Part 1: Re-Veneering the Wood
By John Brock
An aging Triumph can become like an elderly but spry Las Vegas lounge lizard—still serviceable internally, but shopworn and sun-damaged on the outside. Casinos have low lighting, but on a sunny day at a car show, dull paint and a cracked and peeling dashboard are very visible, and a played-out dashboard can be particularly disheartening. Although vestiges of its former glory remained, the dash on my ‘72 GT6 project was marred by flaws; both the wood and vinyl sections needed renewal, but I was budget-conscious and so this would be a DIY project. First I would redo the vertical wood section, and then the black vinyl horizontal piece.
The wooden dash is made up of three sections, each with a thin veneer covering. In my case, the right-hand section was cracked and needed replacement. Using it as a template, I cut a new one, and then used an adjustable hole-cutter and a drill press to create the circular opening for the passenger air vent.
Figure 1. Constructing a new section of the wooden dashboard.
Next, I glued a thin oak veneer to the three dash sections, using a special adhesive and a homebuilt press of plywood and C-clamps (Figure 2). Note the adhesive and roller applicator in the background in the picture on the right. When positioning the veneer, be sure to match up the grain pattern across the section borders.
Figure 2. New veneer positioned on the remade dash section, and the DIY veneer press in operation.
Once applied as a continuous sheet, the replacement veneer must be trimmed away at all openings (Figure 3), a step that is fraught with opportunities to slip or snag and ruin the new surface. Some folks may rely on an X-acto knife for delicate trimming, but I suggest a small handheld trim router. A complication here is that the instrument holes are stepped, with a shoulder, and thus a greater diameter on the outer side (see the leftmost Figure 3). The solution is to use a carefully selected offset trim router bit; note that I had to use tape to calibrate the depth of the “step” within tolerances. Using a patient and steady hand (skip the espresso!), trim the excess veneer out of each opening. Note that not all of them require a stepped cut.
Figure 3. Original dash section on a sheet of new veneer, showing the “stepped” instrument hole, the offset trim router and the partially trimmed left dash section.
Given the simplicity of ‘70s Triumph controls and gauges, I decided to skip labeling the switches (with its possibility of uneven lettering). Also as a matter of personal preference, rather than thick shellack I finished the new veneer with several light coats of clear polyurethane from a spray can (Figure 4).
Figure 4. The restored wooden dashboard for my 1972 Triumph GT6.
Next will be Part II, restoration of the black upper surface of the dash.
