I pulled the gauge cluster out of my parts car... it was already nicer than the one in my driver Valiant, but I thought that it could use some help. The cluster in a 63 Valiant is that chromed plastic. These steps are probably not the best way to restore a metal/ chromed cluster. 1. Take it into the kitchen and wash it with dishsoap. Don't use the sponge that you use on the dishes, your wife will kill you. Dry it completely. I used a blower attached to my compressor. 2. Carefully pop the "melted plastic keepers" with an Xacto knife. Work slowly. The clear plastic should not be fused to the bezel, and if the cluster is as old as mine it will be brittle. 3. Clean the plastic lenses. I used 3M #10 Clear Plastic Polish. Dab some on, let it dry a little and polish it off... the stuff is like magic. - Let your son take a picture of you pretending that they are funny gl***es. 4. Lightly sand any rough spots. I used a maroon Scotch Bright pad. 5. Tape off any where you don't want new "chrome"... To tape the turn signals, and indicator lights I used small circles of 3M blue tape. Stab them with the Xacto and place them into the holes, push the tape down with the end of a paint brush... unless you have really small fingers. 6. I used Krylon Premium Original Chrome paint. Shake it well, spray it like you would any other spray paint. I only used 1 thick coat, the stuff covers nicely. Let it set up and then carefully remove the tape. If you let it dry all the way it will be hard to get the tape out of the holes without messing up your bezel. 7. I used some bright red 1-Shot on the gauge nettles. Place a piece of paper carefully behind the nettle and paint away. NOTE: After all those years of service the old faded paint on the actual gauge face is pretty fragile stuff. It's really east to mar the letters or the black. Carefully clean the black paint, avoiding the letters, they might smear. 8. Use some Super Glue to re-attach the lenses. Only use a little at the original mount points. Once the paint is all the way dry, re***emble the cluster and install it. - you did mark all the wires, right?! Not bad for rattle can chrome, huh... ______________________________ - Joe
Man, you do good work. You ought to come up here and see what you can do with the gauges in my F-100... LOL
Bring them down next time you are here, This only took me a day to do. I'll hook a brother up! Hey Ryan & Mike... thanks! - Joe
Thanks!!! Great job, I'll have to try this out on one of my newer cars. Great Tech and Great photos!!!!! Appreciate it!
Great post. I had read somewhere though, that there is a special paint or dye for the needles...painting them with traditional paints changes their balance and can affect their readings. Have you had a chance to get it hooked up and working to verify if they still read okay? Gets my vote for tech week...when it comes
I didn't think of that... the weight of the paint could change the way that the gauges read. I'll be able to strip it off pretty easy if it comes down to it. They weren't very accurate to start with, though.. haha.. - Joe
haha... if only it was so easy! TIP: Don't mess with the odometer unless you are a pro. I messed the one in my driver up real bad and now none of the numbers are centered. - Joe
that turned out great.......i like saving my old parts and not having to buy a new one .......makes you feel like you have accomplished something
The Jalopy Journal
