Well with Christmas and New Year celebrations over and all the decs put away it was time to get back in the garage before spring arrives and other outdoor projects become a priority again.
It's been b***dy cold in this part of the country and my garage is old detached and often colder inside than outside.
I thought I would tackle the wiring of the dashboard thinking that would be something I could do indoors but all the preparation work has been outside in the cold....
The Sabre I bought had the dashboard surround covered in cream coloured leather by a professional upholsterer in about 1995. The leather covering was very dirty after 22 years of neglect! My original plan was to rip it off and start again but I thought I'd have a go at restoring it first. I tried various cleaners but the most effective was Vanish carpet cleaner. It's come up quite well but some small scuffs will need to be treated.
Dashboard surround - before by
Sabrebuilder, on Flickr
And after cleaning....
Dashboard surround - after by
Sabrebuilder, on Flickr
The dashboard surround is mounted by this central bracket that bolts to the scuttle frame plus a 'z shaped' bracket at each end. The central bracket clashed with one of the warning lamp holes already pre-cut in my dashboard, so I had to mount it slightly rotated.
Dashboard Surround mounting by
Sabrebuilder, on Flickr
I'm using a Ford Sierra fan motor switch. I had to make a metal plate to mount the switch behind the GRP dashboard surround. These little jobs can be very time consuming!
Heater Fan Switch by
Sabrebuilder, on Flickr
I couldn't find any warning lights that I liked so I made these out of two different lamps. The bodies are LED indicators from Hong Kong and the lens was cut of the top of a Europaspares lamp. The lens was lapped flat and then carefully bond to the body with clear silicone sealer.
LED Warning Lamps by
Sabrebuilder, on Flickr
And finally for this update, Durite period looking fog light switches mounted in the 'IVA dashboard exempt zone' (hopefully!).
Front and rear fog light switch by
Sabrebuilder, on Flickr
More to follow next week.....
....peter