couple of gen5 questions (i know im annoying)

[clarkgrizwald]

first thing is i had an idea for the ugly dd dash kits for gen 5s. i thought about painting the kit a very glossy black with a clear coat to give it a similar look to the finish of the factory radios around the edge of the dvd reciever. any thoughts on that? is it feasable to paint plastic to look like that? the other question i was wondering about is if they sell dash parts i.e. the panel around the radio and two vents that are wood grain or brushed aluminum (to match my se trim). the wood grain kits on ebay are soooo gross and budget looking.. if they dont do this i think someone should consider it. people would pay more for that (at least i would).

[bike4miles]

You need special paint for plastic. You can get it in a rattle can but it isn't real common. I don't think the paint alone would give the gloss finish you are looking for. You would proabaly have to sand and polish the plastic smooth first.

[johnnyzee]

agree, sand first to get the true glossy finish, but to match the decks clear coat look, you'd need a lot of coats of clear. good luck.

i got my wood grain from the dealer and they did a great job on it, looks real high-classy and not cheap at all. cost a few hundred but it's worth it. check your dealer , they'll direct you to someone they deal with for it, as they dont do it themselves.

[clarkgrizwald]

first off thank you both for the information! i love this site! so sand the kit first? im gonna definitly look into all this and post pics when i do it. where do you think would be a good place to get advice on painting this? paint center at home depot? oh and the dealership can hook me up with some brushed aluminum trim??? i want some pieces that im pretty sure didnt come on the car.

[Webb26]

I would just try and find some POS dash kit..and try painting that first...you really don't need plastic paint...the only one i can think of is krylon for plastic...it helps if you can find plastic specific paint...but need not worry..the only reason why its plastic specific is so you don't have to primer. so the paint can adhere to the plastic surface better. AS everyone else had mentioned, you need to wet sand in multiple steps in muliple grades of grit to achieve the glossy look. Having access to some roatary tool might help so you can buff something that small...

[clarkgrizwald]

hmm. wonder if i could take it somewhere and have them do it!

[Super Kaioken]

i think they do sell brushed aluminum kits on ebay. but then you're talking about quality...dunno about that. ?

[johnnyzee]

no one can advise as good as the boys at tn.com
(and girls if there is any as it seems like a sausage party in here)

dude, just buy gloss black paint, for plastic preferably but regular spray paint will do. first sand the plate to get a rougher, better bonding surface. then a coat at a time, wet sanding with really fine grit paper between coats. there you have it!