Source Vinyl To Recover Dash ??

[pc100porsche]

A friend is looking to offer a recovering service for dashpads ----- he is seeking a source for the "correct" vinyl used in dashpads ------ Anyone know who
supplies the correct vinyl that can be used in daspad recovering giving the look of OE ?

[skrufy]

I don't know about the correct vinyl- I used some that was pretty close years ago that I picked up at a large auto upholstery supplier/wholesaler in Tucson. They are unfortunately out of business. The vinyl works fine for large flat surfaces, but for the compound curves of a 911 dash- I don't think so- it doesn't stretch well enough in my opinion and experience.....

Try leather- much easier to work with and stretch, and it gives a more "formal" look, probably a poor choice for a term, or more exactly the more expensive look of the factory OEM leather dash. You know, the special order dash available in multiple colors to match the interior of your car, at 4-5 times more $$ than the OEM vinyl variety for the unwashed masses. No kidding- look up the pricing
if you've got your windshield out, and were thinking about one of those replacement leather dashes....

You will need a good strong contact cement to tuck the leather in grooves, etc, and to get it to lay flat. Pre-fitting and stretching is a must. Probably two sets of hands to work at the same time.... if you are working over cracks, etc in the old dash- every flaw will show up if you don't do your prep work well. Contact cement for the grooves, etc, and also a high tack spray glue like 3M, or much better yet IMHO, is V&S Spray Trim Adhesive, #1801, which has a very controlled spray web pattern that I have used inside my 930- no overspray worries ( available at raamaudio.com for
$8.96 a can- great stuff!....)

Where to buy? Go to Tandy Leather, or a similar store. Tandy has a nice selection of thin black leather hides to choose from. The last one I bought was enough to cover about 3 dashes, at a cost of $56 or so.....

Vinyl? I recently had to replace two vinyl door panels on an '88 Cab- some idiot left the top down in a heavy rain and didn't get the doors dry- mildewed and rotted the masonite- a yukky story for another day.... I bought two new vinyl door blanks from Automotion (sorry Wayne, they had them in stock, and I needed them yesterday... ).
They were nicer than OEM, and the vinyl was pretty thin and stretchable, as you have to cut all the mounting holes for the locks and speakers, etc... At both Pelican and Automotion, these vinyl door blanks are custom ordered from their supplier- maybe they only keep 1 or 2 sets in stock, etc... You might give Automotion a call, or my buddy Jason at the Pelican Order Desk, to see if they can get the name brand/part # of the vinyl their supplier uses on those door panels.....

At any rate- I think the leather will be much easier to use, but as my wife frequently reminds me, I could be wrong about the newer vinyls. With the vinyl as well, the prep work on the old dash needs to be near perfect....

Good luck! The leather isn't that hard to apply.... Let us know how it works out.

Tim

Driving and wrenching on 911s since- gasp 1973... it's been a blast!

[nineball]

i got some german vinyl from sierra madre and i was very happy with it. my upholstery guy was as well. he made quite a few comments on the quality of the product.

[redridge]

Originally Posted by nineball

i got some german vinyl from sierra madre and i was very happy with it. my upholstery guy was as well. he made quite a few comments on the quality of the product.

where did you get the vinyl? Covering with leather is like 600-700 with labor, crazy IMHO.

[tobluforu]

You can buy the german vinyl from our sponsor, I did and covered a dash cap, knee pads, etc. But they have 4 way vinyl that stretches every which way as opposed to two way where you have to lay it on knowing which two ways you will be stretching it the most.
Pelican Parts - Restoration Materials - German Interior Vinyl

[carsngolf]

I have a 1965 911 coupe and wandered this road without success for quite a while. The biggest problem is the punched pattern for the radio speaker in 1965 through 1968 models. The Porsche factory must have had a special die set to punch the pattern and then a special heat/vacuum system to make the vinyl of that era conform to the dashboard.

After much frustration and failed trials I finally came upon the answer via a local custom upholster and a laser cutting company. The vinyl has a special backing which allows it to conform properly and the laser is able to duplicate the original speaker pattern perfectly. I repeat - perfectly. Between the upholstery company and the laser company, I duplicated the pattern on the proper material and have offered it for sale on ebay, resulting in about 40 sales including Europe, South Africa and others. I'm not a business, just a Porsche lover, so I have sold these reupholstery sets at little over my actual cost. At age 75 I'm not interested in capital promotion. I still have about 10 sets left and will sell them for $175 each, plus shipping.
Kind Regards,
Jerry Weiland

[nineball]

Originally Posted by redridge

where did you get the vinyl? Covering with leather is like 600-700 with labor, crazy IMHO.

Originally Posted by nineball

i got some german vinyl from sierra madre

911 / 356 Porsche Parts | Porsche, Wurth and Fuchs Wheels | Sierra Madre Collection

i got some samples sent to me from our host, which were the same as the ones i got from another company. after talking to the other guys they told me they are the supplier for our host which explains why they were the same. neither one of them had the color i wanted so i had to look elsewhere.