Refinishing interior trim

1997ThunderbirdLXV6 said:
I mean I hear you but...I won't be seeing them simultaneously. Plus it wouldn't be the first car with a green/red combo.

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Wanna know my favorite color? Green! Followed by Yellow and then red. Does my car have any of those beyond lights? No! Because it doesn't work lol

With Green and tan tan I'd draw inspiration from the 92 25th anniversary Cougars, to me these were the best MN12 interiors ever and it flowed well inside and out. Focus less on easy stuff like bezels and more on harder stuff like carpet and this is what you can have.

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XR7-4.6 said:
Focus less on easy stuff like bezels and more on harder stuff like carpet
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I mean I cannot be accused of focusing on "easy stuff" with my interior mods so far. But I'll admit that some of the motivation for this stems from the fact that I have these panels laying around and/or they're just sitting in my local yard waiting for me. And absent of selling them, I'd like to put them to use.

The main motivation though is the fact that I feel the interior was designed around that cockpit arch, and it should be emphasized by color. Just not simply black like stock Tbirds.

The Dupli-Color burgundy does not give me a Christmas vibe at all, even next to green. Christmas red would be a full-on bright red.
 
1997ThunderbirdLXV6 said:
I mean I cannot be accused of focusing on "easy stuff" with my interior mods so far. But I'll admit that some of the motivation for this stems from the fact that I have these panels laying around and/or they're just sitting in my local yard waiting for me. And absent of selling them, I'd like to put them to use.

The main motivation though is the fact that I feel the interior was designed around that cockpit arch, and it should be emphasized by color. Just not simply black like stock Tbirds.

The Dupli-Color burgundy does not give me a Christmas vibe at all, even next to green. Christmas red would be a full-on bright red.
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I didn’t mean for you to take it as an insult, more so that the bezels are an easy target for customization that I personally don’t necessarily think translates into something attractive. For me the problem I have with anything but black or color match is the climate control head, stereo and DIN cubby(or VMM or ashtray) are black. They blend into the black bezels, and they look purposeful with the cougar bezels. With another contrasting color thrown in the mix it looks busy IMO

I associate red and green together in any shade with Christmas (or to lesser extent stoplights anyway 😝), and darker metallics are often on ornaments and whatnot. But even still, staying with red this would still be cooler than bezels, and this is a far less beaten path for customization than painting them.

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Ok...so brake fluid, huh? Didn't do :poop:. And then overzealous me obviously couldn't stop there. I tried acetone, which does nothing if it's on there briefly, but it messes up the plastic if it's on there just seconds too long.

So the panel was effectively destroyed, ergo this panel will just be a testing ground for possible colors. First up...body color. I knew this wouldn't work; I just wanted to see with my own eyes. As with any glossy finish, it reveals every tiny imperfection. Apart from that, I actually don't hate the color on an interior panel. I mean we agreed this is gaudy; but we never established if gaudy was good or bad :unsure:.
If I had the patience and skill to produce this perfectly, it would be a definite option. Also makes me think if I should consider a satin green.

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Regarding parts preparation, I really think the best is just mild sanding of the existing finish, but no paint removal at all; it's an unnecessary mess.

I went ahead and primed that extra cupholder I have, but won't paint it until a final color has been chosen.
I also primed the extra gauge bezel (the piece inside of the lense). For this piece, I may actually go with body color. Currently I'm using a stock silver Taurus piece.

All of this is just me experimenting for the fun of it. I like my interior in its present state; I'm just having fun potentially trying something new.

That said, there are some small changes I want to make:
  • Replace tan light switch bezel with black to match radio/climate
  • Replace tan driver air vents with black; this one I'm still debating (I want to keep the tan units on the passenger side)
 
More colors to consider:

Satin Hunt Club
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Satin Deep Forest
(I couldn't find a good example of this one; it's more of a blackish green.)

Satin Dark Walnut
This one is very dark and potentially too close to black. In the below pictures, it's the frame and the foot of the horse.

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I just remembered, the red cougar needs the headliner replaced. I'm going to do it in black leather, like I did the door insets on the tbird. Smelled great on a warm day. I think the doors need it too. The insert cloth is probably laying in the door jamb; they were fine when I parked it. When I get outside today I'm going to bring in the 4v heads,cams, and valve keepers; everything else is inside already.
I need to inspect the ports, and make sure I stayed out of the water jacket,lol.
 
Satin, but when it comes to how rustoelum, duplicolor krylon et al define flat, matte, satin, semi-gloss it's a roll of the dice what you're actually going to get, you just have to sample them to find what matches best

To me matte is the same as flat; basically like fine sandpaper where there's almost a grain to to it

Satin is smoother but not so smooth theres any reflective quality to it.

Semi-gloss is basically dull gloss
 
Satin Dark Walnut.
 

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I think you need brake fluid and some source of warmth (laying the part in the sun) for it to work.

I hate trying to differentiate different paint sheens. Everyone's definition is a little different. We also used to have a semi-flat that was a perfect sheen for chassis components.
 
KevinVarnes said:
I think you need brake fluid and some source of warmth (laying the part in the sun) for it to work.

I hate trying to differentiate different paint sheens. Everyone's definition is a little different. We also used to have a semi-flat that was a perfect sheen for chassis components.
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VHT rollbar and chassis is my current go-to for the underbody stuff
 
1997ThunderbirdLXV6 said:
I'm just not convinced that there's any need to remove the factory finish in the first place.
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If the factory rubberized paint isn't damaged I agree, but if it has any chips or peels it will show up through anything you put over it.

X2 on heat with the brake fluid
 
The only reason I refinished mine was because there was a big chunk of the factory finish that wore off to bare plastic under the coin holders and was quite the eyesore. What I have isn't a phenomenal match against the original finish still on the cluster or radio bezels, but it's durable and satisfactory enough for my needs.
 
Test run for satin dark walnut. Disregard the messed up surface. It's still moist, which may explain some of the sheen. Seems awfully glossy though; I like the color otherwise.

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