From 1967 to 1972, all Ford F-100s, F-250, and F-350s left the production line with a dashpad sitting on top of a factory-formed metal dash. After 50 years of service, most of them have seen better days and either need to be repaired or replaced altogether. While the aftermarket support as of late has improved, there have not been too many choices for replacement pads.
Dashpad covers and overlays are a budget-minded option that can cover up the cracked and faded dashpad, but that is pretty much a Band-Aid over the real issue. Then there are the more expensive replacement pads that top $400 or more. Finally, there is the elusive NOS pad or even a pristine original. Those are like finding a needle in a haystack, and the money they bring can be sky-high.
Once you removed a dashpad from one of these trucks, you can see the factory metal dash. The things that stands out the most are the slots where the studs from the pad pass through and the holes for the factory dash speaker. You may notice the formed metal could look really nice with those provisions filled in. Typically, people would pay a body shop to weld in metal fillers and do the bodywork. Some of the more garage-DIY guys might attempt to do it themselves if they have a welder and the skills.
So, now you might be thinking a smoothed dash would be a really nice touch on your truck, but you might be on a budget or don’t have a welder or the metal skills to do so. Well, today is your lucky day as we are going to show you step by step how to smooth your dash with no welding.
At this point you might be thinking Bondo. Well, yes, that will be involved, but that is not how we would do it or recommend it. When it comes to adhesives and paste films, technology is on your side. You may or may not be familiar with how cars and even aircraft are manufactured, but to make a long story short, most are bonded together in modern manufacturing processes.
Coming from an aviation background, I have been involved in the manufacture of aircraft for the past 20 years, mainly on the composites side. Where am I going with this? Having manufactured composite helicopter blades for most of my career, I have come to learn that bonding, or “gluing” in layman’s terms, has given a whole new meaning to the word strength. Not to get too in depth, but a helicopter blade by today’s standards, whether metal or all composite, are 100% bonded together. Once on the helicopter, they can see up to 10,000 hours of service with few to no failures. If you have ever seen what a helicopter blade goes through during flight you know they take a beating. They constantly flex and twist and have loads put on them that make you cringe.
So why are we talking about helicopter blades when we are trying to smooth a dash? Basically, the two-part epoxy technology that has been used in the aircraft industry for decades has moved over into the automotive industry. While not exactly the same, epoxies such as “Panel Bond” from a variety of manufacturers like 3M, Valvoline, and SEM to name a few, are available to anyone who wants to purchase them. They are easy to use and extremely strong.
Follow along as we show you how to smooth your dash with zero welding, readily available tools, and some sheetmetal. Oh, and don’t throw away that old dashpad quite yet, there is something you will need out of it.