72Dodge
Well-Known Member
You saw that if you click on "Applications" on the Summit site it shows what it fits, right? 93012 is for Dakota. Maybe you already saw this. Just trying to help.
"A" Pillar Gauge Mount
- Thread starter My imp
- Start date
My imp
Well-Known Member
Yeah, it just happened to be the first number that popped into my head. My days of memorizing anything beyond my name are far behind me. The A pillar in my '83 B250 isn't all that far from the Imp's. Too bad my kid snapped in two trying to persuade it back in! But my point is that if something is that close, there has to be something available that minimizes the work required. You wouldn't try to make a Kia dash fit a Rolls Royce when Bentley would be a lot easier. The more welding I need to do, the weaker the piece. If needed, I can pull a mold & glass it. But I'd much rather find something close enough. I could always flock it instead of covering it in headliner material. Not perfect, but better than just blowing some color over the plastic.
One idea for this would be to buy a sheet of Kydex or ABS and thermoform it into the desired shape. Kydex in particular is pretty easy to work with once you've got the knack with the thickness you're using. For this application, I would think .060" or .080" would work strength-wise, while being easily molded. You would have to make a mold since I doubt it would be possible to form it by hand, but it might be worth a shot if someone wants one badly enough. At that point, you could get creative, even flanging it so that an original A-pillar could be cut and bonded with the gauge section as a level, smooth transition. Though I have no real interest in a pillar pod, I do plan to do some experimentation with Kydex in other areas of the interior of my car.
The trick with Kydex is it's not as easily bonded to itself or other materials as ABS, but it's still not terrible. There are adhesives available that will hold the stuff, but some of them are pricey. Devcon Plastic Weld is supposedly one of them, though, and that's not terribly costly.
Ten million thoughts and ideas running through my head this winter, and it's too bloody cold to do anything about most of them. Grrrr...
The trick with Kydex is it's not as easily bonded to itself or other materials as ABS, but it's still not terrible. There are adhesives available that will hold the stuff, but some of them are pricey. Devcon Plastic Weld is supposedly one of them, though, and that's not terribly costly.
Ten million thoughts and ideas running through my head this winter, and it's too bloody cold to do anything about most of them. Grrrr...
My imp
Well-Known Member
I agree! I know the apps shown in Summits catalog aren't for our vehicles, I'm looking more for simply the close as possible fit to make my own. I've done fiberglass boxes, fender extensions, scoops, etc. this is probably going to be the same. But why not do more research & less fab. If I can graft a properly spaced, angled, profiled pod onto my A pillar vs. trying to hand fab, why not? It falls under the work smarter, not harder school of thought. Never heard of Kydex, but I think getting the fabric applied will be the hardest part. I'll probably end up flocking it instead of trying to make headliner material fit around all that!
Kydex is like ABS, and can be formed with a heat gun (or oven, if the better half doesn't mind) into fairly complex shapes. It's popular in gun holster and knife sheath making and is easier to shape than ABS. A small buck and a heat source would be all you'd need.
Agreed, upholstering it would definitely be tricky.
Agreed, upholstering it would definitely be tricky.
My imp
Well-Known Member
I've got so many thing to do, I need to add that to the list. I have a set of 80 Mirada seats that I want to take the cover off of the drivers side to see if that seat frame can be cut to allow console fitment in my Imp. If so, I want to see if the extra material can be made to fit. That way if it does, I'll be able to do the same to my Imp seat & the interior will look factory! At the same time, I'm going to take the recline feature out of the passenger seat. If that fits; bisquits & gravy baby! That's my only complaint with the seat in the Imperial. I'd love to recline my setback w/o having to tilt the seat part back with it. I thought of using other seats as I've seen in other Imp.'s, but then you're stuck with two sets of seat switches.
Why not just remove the Imperial power-seat tracks and attach them to a different seat? That's my plan, though I've not decided which buckets I plan to use just yet. I have a pair of leather BMW 528i seats I'd like to use, but I don't think they flip forward since they're from a sedan. I'll probably end up with the leather buckets out of my Conquest TSi.
My imp
Well-Known Member
Because I love the seats in the car. I've never had a seat match my aging posterior better than these. Used to be the ones in my Stealth R/T TT, then '88 LeBaron convertible, & now the Imp. I don't want to upset the apple cart on this one. I'd do w/o the floor shift before I'd give up that seat. Plus, I've got 2 parts cars on top of the Mirada seats, just still installed in the car (under a ton of cold weather & snow!) once again the friggin weatherman had his head firmly up his arse! I now have to make the trip to NC this weekend to pick up my project car. The snowstorm to end all snowstorms that all the stations were predicting weren't more than light flurries. Does anyone know of a hauler that returns phone calls, & has reasonable rates? It's 639 mi. point to point. With the economy what it is, it would seem that prices wouldn't have gone through the roof. $995 is quite steep IMHO. I would feel $6-700 is a little more like it. Any takers? Must be this week. Thanks, & I'll owe you one!, Larry
