55 Super Dash Repaint / Speaker Grill Question

[EconoJoe]

I'm going to repaint the lower half of my dashboard with it still in the car. After some hand-wringing I finally got to stripping out the switches,  etc.. In a couple of hours I've got it close to ready for cleaning,  sanding, and paint. I'll be taking the column jacket out for paint as well. And yes I'll be buying about a half acre of plastic and a mile or two of tape.One question: Is the speaker grill supposed to be all chrome? It looks like mine was painted at some time.

[KAD36]

Identical to yours and original.

[EconoJoe]

My picture doesn't show it but my speaker grill almost has to have been repainted at some time due to the sloppy job near the lower edge. But in your opinion KAD36 the paint job looks similar to original?

[KAD36]

Mines an original and also imperfect mask job - you can see the sprayed border between the red and silver, it curves away from the raised spine and toward the slit in a few spots.  My thought was the quality reflected the 55 high volume production car environment -  I can only attest it’s originality but what the real difference if any between car series was in that some that have full chrome, painted, or what was done at the factory or what folks have customized - couldn’t say for sure.  Interesting observation - wonder if it depended what plant the car was built, or what time on a Friday….you know the only thing between the painter and a beer was getting this grill sprayed

 

 

 

Edited September 23, 2022 by KAD36 (see edit history)

[JohnD1956]

They probably weren't even "masked" but instead inserted into a a reusable stensil that held a few at a time and, voila! 10 or more off to be cured at a time.  And after the hundredth time the stensil was used the edges probably didn't seal up so well.  

[KAD36]

7 hours ago, JohnD1956 said:

voila! 10 or more off to be cured at a time. 

You gave me a brief cartoon vision of 10 grills hanging from a spinning carousel and some guy with a Binks #7 and a stencil trying to get it right in 10 seconds or less…..🤣

 

 

Edited September 23, 2022 by KAD36 (see edit history)

[EmTee]

9 hours ago, KAD36 said:

You gave me a brief cartoon vision of 10 grills hanging from a spinning carousel and some guy with a Binks #7 and a stencil trying to get it right in 10 seconds or less…..🤣

Maybe kinda like this:

[buickbrothers]

Yes, they were painted. I had the same poor-quality job from the factory.  A couple of notes to consider. I used a blue tape which worked well and a razor blade to cut away excess to keep a straight line. After painting, give sufficient time to dry but not waiting for overnight. Remove the tape as soon as you can to avoid the paint sticking to the tape and the paint pulling off the part. Also, caution on the lettered parts. Don't over coat these getting too much paint in the letter groves. You will use a black enamel paint to fill them in and wipe with mineral spirits which won's affect the clear urethane paint on the parts. I also roughed up the chrome areas that were painted to ensure the paint will stick. 

 

 

[EconoJoe]

Wow. Beautiful. Thanks for the tips.