help removing instr. cluster

64ragtop said
RobJ, I really like the added gauges in the dashboard instead of hanging under it! Looks much neater,

Taking the seat out and dropping the column helps a lot. I have a plan I call "while I'm in the neighborhood". While I'm under there I repair, remodel or replace anything that looks like it might become troublesome. Doing as much as possible "while I'm in the neighborhood" means I don't have to dismantle it again!

BC

I'm going to have to borrow that from you! That's what I always end up doing and just never had a name for it.

I did a lot of other small things too while I was under there and also replaced all my cluster lamps and repainted the needles while it was out. I replaced the wiper shaft seals and generally gave it all a good once over...or under I guess. I also painted the cluster and the heater control bezels and installed two blue lights under the top lip of the heater control bezel so that I can see the controls in the dark. I buffed the chrome knobs and bezels for the headlight and wiper switches.

I originally had the gauges under the dash and they were in the way of the fuses and the parking brake handle. Plus they were hard to see. At the same time I was trying to hide my stereo somewhere to keep the original look of the dash. I tried everywhere and the only places that really worked were out of the way. My Dart is my driver so I finally just thought- Why am I making it all so inconvenient to use when I will be using it every single day? I just decided to alter the dash and mount the stereo there. At that point I looked at the instruments and got to thinking. I already made a big rectangle hole over here....

The other thing that helped in the decision was that the rim blow wheel was no good and the person before me drilled three holes in the dash to mount a push button horn button. You can see it in the before photo. It was going to be a repair job there or I could put the gauges in that place and get them up and out from under the dash. Two birds with one stone. On the other side of the column I have a voltmeter in the same position. It sits nicely next to the wiper switch. Ultimately, on the fender tag and broadcast sheet it's a generic 318 Dart (not a 340) that I drive every single day and will likely drive until I get too old and then the next person can do what they want with it. People will disagree and I'm good with that because I also like seeing the total original cars but this works for me and I'm digging it.

Again, I had planned to do quite a bit under the dash but after it was all apart and "while I was in the neighborhood", I looked around and made a list of things to take care of which grew as I got deeper into it. It sure is easier to do everything at one time even if the car is down a little longer than planned. Every time you begin to disassemble things on the dash you stand the chance of breaking or scratching something. Best to do it once and be done.

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