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How does the dash cap work. does the original dash have to be in tact to use it? The dash in my truck is severely wasted I mean there are some big splits and cracks and some big chunks missing. I have a dash mat on it now to hide most of the missing pieces but I want to do it right. I was going to do an aluminum dash but dont want to have to buy all new guages and the head ache of building it. whats the best route to take in this situation? I was thinking about cutting all the warped and spilt sections out with a razor knife and filling in the holes with some of that spray in foam stuff and forming it up that way. anyone tried that, and if so how did it work?

The cap completely covers the top section of the dash. Basically draw an imaginary line across at the center of the radio cutout and from there up will be covered. If you have chunks that are curling up you may actually have to cut them down for the cap to fit correctly. If you have cracks/problems below that imaginary line, the cap will not fix them either.

Depending on what you want to spend, theres a guy on here that sells
dash replacements.

My dash was wasted when i got a cap. Pretty much the entire top surface was worthless so it all had to go. So to build up a surface to attach the cap to, i used layers of bulletin board cork. I got it at an arts and crafts store. Contact cement was used to glue the layers of cork to the metal surface, and then the dash cap adhesive to bond the cap to the cork filler and what was left of the outer edge of the original dash top.
It's remained solid for 5 years but the dash cap has formed a crack in it. Being exposed to direct sunlight has taken its toll on it. It would be best to cover your new cap with cloth or carpet of some kind.

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Previous setup: 4.1 Buick V-6/TH 350
Current setup: 400 Small Block Chevy V-8/TH 350
9" ford rear end/short bed/blue
What do Water, Electricity and Humans have in common... They all travel the path of least resistance.

I have a cap in the garage that I still haven't installed. I was planning to use foam rubber as filler under the cap.

how hard is it to install the dash cap? Is it something you have to glue and stick on and try to get it set on perfect as you set it down? Im terrible at doing stuff like that if thats the case. Also I know a guy that had a dodge D-50 with a dash that was wasted and he cut out all the high spots that were cracked and coming off and used bondo to form up all the missing parts and used a texture paint over the top of it. When he was done after about 3 nights of working on it after work it looked just like it came from the factory and he never had a problem with it for a few years then he sold the truck so who knows how long it really lasted. Im not a big fan of bondo but I would consider using something of that nature just dont know what exactly is out there that would hold up for a long time and i only want to do it once.

There's more work involved with getting a solid base to attach the cap to than actually installing the cap itself. Once you're set with a solid base, follow the dash cap directions making sure that the cap is pressed tightly to the dash. i had the steering wheel off when i did mine so i was able to use 1" X 1" lengths of wood to press the dash forward by pinning it to the back rest of the seat. Rags and bricks to weight it down on top and folded up cardboard to pin down the edge along the windsheild. I left it like that over night and the next day, it was a done deal. It makes the dash look like new!
Mine though looks kinda funny now because the face of the dash has cracking problems. For me, the next time around i'll go with an all new custom dash.

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Previous setup: 4.1 Buick V-6/TH 350
Current setup: 400 Small Block Chevy V-8/TH 350
9" ford rear end/short bed/blue
What do Water, Electricity and Humans have in common... They all travel the path of least resistance.

allmost sounds to me like it would be easier just to fabricate up a new custom dash. especially in my case where the cap wouldnt cover up all the ugly spots. Where do these custom dashes come from that was mentioned up near the top of the forum? I would like to look into that.