making dash valances

[fordman]

i have been thinkign about making dash valances for our trucks. i have considered making them stock sized out of wood. i dotn think it would be too hard to make them. what i was wondering is what types of wood should i use for these? pine would probably not sell very well. of course the better the wood the more they would cost to make. i am thinking oak is probably the wood to use. but there are other woods out there to use. walnut charry ash and so forth. or course. ones made from pine would be a painted one to match theinterior of the dash. i also have considered making them tall enough to install radios and such stuff in.

what are your thoughts on the types of woods to use to make these and would anyone want a painted one vs stained or natural wood color and stain it them selves?

[garner67]

What is a dash valance? Do you have any pics of what you're talking about?

[hazelnut]

x2

[fordman]

they go under the passenger side dash. they help hide the view of the heater from the drivers view. i also had a thought of putting the words Ford on it. but i dont know if i would get into trouble using the ford name or logo on parts i made. i would have to check into that. or other designs might be cool too. mayeb soem ranch types of pictures of cows or saddles. that kind of stuff. maybe make some custom ones. with the buyers name in them. something like this truck restored by joe somebody. or some sort of saying like that. or this truck built especially for carlos medoza. i guess that would have to be a upgrade that would have to be a special order though.

[bb429power]

Maybe "FORDification inspired" "Bumpsides Rule" or the year then model. mine would be "1967 F100". Looks good.

[fordman]

ford rules or something like that. kieth would have to give permission to use the site name. maybe for some consideration on the manufactures part.

[tanusfarms]

I like the idea of the red oak or walnut, as for the pine I personally would love a knotty pine or hickory style of wood or maybe something with some fiddle back, quilted, or birds eye figureing to it. i think you should ship them unfinished. staining or clear coating wood is easy and you could include direcetions if you wanted to but any buyer should be able to finish thier own. The radio or cb would be a welcomed option for some but possibly not for all. Also the customized text would look great however for people such as me where the truck is compiled of multiple years the yr on it might not work. I do really like the picture idea.

[socalcraigster]

I thought the 69 Rangers used Teak?

I always thought headliner with somkind of wood grain to match the dash/inside door panels would look cool. And a matching wood grain steering wheel.

[1982 flareside]

The eastern red cedar looks good or black walnut.

[bb429power]

Casey, you can get a dash pad from LMC for $120.

I think you should have the customers custom order it so it suits their needs while also having a few generic one's already pre-made.

[michael69]

Casey, you can get a dash pad from LMC for $120.

I think you should have the customers custom order it so it suits their needs while also having a few generic one's already pre-made.

Thats just a cover not the dashpad itself.

[DuckRyder]

I think you would almost have to make the rest of the dash bezels to match to sell many...

As far as woods, the possibilities are endless...

Ebony
Walnut
Rosewood
various burls

[bluemoose]

Figured I would check in. You might need to vary the wood with different parts of the country, depending on climate. The temperature and moisture fluxuations in a truck could be a problem causing both checking and warping. I think more so in a dash pad (in direct sunlight) than a valance. I like the idea though. I think before doing it I would do a little research on the different types of wood and grain patterns that would lend themselves to being in such a dynamic environment.

Moose

[fordman]

I think you would almost have to make the rest of the dash bezels to match to sell many...

As far as woods, the possibilities are endless...

Ebony
Walnut
Rosewood
various burls

i was thinking about some burls and birds eyes in the wood would be great for no designs to the valances.

making a dash pad out of wood would be a long and hard thing to do. it could posibly be done but i doubt i will do it.

[cep62]

Just do it tastefully.
You don't want to look like a mid'80s "Starcraft" conversion van.