Heater control bezel restore

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demon322

demon322

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As pretty as the marbleing around his bezel is, I can’t imagine it’s factory ha.

I assume originally it was something close to rattle can silver? Or was it shiny chrome- like plastic like around the radio bezel?

Any pics of nice originals? Or any that have re-sprayed their own? If so what did you use? Thanks.

16D597D9-3AB5-4157-8958-026BE06C5C83.jpeg
 
Would it be similar to argent silver like is used on grilles?
 
Should be same as radio bezel. Must say I have never seen one like your picture. Looks like recycled/regrind resin was used.
 
So it should be shiny chrome plastic? What about the gauge cluster surround, same thing? Mine is just yellow but different than the heater bezel.

I just assumed it had some silver paint that had faded leaving that odd looking finish. I saw a similar one for sale on here awhile back

BAFD1ACD-95E5-4D0B-A0E6-DD4CA7D73650.jpeg
 
demon322 said:
So it should be shiny chrome plastic? What about the gauge cluster surround, same thing? Mine is just yellow but different than the heater bezel.

I just assumed it had some silver paint that had faded leaving that odd looking finish. I saw a similar one for sale on here awhile back

View attachment 1715255440
Click to expand...
Wonder if they can hydro-dip chrome.
 
The inst' bezel was a white abs plastic. It's my understanding that primer and/or preheating for the vacuum metalized chrome turned the plastic yellow. If you pull that inst' panel you will find a heck of a lot whiter backside.
I don't believe any climate bezels left the factory with that camouflage finish.
They used a grey and black abs plastics too. That's why I suggested regrind at that heater bezel. I can't say what parts were vacuum metalized bright chrome and what parts were painted argent in every model. Even some pot metal parts would change from chrome plated to argent paint with year model.
I know that all vacuum dispersion chrome would disappear into the wind over time. I've also read that the chrome didn't bond well to anything other than virgin material. Maybe that's why some parts have a coat of lacquer for primer underneath the chrome. I know paint doesn't take to the wind and leave like the chrome does/did. We can see that the black and white paints didn't leave. I'm theorizing and pretty much convincing myself that all 3 of your dash plastics were once vacuum metalized chrome.
Why the radio bezel isn't bright chrome but seems to have held up better may boil down to the plastic it's made of. Maybe a previous owner painted or replaced it.
I can tell you that sending the 3 bezels out for restore ( strip, rechrome, repaint ) would be expensive. Very few vendors of this service left today. EPA regulations and Chinese reproductions are to blame.
Some members/owner have done a decent job of DIY paint renew using spray bomb chrome, etc. It's tedious labor. Liquid mask instead of tape and other tips will help.
 
RedFish said:
The inst' bezel was a white abs plastic. It's my understanding that primer and/or preheating for the vacuum metalized chrome turned the plastic yellow. If you pull that inst' panel you will find a heck of a lot whiter backside.
I don't believe any climate bezels left the factory with that camouflage finish.
They used a grey and black abs plastics too. That's why I suggested regrind at that heater bezel. I can't say what parts were vacuum metalized bright chrome and what parts were painted argent in every model. Even some pot metal parts would change from chrome plated to argent paint with year model.
I know that all vacuum dispersion chrome would disappear into the wind over time. I've also read that the chrome didn't bond well to anything other than virgin material. Maybe that's why some parts have a coat of lacquer for primer underneath the chrome. I know paint doesn't take to the wind and leave like the chrome does/did. We can see that the black and white paints didn't leave. I'm theorizing and pretty much convincing myself that all 3 of your dash plastics were once vacuum metalized chrome.
Why the radio bezel isn't bright chrome but seems to have held up better may boil down to the plastic it's made of. Maybe a previous owner painted or replaced it.
I can tell you that sending the 3 bezels out for restore ( strip, rechrome, repaint ) would be expensive. Very few vendors of this service left today. EPA regulations and Chinese reproductions are to blame.
Some members/owner have done a decent job of DIY paint renew using spray bomb chrome, etc. It's tedious labor. Liquid mask instead of tape and other tips will help.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the info! That is where I was leaning. Trying some type of DIY job here. I’m not sure what you mean by liquid mask and I’ve never used any of the spray can chrome. My other plan was to tape off and spray with something like argent, even though it won’t match the radio bezel.

The gauge cluster is being replaced with an aftermarket unit so no need to worry about matching that.
 
Does the chrome pen dry in a reasonable time? I used the rattle can chrome paint. It looked nice but took months before it would dry enough to not finger print.
 
Mike69cuda said:
Does the chrome pen dry in a reasonable time? I used the rattle can chrome paint. It looked nice but took months before it would dry enough to not finger print.
Click to expand...

Drys pretty quick. I gave it a few hours. Was handling it next day with no issues at all.
 
As was mentioned, Hobby Lobby has the pens.
Its called
Molotow Liquid Chrome.
Tips I learned:
Buy 2. 1 very thin tip and one of the biggest.
They come in 3 tip sizes.
I found it best to outline with the narrow tip and fill with other.
Keep the tip full by pressing on scrap paper frequently.
Try to cover with smooth long strokes.
Don't go over areas you have already painted.

"Scribbling" will leave uneven brush strokes especially if you don't have enough paint on the tip.
 
dahdgedaht said:
As was mentioned, Hobby Lobby has the pens.
Its called
Molotow Liquid Chrome.
Tips I learned:
Buy 2. 1 very thin tip and one of the biggest.
They come in 3 tip sizes.
I found it best to outline with the narrow tip and fill with other.
Keep the tip full by pressing on scrap paper frequently.
Try to cover with smooth long strokes.
Don't go over areas you have already painted.

"Scribbling" will leave uneven brush strokes especially if you don't have enough paint on the tip.
Click to expand...
Awesome! Thanks for sharing this and the tips. Yours came out great! I’ll be picking some of this up for sure
 
dahdgedaht said:
As was mentioned, Hobby Lobby has the pens.
Its called
Molotow Liquid Chrome.
Click to expand...
I searched and Amazon has these also (my town doesn't have a Hobby Lobby.)

They list 4 sizes. 1mm, 2mm, 4mm, and 5mm. The 5mm looks huge. Do you know which two you got? Thanks again!
 
demon322 said:
I searched and Amazon has these also (my town doesn't have a Hobby Lobby.)

They list 4 sizes. 1mm, 2mm, 4mm, and 5mm. The 5mm looks huge. Do you know which two you got? Thanks again!
Click to expand...
I think I got a 1mm and a 4mm. Im not home to look. You could trim the wider one to a tapered point I guess. The problem is getting into tight corners. The 1mm makes that easy but I think you will have too many strokes of the pen to cover wider areas. The 5mm would be good too. Think about covering it with 1 pass as much as possible. Overlapping or going over areas, especially ones that were done minutes ago, will show lines and dull a bit. The smoother you can get it without disturbing again the better.
 
These look great! I’m getting excited about giving this a try. I may get a 1,4, and a 5. I’m also debating on (if the heater bezel comes out alright) trying to use these for an outside border on my aftermarket gauge cluster. There is a raised edge so I think it may be possible, but not sure how it would go being applied directly to black plastic vs the yellow ridge of the heater bezel. It looks like my factory cluster had this trim as it has yellowed to match the HC. The dash will be painted black so I want something to break up the cluster and the dash.

E20A0BD8-4D0E-4C8A-9951-F8256D4F5216.jpeg


96729BA2-10BB-415D-8D5C-9FE0580AA8F9.jpeg
 
demon322 said:
These look great! I’m getting excited about giving this a try. I may get a 1,4, and a 5. I’m also debating on (if the heater bezel comes out alright) trying to use these for an outside border on my aftermarket gauge cluster. There is a raised edge so I think it may be possible, but not sure how it would go being applied directly to black plastic vs the yellow ridge of the heater bezel. It looks like my factory cluster had this trim as it has yellowed to match the HC. The dash will be painted black so I want something to break up the cluster and the dash.

View attachment 1715292437

View attachment 1715292438
Click to expand...
It should come out even better with a black base
 
Oh cool. I may give that a try. It’s a textured finish so hopefully that would help with adhesion. Just scared of ruining it if I get out of line or my tape job is poor ha. Would be cool if I could get it to match the other bezels though.
 
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