbr/100_0259.jpg
I got sick of paint chipping, so I went shoppin for vinyl.... found this stuff, an exact match for the color of the dash, so I bought a whole lot of it..... The headliner, my A pillars, and bottom half of my B pillars are done. Still need to do the other top of the B pillar and redo my C pillars... also want to do the rear deck as well. I'll get some better pics of the whole thing once I replace the dome light.... anyone know how to take that out without breaking it? I'm about to get my 3rd :)

[DontPassTheFence]

Love the vinyl re-skin idea, I might take that into consideration if I can ever find that much black vinyl! And the switches look all badass, race inspired and what not. maybe if the backing wasnt white, but i still like it. Good work :thumbup2:

[RickHigginsHtbr]

Thanks for the compliments man.... almost every fabric store I went to, most of it was black vinyl for like $4 - $5 a yard. I hunted that stuff down, it was at the 4th store I went to. I'd walk in with a kick panel and ask where the vinyl was, definately got some wierd looks :) I bought 8 yards of this stuff, and after everything I did I still have 3 or more left.... pretty cheap to do, just takes a lot of time.

About that switch plate.... the flash on my camera discolored it, its actually a little lighter silver than the HVAC thingie. I messed up the design of it (not centered by 1/2"), and I don't know if I'll need to get a smaller one or not when I put in that overhead console.

[GT2002]

i love what you did!! is it hard to do the vinyl rewrap?? maybe you could write a how-to on it or something!

[RickHigginsHtbr]

Thanks man, it's really not that hard to do at all, just very time consuming.... each piece is a little different, so it'll be one big how - to, but I'll try to get a basic one up later tonight.

[DontPassTheFence]

yay, how to! im guessing you just took the piece out of the car, wrapped them tightly in the vinyl and either used 3M adhesive spray to fix them in place, or used hot glue around the edges to secure it down then reinstalled the pieces.. just a guess though.

[RickHigginsHtbr]

exactly, wrapped it tightly after using Super 77. There's a whole lot more to it, but it basically comes down to that. All and all, it looks great, cheap to do, but takes a good amount of time.

[invaderzim624]

How much did that much vinyl run you?

[RickHigginsHtbr]

$35-ish for all the vinyl.... and i'm going to have a lot left over

[Dave C]

I really like the switch panel... and the re-wrapping thing is a good idea. I've been thinking of doing something with removing that tan-ish color as well, do you have any ideas to get that rubber seal around the door? maybe some kind of dye to make it darker gray or black?

[RickHigginsHtbr]

Dying it is what I was thinking too, Dave. I'm going to ask my dealer wednesday if they know of anything.... I'm debating finding similar sized weatherstripping and ripping it all out.

[Dave C]

yea, definately let me know what you do. that's the one big thing that would hold me back from doing the ceiling and the pillars.

[roksoc]

Those HVAC knobs look real nice how did you make them? My only guess is you used spray tint and then a bunch of clear coat. the car looks great I love the switch palte.

[invaderzim624]

Originally posted by xxkewlguyxx
$35-ish for all the vinyl.... and i'm going to have a lot left over

Where did you go to buy it? I may have to try that out.

[RickHigginsHtbr]

Roksoc - Search for all the threads regarding clearing them out. All I did was tape off the top where I didn't want paint, then painted the rest, then a few coats of clear on them.

InvaderZim - I found this stuff at Joanne's Fabric's. I know the exact match for the dash was discontinued, but they still have plenty of nice looking colors.... or just google 'Marine Vinyl' and there's a bunch of online stores that sell it. Each yard should be 52" wide, so you get a good amount of stuff for a few bucks. I would say I used 3 yd's for the headliner, and 2 yds for the 2 a pillars + c pillars.... maybe a little more for the top+bottom of the B pillars.

Dave - I completely forgot to ask the dealer today if I could get that weather stripping in another color. I have to pick up my new dome light tomorrow, so hopefully I won't forget. But, I was playing around with it yesterday and it comes right off... I think i'm going to sand it a lil this weekend to see if it's dyed all the way through or not.... I'll probally dye it just like Praasch did his dash, it should work.