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Old 04-11-2012, 08:58 PM   #8
tucsonjwt
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Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 3,188
Re: 81-87 dash bezel brushed aluminum trim w/self adhesive backing? Lmc???

I thought about the LMC overlay thing, but since I have an aftermarket radio with a hacked instrument bezel, I decided to get a used black bezel on Ebay - I think I paid about $38 total with shipping. This bezel also has a "pre-hacked" radio opening and does not look too bad. Since the new trucks all have flat black instrument panels I thought I would just go with plain black. The chrome rings around the instrument openings are somewhat worn in spots, but I might just remove that chrome completely.

As a side note, I worked in a Chevrolet parts plant in Michigan in the late 1970s where all of these instrument bezels were produced. A hot stamp foil machine was used to apply that thin chrome to the instrument openings on the bezel. Rolls of chrome "tape" were loaded into the machine and a hot press came down on the bezel to apply the "chrome". The process was a never ending defect prone operation, with the tape failing to stick properly to the bezel. I worked in the material department that supplied the rolls of foil to the production line, and the production supervisor was constantly coming back to complain about the "bad foil" he got from me. He described his operation as a "snowstorm" of foil. After tweaking the machine heat settings and changing suppliers, the bezels were eventually good enough to get out the door, but we all know how long they lasted in use.

Regarding the overlays on the large area of the bezels, these were supplied by a company called Northern Engraving. Both fake wood and fake aluminum were installed at this operation. Mostly this operation went OK, but as I recall the fake wood overlays sometimes had issues around the mounting holes.

When I design my vehicle of the future everything dash related will be metal.
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