Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

Now that I have the dash remove I need to decide how refinish the dash. My Car is not intended to be a show car but a driver i can be proud of. My options are to have it wood grained, paint it or consider hydrographic. In my case cost is a factor and is in conflict with having it look good and being original. My first choice is to have it wood grained and painting doesn't seem to be the right thing.
I am interested in knowing of a source that can do the wood graining reasonably and what alternatives I should consider. I am also interested in know about the potential of doing hydrographic finishes.

If cost is a concern, buy a kit from Grain it Technologies and do it yourself. It’s not that hard to get a good result. Your prime and paint the metal with a base color, like the specific tan for your year and model. They can tell you. You add the grain with water soluble ink. If you don’t like what you did, just wipe off with a wet rag and try again. It’s very forgiving. When you have the grain pattern the way you want it, let it dry a day. They spray with clear urethane. Sand after it dries a couple days and spray clear again. My journey with grading starts at Post #184 of the Duchess Project Blog.packardinfo.com/xoops/html/modules/newbb ... ic_id=5878&order=ASC&status=&mode=0
I kind of got wrapped around the axle on getting the right pattern , so you might jump to post #233 to see the result.
packardinfo.com/xoops/html/modules/newbb ... ic_id=5878&order=ASC&status=&mode=0

Grain It Technologies are really good. Most knowledgeable and helpful. It's not difficult to use their kits, they come with full and specific instructions.

I didn't trust my abilities, so I farmed it out to someone that has done a few dashes before.