How would you go about restoring a center console?

[youngdeezy]

the 1 above which was mine, was not done with bondo body filler. i used a 2-part plastic epoxy that i got from Tap Plastic's. it worked perfectly, as a matter of fact the coat on the inside & out, once it was sanded down smooth it became the strongest portion of the console.

 

[Blake442]

Youngdeezy fixed his the right way.
If you tried to piece that kind of damage back together with bondo, it'd never work.

 

[youngdeezy]

:wink:

 

[Chillin014]

So dont use bondo for structural purposes, like gluing something together. That makes sense, I wasn't going to try that anyway. I am just filling that seem where I joined the two pieces. I hope the bondo sticks, the adhesion was questionable when it was becoming hard.

I'm going to pick up some fiberglass resin today for the other pieces.

 

[pontiacgp]

you might also want to take a look at polyurethane adhesives...

 

[Chillin014]

This fiberglass is doing the trick! Really nice to work with. Still have to decide exactly how i'm going to cover the large open area and if I"m going to even bother using the stock mounting locations but at least the materials are fairly easy to work with so I have a few ideas. Here are some pics of how it looks now before any sanding or anything. Can I fiberglass on top of the filler? I think I am going to need to in a few spots

 

[Chillin014]

Okay, here's what I got now.

Decided to just mold the shifter cover piece to the console so its all one piece. Then I'll make my cut-out for the shifter and cup holders. I'll probably have a remove-able shifter boot that will allow access for mounting of the console.

 

[youngdeezy]

its seem like it alot of work your doin but in the end im sure the outcome will be great. keep it up.

 

[Chillin014]

I know, I probably should have just got that neon console that was suggested. Worst case scenario, at least Ill have gained some experience with fiberglass.
thanks

 

[454muscle]

Do what you gotta do bro... spend the time. Just make sure the end product looks good and YOU will be happy.

Make sure when you sand that seam down that when you run your fingers over it, from top to bottom, that you don't feel any "transition" where the seam is -- in other words, it should feel like it's one piece, with no high areas. Otherwise it'll look tacky. 😉