This idea is NOT mine and is being hijacked from a previous threat.
In any case I did not really want to pay for the refurbished pieces from Ebay or what not so I decided to take on the challenge.

Total cost less than $25 smackers.
Materials: Veneer Edging, Crazy Glue, Dab of Stainer, Lacquer Spray

Process:
Apply Crazy Glue as applicable on cracks and blisters of existing Zebrano Piece.
Install Veneer Edging on missing and ripped Zebrano sections.
Mask off existing Zebrano MB lacquer coat.
Stain Veneer and play around with different tones to match original MB Zebrano tone.
Spray Lacquer on Veneer sections to build up enough volume to match existing MB finish. (take your time and apply thin coats every 2 hours or so) "I did this process for 5 days."
Remove tape mask.
Wet Sand entire Zebrano piece to a smooth finish.
Apply another 5 thin coats over the entire piece.
Reinstall and play. 8)

From my experience in this procedure I realized that matching the Veneer color to the existing Zebrano prior to the lacquer is what is key!

Next will be the main Console. and NO the piece being shown is still not finished..I plan on sanding once more to remove any evidence of patch..

Thanks

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I too have blank spots as yours does, Curious where you get the veneer, what it looks like and how you match the grain.

Hard to tell from the photos, but it looks like your doing a decent job.
Share more pics when you can. (good light, camera on a tripod or something stable).

__________________
83 300TD (need rear wiper assembly dead or alive)
84 300SD Daily driver
85 300TD almost 400k miles and driven daily.
98 E300D *sold
86 300SDL *sold and made flawless 10 hour journey to new home.

I will post better pics if I can when they are installed in the car.
The veneer is just a plain Real Wood Edging Roll available at HD or LOWES.
Matching the grain is where my Art BG kicks in.
I hacked it in in one try. 2 coats of Behr Semi Transparent Pine Wood Stainer. I then painted matching lines using thin brush and flat enamel paint to blend the patch in.

THE EYE BELIEVES WHAT IT SEES. I try to keep things simple. With patches its always best not to over commit- otherwise it will look patchy.

Looks awesome!

__________________
-Tyler
1984 Volvo 760GLE Turbo Diesel D24T/M46
1986 Isuzu Trooper Turbo Diesel
No mercedes (for now)

Congrats, you did a very fine job! I am very happy that so many people have been able to save their wood using this system. I figured if it was good enough for a vintage guitar, it should be good on an old Mercedes!

__________________
83 300TD "Nassau Jitney"

I gotta give the credit to BUSMAN1965 his post is where I was enlightened to the possibility of repairing the clusters..Thank You sir..

Here is the pic for the bottom piece completed.. Lets keep in mind one thing..I am the most impatient individual so I get things done on the quick and often get sloppy after a little bit..

Someone with better patience than I can make this Zebrano pieces look like MAGIC.

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Nice work. I've started working my way through my car one piece at a time. My veneer is all more or less intact but delaminated, the finish has cracked off in places and structure of the pieces were all warped and broken apart. Instead of duplicating the factory finish, I decided to go no stain and semi-gloss. I like the look, but the down side is I have to do ALL the pieces to make it match. I just like the natural wood look a lot better, dark stain and high gloss always looks artificial to me, whether in a car or on furniture.

What I have learned:

1 Seriously high powered paint remover is necessary (look for aircraft remover and let it have time to work)
2 If yours are broken like mine were, piecing the broken structure together is really most of the work. If you don't have a serious assortment of clamps, buy some.
3 Start on a niece flat piece like the HVAC trim (hindsight )

I've been using three different types of glue - some industrial contact cement to reglue the veneer to the aluminum and aluminum to the wood underneath with titebond and gorilla glue to piece the structure back together.

Its a lot of tedious work, but I think the finished product will be worth it. The picture is my first finished piece.

Edit: sorry the pic isn't better...

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'82 300SD - Somewhere over 220k - Becoming reliable...

I got some Tiger Wood veneer, cut it to fit, use Elmers glue, did a lot of sanding to make it look like factory work, put some walnut stain and polyurathane - it looks great. I did the dash & console. That was about 3 years ago.


Hugh Sr
1984 190d (W201) 99,334