W123 Shift Console Vinyl Wrap
 

To contribute to the forum, I post photos of a "repair" of my 1984 shift console by applying R-Vinyl "zebrano" wrap (ebay, ~$8 worth). After doing this, my recommendation for next time is to sand the old finish off and refinish. The degraded parts came off in big sheets w/ a putty knife, but I had to resort to a razor scraper at the fwd end where it was still secure and the finish came off tediously in tiny shards. In the process, I gouged the surface in a few places (epoxy repair in 2nd photo).

I assumed the peel was a thin veneer of zebrano wood, but it appears the zebrano is solid and what peels is just the coating (polyurethane or such). Thus, if you sand to bare wood (probably faster than picking), you might recoat and get an as-new look. The vinyl coating looks OK unless you look close. It is tricky to apply since you only get one chance. I had to use 2 sheets to get the horizontal wood grain (seam between switches). I tried to wrap it over the edges and secure on the rear, but it wants to pop off so I used Superglue gel in places. Probably better to just trim it flush.

Finally, I installed a bolt to replace the plastic pin which some gomer had sheared off. Most don't know to slide the console back to clear the pin before pulling it upward. There is a plastic pin base secured in a wood groove which you can remove to tap and install a bolt w/ thin head.

Feel free to throw darts. At least I did something. BTW, you can buy a set of new wood for your W123 for only $550 from Thailand (ebay). In my cars, only the console wood takes a beating.

That looks pretty good to me! And a lot less work than doing a complete refinish

Also - to remove the finish easily and without gouging it, soak the part in acetone for several days (i took about 2 weeks to do an entire car worth). Somewhere I have a thread of how I refinished mine, though I didn't go for a stock appearance.

The vinyl coating looks a lot better than peeling broken wood! Unless someone in interested in concourse-perfect results, I doubt anyone would notice or dare to throw a dart!

If anything, you have me considering this approach for my SDL:D

It's pretty easy to get that old thick finish off with an electric iron. Put it on high, put it on top of the finish until it softens then use a putty knife. I did get some splintering like yours when I did it on my daughter's 84 SD last week. But I just sanded, the areas, stained and spray poly'd it. Not great but acceptable.

I think the vinyl looks good too.

Looks great, and a great idea, Bill!

Off-topic, dig the Mopars in your signature, too!

Wow! That looks awesome! I like your idea! I'll consider doing my own vinyl wrap project as well but will probably seek some professional help from Gatowraps and Gatorprints.

Mercedes W123 Burl Wood Dash Trim 123 300 300cd | eBay



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Read again. My advice is to remove the old cracked finish by chemicals and/or sanding, then refinish, as others here chimed in. I was surprised to find the wood underneath appeared sound and also zebrano grain (not a veneer). In picking the old stuff off, I got some gouges, making refinish tougher.