Wood veneer repair.

[ariddell]

Anyone know anywhere that repairs wood veneer dashboards over here?

Managed to shatter the lower part of the TVR dash earlier on when being a complete muppet pulling the stereo out without due care and attention.

Would potentially be good to get somewhere local to do a replacement in proper wood of a decent thickness rather than the TVR mm thin variety.

Anyone know anywhere that does this kind of work, preferably in Melbourne?

If not will get a replacement sent out from the UK but worth a shot here first.

Thanks

Al

[suthol]

ariddell said:

Anyone know anywhere that repairs wood veneer dashboards over here?

Managed to shatter the lower part of the TVR dash earlier on when being a complete muppet pulling the stereo out without due care and attention.

Would potentially be good to get somewhere local to do a replacement in proper wood of a decent thickness rather than the TVR mm thin variety.

Anyone know anywhere that does this kind of work, preferably in Melbourne?

If not will get a replacement sent out from the UK but worth a shot here first.

Thanks

Al

Have a look in the phone book or google Men's Shed.

Basically they are a loose knit organisation of retired craftsmen who get together and crap on to each other about the good old days and take in work such as yours with the proceeds going to the likes of Prostate research.

You could also look for a quality cabinet maker, but then the apprentice might get the job and the proceeds go into the company bank account.

Good luck

[deviant]

That mens shed organisation sounds like a worthy cause!!

I'm pretty sure there would be a hot rod shop in Melbourne to take it on?

Have you got a pic of the damage? I bet in your mind it looks far worse than it actually is so dont be to scared to go and take another peek at it!!

[ariddell]

That sounds like a great idea, thanks. Found a listing of "sheds" so will see about getting in touch with a couple nearby and see if they fancy the job, even better if it goes to a good cause and is someone who enjoys doing it.

It's pretty bad - and i fear looks even worse in a dodgy quality photo taken in the dark. The whole area around the stereo basically shattered as i slid the removal tools in at either side to remove it.



Yick.

[SkinnyBoy]

Al, theres a guy in Oakleigh who restores Moggie Minors. Maybe he can sort you out, ive seen some mint looking travellers coming out of his joint so maybe he's got a decent wood guy working for him. If i remember tomorrow, i'll drive past as its about 5 minutes from me and check him out.

Mark

[RN318]

Al, just a quick question.
HOW did you try to remove the head unit?
You'll need to take that black frame (which surrounds the deck) off first. I'm guessing you used the screwdriver for that?
Then you'll need special keys to slide into the sides of the head unit, that will release clips and release the head unit. Otherwise, you shouldn't be using any screwdrivers or anything to get it out.
Because the keys slide straight in, and you pull them out with headunit, you won't harm the dash at all.

Edited by RN318 on Tuesday 24th June 14:22

[ariddell]

It was at the removing the black trim stage - no screwdrivers were in use, it basically just crumbled as i was working reasonably gently around the outside of the plastic trim uncliping the frame by hand before the tools went in to either side.

Looks like it had already delaminated away from the metal backing so basically even the smallest amount of pressure was enough to shatter it.

Still annoyed at myself for not protecting it with tape or something before I started however, but chances are it would have fallen apart when removing the tape afterwards anyway.

[stuartc]

Try Pete at Port Melbourne Automotive, just serviced mine and did a wonderful job TEL [phone]

[suthol]

SkinnyBoy said:

Al, theres a guy in Oakleigh who restores Moggie Minors. Maybe he can sort you out, ive seen some mint looking travellers coming out of his joint so maybe he's got a decent wood guy working for him. If i remember tomorrow, i'll drive past as its about 5 minutes from me and check him out.

Mark

Good point, one of my staff is a senior in the Morrie club( ex preso in Sydney )so I'll pose the question tomorrow their news letter is bound to have recommendations Oz wide.

[suthol]

Sorry, no further joy with my Morrie Club mate, however he did suggest www.morrisminorvic.org.au

[Colonial]

Any classic car restorier or high end interior trimmer should be able to help you out.

If you were in Sydney I could reccomend a very, very good place but not sure of a similar place in Melbourne. Sure there is one though

[yellowperil]

Hi Al

I have a crack in my Chim veneer too. Another option is to get a brushed aluminium replacement from Leven.

James
TVR Register

[ariddell]

Yeah, i'm not overly keen on the aluminium ones i must admit, prefer the more traditional wood look.

Thanks for all the suggestions guys, i've found a trim place who are giving me a quote for a full recovering of both parts of the dash in a thicker wood veneer than the standard TVR spec stuff and have also got a price for getting a brand new direct replacement for the damaged part sent out from the UK.

Will see what they come back for how it compares getting something custom made but doesn't sound like it's going to be too tricky to get fixed.

Cheers

Al

[NBTBRV8]

I haven't found a place in Australia that has done a satisfactory job for me, so all of my sets go to Chapman and Cliff in the UK. There work is very good and well worth it.