Vinyl Dash Adhesive - Aerosol VS Liquid?

[OK-944]

I’ll be reupholstering my dashboard with the Classic 9 vinyl kit sometime soon, and my research shows that the best adhesive for this will be the DAP Landau Vinyl “spray grade” contact cement, which is available either in cans or as an aerosol spray.

Thing is, the minimum sized can of this stuff is one gallon, and from what I can see I’d not need nearly this much volume - and its a bit pricy at around 90.00. Plus I would need to buy a spray gun, which I really would not need otherwise.

Then again, I suppose I could use this with a brush or roller, which I’d kind of prefer anyway…but it would be great if this formula were available in a quart size, to save on cost and to avoid waste.

The aerosol spray, on the other hand, costs around 30.00 per can…and from what I can tell, one can of this should be enough to do my dash. Thing is, this aerosol spray does not get quite as stellar reviews as does the spray grade liquid - but I still find the cost/convenience factor of the aerosol to be compelling.

At any rate, has anyone here tried the aerosol spray of this stuff?

[Monkey Wrench]

maybe 3M super 77 or there are others that are high strength. there is a high strength one called ET94 , Im not sure what the difference is. the sprays might be easier to get on evenly than sticky goo on a brush.


with the old style contact cement that you get in a can from the hardware store, it stinks and it works better. there is also a water based one , it doesn't stink so much but it's not as strong.

It might be good to check with the manufacturer, the wrong one might soften the cover up too much? the contact cement has a fairly strong solvent , might melt into plastics? you definitely don't need a gallon. i find if I keep it a long time it tends to harden up in the can. there is a special solvent for it which is expensive.

the trick with the stuff is not to get contact before you have it positioned because you can't pull apart and move it.. a little trick , I use lengths of plastic insulated electrical wire when laying laminate so I can keep it off contact and position, then pull them out one at a time from near the middle and try to get it down without a bubble in it. important that it dries the right amount before contact.

usually you coat both sides and it's permanent, there may be other products or ways to reposition it. If you manage to get it stuck down and not positioned right it may destroy it pulling it back off.

temperature might make a difference, your vinyl will be more flexible if it's not too cold.

[salayc]

Originally Posted by Monkey Wrench

maybe 3M super 77 or there are others that are high strength. there is a high strength one called ET94 , Im not sure what the difference is. the sprays might be easier to get on evenly than sticky goo on a brush.

FWIW, 3M Super 77 is definitely not in the same league, it's OK for carpet, but will quickly fail in a couple of heat cycles with vinyl. 3M Super 90 and Weldwood in my experience is no different than the Landau adhesive in aerosol. The strongest bond I have found for DIY is Weldwood brushable. You're correct the pros use Landau (I have seen it in Quarts at upholstery suppliers) in spray grade with a gun, but the cleanup is time consuming.

[OK-944]

Are you saying that there is a "brush-able" grade of the Landau formula...or that the "spray grade" formula can be brushed on?

Follow up question: and would it be better to use a brush or a roller?

[salayc]

Originally Posted by OK-944

Are you saying that there is a "brush-able" grade of the Landau formula...or that the "spray grade" formula can be brushed on?

Follow up question: and would it be better to use a brush or a roller?

AFAIK the Landau adhesive is spray grade only, but I have heard of people applying with a brush. I use Weldwood with a chip brush when I brush it on. I don't think a roller would work well becaue it would gum up, but I have never tried.

[djnolan]

i think there are some posts on rennlist about installing the classic 9 dash.