Dashboard rev counter modification

Details

Written by Roger England

One feature that appealed to me when I bought my 1956 Magnette ZA, was the rev counter fitted into an auxiliary dash board, where, had it been fitted, the radio would have been housed. The only problem with it was that it was rather low down and wasn't as visible as I would like it, as I had to move slightly to the left and look down – not advisable when the right foot was a bit on the heavy side

I had failed to come up with a solution until I watched a clip about racing MGAs on a YouTube video, in the middle of which was a picture of a Magnette on a rally somewhere. Clearly visible was a centre cowl, identical to that which covers the instrument pinnacle, but housing a rev counter. That was the solution! All I needed was another dash carcase to start the modifications. Fortunately, Peter Martin (Magnette spares guru) was able to find me a complete dash carcase so I could put my idea into practise.

And to complete the parts I needed, I managed to find another instrument cowl too, although it was in a rather poor state. As can be seen, there were a number of splits in the wood, and the general finish was poor.

So, to create a centre mounted rev counter I needed to cut a similar shaped "V" where the ashtray cut-out was. This did mean that the further corners of the ashtray cut-out would be exposed when the second cowl was fitted. Using two pieces from the cut out, I glued them into the corners of the ashtray hole, leaving them slightly proud so I could sand them flat to give a better finish. One obvious problem arose and that was a pair of dark lines in the wood grain that needed to be continued on the new "corners" I had fitted. A black ball point came to the rescue and the grain lines were drawn on each piece.

In order to achieve a finish more akin to the original – much lighter – the dash top required a lot of sanding. So too, did the cowl supplied with the carcase, but the second cowl required a lot more work. What isn't visible in the photo is a piece at the base that was virtually detached, although it can be seen that a large area of the top has lifted quite badly. Gorilla glue came to the rescue on both areas, which, after being clamped for an hour or two, were back in place. On the bottom left of the cowl there was a significant split. I used some of the wood dust created by the sanding of the dash top and mixed it with glue to create a wood-coloured filler. This "filler" seems to have worked quite well, which when rubbed down, provides an acceptable finish.

Although I had previously re-veneered the dash, I had used a lighter colour veneer so opted to return to the burr walnut for the instrument cluster and the glove box door, which was more similar to the original. Suitable sheets of veneer were bought and various pieces of wood – MDF and ply – were employed to make a veneer clamp. Once the veneer had been glued to the base it was treated to six coats of satin varnish, each coat being rubbed down before recoating.

Past experience had shown that the steel screws that hold the chrome trim to the fascia had proved very difficult to remove once rust had set in. After some difficulty I had managed to remove all except one but a hacksaw blade and a pair of mole grips eventually got the better of it! Although I have no intention of tackling this job again, I did opt for brass screws when I refitted the chrome edging around the fascia.

My attention then turned back to the dash top. I glued the two cowls in place, one in its original position over the instrument cluster, and the other in the centre. Once the glue had dried, the dash top was given six coats of satin varnish, to give a very pleasing warm colour.

The glove box door now needed the same treatment, so a similar sheet of burr walnut veneer was glued to the front and given the customary 6 coats of satin varnish. However, for some reason, the veneer lifted away from the base plywood, causing very obvious ripples in the surface. Oh dear!
Nothing for it, but to strip the veneer off, buy another piece of burr walnut veneer and try again. Fortunately, the second attempt was successful. I can only assume that the lacquer reacted with the glue on the first attempt – I can see no other reason for the veneer to lift the way it did.

Gluing the veneer to the base requires the use of a veneer clamp. Due to the cranked nature of the Magnette fascia panel and glove box, it was necessary to use two pieces of MDF as "flat" surfaces, to clamp the veneer and the base to. Between the veneer and the MDF it is a good idea to use some form of paper that won't allow the veneer to adhere to the MDF if the glue seeps through. So, the following sandwich is created, prior to clamps being using extensively to hold the lot together – base glove box door ply, veneer glue, veneer, greaseproof paper, MDF, and lastly, lots of clamps. You can never have too many clamps!

Fortunately, this time, the veneer glue held and a good finish was achieved. Six coats of satin varnish followed, and the inside face covered with a green baize material. Both hinges were refitted and the retaining arm that holds the door horizontally when opened.

It was time now to address the centre piece of the dash and the reason why I embarked on this project – making the centre dash to house the rev counter and ancillary switches. For this I bought a piece of 2mm thick aluminium plate, and after making a card template of the required shape, cut it out on my powered fretsaw. Before creating the slightly cranked shape, I drilled all the holes I required and then used my sheet metal folder to create the shape to match the dash profile.

Whilst the original dash had three different colours, I chose to try and keep if to just two, but finding a suitable veneer to match the dash top proved more difficult than I had imagined. Ultimately, I bought some sapele veneer and applied a rosewood stain which resulted in the colour being similar to the dash top. This was glued to the aluminium base and treated to the usual six coats of stain lacquer. Whilst most of the switches functions were the same as previously, I did choose to fit two warning lights for the indicators – left and right. With a slight bit of trimming the new dash fitted snugly between the glove box door and the instrument cluster panel.