I have been looking for the surround (one that is not warped) that goes around the radio/climate controls. But it seems that those would be hard/impossible to find. So the next best thing would be to try and straighten the one I have.
Has anyone done this and what technique was used to straighten it?
Mine seems to be warped along the sides and top of the opening.
I've not looked into this as I do not own a Fiero at the moment, though depending on the material I would suggest sanding it flat and then applying a spray-on clear coat/ lacquer depending on the finish you're looking for. If you could, it would certainly help if you could post a picture. Really hope this helps, best wishes. Nevermind, thought you were talking about that piece of trim, rather than the leather shell.
[This message has been edited by 8bit88 (edited 02-12-2015).]
I used super glue - just plain old super glue. Lots of clamps with a thin strip of wood, one piece all the way across, under the clamps where marks could show. I got rid of the loose hard foam between the frame and the cover material. I have about 3 seasons on my console and it still looks good and is holding fine.
Save yourself a lot of clamps and get some wooden paint stirring sticks from Home Depot, Lowes, Ace Hardware, or.... Cut them to length and wrap them with waxed paper to prevent gluing them to the vinyl, THEN put one on each side of the seam and use just a few large clamps to make some nice neat STRAIGHT glued edges.
That thread shows the process very well, but not the right glue.....which was discovered later I think.... it's called Gorilla Glue. Clean out the old damaged foam and use a smaller volume of glue in the space because it expands. More clamps the better.
Here is a thread that will give a little bit more info. In my case the foam had swelled up badly, and prevented me from stretching the vinyl back to where it needed to be glued. I cleaned out quite a bit of the foam before gluing it. And yes, gorilla glue does work the best of anything out there. As it dries, it foams up, thus filling cracks and crevices and ensuring a solid attachment between the pieces. Super glue will only hold on perfectly flat surfaces for the most part.
Save yourself a lot of clamps and get some wooden paint stirring sticks from Home Depot, Lowes, Ace Hardware, or.... Cut them to length and wrap them with waxed paper to prevent gluing them to the vinyl, THEN put one on each side of the seam and use just a few large clamps to make some nice neat STRAIGHT glued edges.
That's the way I did it anyway....
What he said. I use loctite super glue, dries fast, and mine has lasted for prob 8 years now Clamps will leave marks in the vinal, I dont know if permenent, but the paint sticks work well and spread the force out from the clamps, and leave no marks. I like the loctite super glue (only that brand, the best super glue out there) dries fast so you can keep working on it, glue that dries overnight takes days to do a piece