Wood Dashboards

[Keyco Wood]

I have a cousin who wants me to make a wooden dashboard for a micro-bus he is restoring. Anyone with experience with this type of project? I have some nice burly walnut. Cousin says stock is 3/8 and will be sending me cad-cam drawings of parts. I have looked on internet and see many are made from synthetic woods. Any thoughts?

[tomwillis]

Ryan - somewhere in my travels I remember reading about this and thought one of the main reasons synthetics are used because of safety. In a crash - real wood might splinter and cause additional serious injury.
Tom

[jerry_stanek]

If it's a micro bus I wouldn't be to worried about the wood as you are hanging out the front of it anyway.

[Keyco Wood]

Yes, a micro bus. I don't own a shopbot I have 2 friends with cnc's one is a shopbot and one a shark. I want a shopbot. I think either will cut this part. My cousin says the difference between synthetic and natural wood is maintenance. The steering column on micro bus is not collapsible. heck the dashboard will be the last thing to break in a serious accident

I was looking for a desktop machine until I saw the bigger ones. Got my garage and house rewired to a 200 amp box. I can't wait till I own one of these machines.

[Brady Watson]

Ryan,
What year? I've got a '71 Crew Cab bay window in the barn. ;)

Jerry is right...You could make the dash out of non-tempered glass with the same safety factor. If you hit something with the front end, they'll have to suck your pieces up with a wet/dry vac.

-B

[Keyco Wood]

Here is a link to what I am trying to do http://www.burlwooddash.com/

[bleeth]

Go for it Ryan-Lots of antique cars used real burl dashes.
That would be besides the myriad of old woodies, and even all wood bodies like the Hispano-Suiza Tulip wood body.

[Brady Watson]

Yep...all do-able. Guess you missed my prior post? :confused:

Got pics of the dash in question? Model year? Pre-68 Splittie or Post '68 Bay?

Can I get a witness? :cool:

-B

[Keyco Wood]

No pics yet. I don't even have patterns. Jeff has aspire and I am hoping he will do the hard work for me once I get dxf he can deal with. My cousin is the requester. I cant do it by myself!!!

[Bob Eustace]

Ryan this would have to be the nicest dash I have ever come across. Beautiful work and everything just blends in perfectly. We are doing a dash for a friends Fuso bus motorhome conversion.

[tlempicke]

This is the dashboard and instrument panel for a 1932 Rolls Royce. We cut it out of 7/8 inch thick mahogany and finished it with 8 coats of Deft. Came out beautiful and hard to tell from the original, if you discount the fact that the original was 80 years old.

[Keyco Wood]

That is over the top Bob. Beautiful, I think I will be getting something closer to the patterns Tom posted. I hope my cousin hurries up with his end of this. I want to do this project real bad

[Brady Watson]

Bob - that is SWEET!!!

Thanks for posting!

-B

[khaos]

Ryan this would have to be the nicest dash I have ever come across. Beautiful work and everything just blends in perfectly. We are doing a dash for a friends Fuso bus motorhome conversion.

Bob, I have done a few dashes for boats and imagined some cool dashes for some auto rebuilds... But that was totally out of my box!!!! I love that. The context of the build is everything!!

BRAVO to whoever conceptualized and executed that. Wow.:cool:

[Bob Eustace]

Have no idea who did the work! There's 4000 + CNC pics on the iPad but its big failing is they are darn hard to label and stick in folders. Anyway this is his fantastic box on the back. And for all those interested its a piece of cake to attach photos now on the iPad (thank heavens!!!!!!!!)