instrument cluster restore

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65MagnumFish

65MagnumFish
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Zeeland, MI
Hey fellas! Just got done spraying my instrument cluster with a “chrome paint” that actually looks awesome. Figured I’d pass on the paint with a pic of the can and finished piece. Seems like it’s darn close to what it looked like original. A lot of chrome paint is pretty crappy or a silver but this surprised me. Figure it cost me $8 with the scuff pad. I got the paint at Hobby Lobby when I wandered away from the wife in which we were picking out a wreath for Halloween.

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Did it cure fully? If so how did you cure it? Mine still finger printed for weeks afterward.
 
Did you mask any part off, or spray it everywhere?
I did everywhere to replicate the new ones theY sell. No reactions and is uniform looking. Pulled the center circles out of the gauge covers and sprayed those as well. Took an hour to dry. I’ve sprayed a lot of chrome paints but this one is real close, it surprised me. Figured if it looked like garbage I was on the hook for a repo one on eBay. Might even spray bottom of my arm rests the same way. I’m a newbie at Mopar’s and mechanics so thought I finally could contribute to the site. A lot of people have been gracious to me when I have questions.
 
Thanks for the DIY. Wish I had found tat before I did my cluster. Tryed the Spaztics Mirror Chrome, Didnt work well for me. I shot the whole thing with Mopar Argent wheel paint and I,m satisfied

Thanks again Tim
 
Much better than the old "Bumper Chrome" spray paint that people used to use, which was never very shiny.
I have a can of Krylon Premium "Silver Foil Metallic", stating "True Metal-like Finish". It is a thin 8 oz can I bought maybe 10 years ago at Ace. Perhaps they renamed it. I used it to recoat the plastic armrests in my 1965 Newport, which came out as shiny as chrome.

Prior to that, for my 1965 Dart instrument cluster, I removed all the factory chrome (real or paint?) by soaking in SuperClean (Walmart) for a few days (recommended by model builders). The base plastic was yellowish. I took them to a chromer in Sacramento who uses a chemical coating process, more like spray painting. I had read about it and saw youtubes. They charged $105 for all the dash plastic and it looked just like chrome plating. Indeed, it is claimed more rugged. The cluster in my 1964 Valiant looked OK, so I didn't paint it when I had it on the bench. I don't know if factory coating or someone sprayed it. I would have tried the Krylon spray if it needed it. Probably best to strip it to raw plastic first. Probably a spray of plastic adhesion primer first (Ace) would be best. The Krylon can mentions primer, but looks like just the boiler-plate instructions for all their spray paints.
 
Much better than the old "Bumper Chrome" spray paint that people used to use, which was never very shiny.
I have a can of Krylon Premium "Silver Foil Metallic", stating "True Metal-like Finish". It is a thin 8 oz can I bought maybe 10 years ago at Ace. Perhaps they renamed it. I used it to recoat the plastic armrests in my 1965 Newport, which came out as shiny as chrome.

Prior to that, for my 1965 Dart instrument cluster, I removed all the factory chrome (real or paint?) by soaking in SuperClean (Walmart) for a few days (recommended by model builders). The base plastic was yellowish. I took them to a chromer in Sacramento who uses a chemical coating process, more like spray painting. I had read about it and saw youtubes. They charged $105 for all the dash plastic and it looked just like chrome plating. Indeed, it is claimed more rugged. The cluster in my 1964 Valiant looked OK, so I didn't paint it when I had it on the bench. I don't know if factory coating or someone sprayed it. I would have tried the Krylon spray if it needed it. Probably best to strip it to raw plastic first. Probably a spray of plastic adhesion primer first (Ace) would be best. The Krylon can mentions primer, but looks like just the boiler-plate instructions for all their spray paints.
The main thing is to do a wax and grease remover first. A water based product. I’ve had wax and grease remover that is solvent melt stuff. Years of armor all and who knows what I removed. Sprayed pretty easy but I definitely held my breath for the fish eyes that didn’t show up. Here is a finished photo. Now I just got clean up the connections on the back. I’m thinking rubbing alcohol.
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Great job!
Another tip I got from modelers was placing the can in hot tap water but be careful as this thins the paint so it runs rather easily.
 
Looks awesome. There should be an electrical cleaner for the circuit boards that may work better than rubbing alcohol?
The main thing is to do a wax and grease remover first. A water based product. I’ve had wax and grease remover that is solvent melt stuff. Years of armor all and who knows what I removed. Sprayed pretty easy but I definitely held my breath for the fish eyes that didn’t show up. Here is a finished photo. Now I just got clean up the connections on the back. I’m thinking rubbing alcohol.View attachment 1715599042
 
Thanks for posting this. I've got mine fully disassembled, with the plasti-glass masked off. I'll follow your info to proceed further.
Try to remove the plastic glass. If your careful it prevents any bleeding of the paint under the taped areas. It was nerve racking but I took it slow. I’d like to see pics once it’s done.
 
Thanks for posting this. I've got mine fully disassembled, with the plasti-glass masked off. I'll follow your info to proceed further.
Also give it a long time to dry. It did but took awhile. I almost messed mine up but luckily I only grabbed the tape realizing the cluster was tacky.
 
Did you sand down the cluster? If so, what grit? Or did you just use the wax and grease remover.
No sanding but I used a grey scotch brite or a worn out burgundy scotch brite. Totally forgot I used the scuff pad until now. I had removed practically everything to paint the cluster so I wouldn’t scratch the clear lens. Fun fact for the first time I found myself welding in a metal patch where a mouse peed his way through the dash board. Pretty gross but all is good. I think I’m going to use satin black on the dash and interior trim parts.
 
Just stripped my 65 Barracuda cluster with Easy Off and I have purchased the Krylon chrome paint. Just curious if you used a plastic adhesion promotor primer before you sprayed the chrome paint.
 
Just stripped my 65 Barracuda cluster with Easy Off and I have purchased the Krylon chrome paint. Just curious if you used a plastic adhesion promotor primer before you sprayed the chrome paint.
Nope, just used a water based grease and wax remover. I didn’t want to add to any substances that may not accept the krylon. Let me know how it goes.
 
The main thing is to do a wax and grease remover first. A water based product. I’ve had wax and grease remover that is solvent melt stuff. Years of armor all and who knows what I removed. Sprayed pretty easy but I definitely held my breath for the fish eyes that didn’t show up. Here is a finished photo. Now I just got clean up the connections on the back. I’m thinking rubbing alcohol.View attachment 1715599042
Nice job
 
I just bought a can of your paint. I will try it on another dash bezel I have. I think I am going to try heat cure this time.
 
Nope, just used a water based grease and wax remover. I didn’t want to add to any substances that may not accept the krylon. Let me know how it goes.
So i just painted the cluster. Only did one coat. Not sure if i should go over it again. Looks great just after spraying.

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