Vibrating Instrument binnacle cure

Contact Paul Jakabi Goldsmith, [email protected], or https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009353902908

Paul makes an excellent reproduction of the binnacle from fiberglass. I've installed his reproduction binnacle on both of our Fs.

The rear binnacle mounts on both my TFs were broken and the things rattled terribly.  It is definitely a part of the car that seems to have been built backwards without thought of removal.  The binnacle is assembled to the dash from underneath but the screw heads are inaccessible though as they are hidden by a square section ventilation pipe which must have been the next part fitted to the dash assembly on the production line.
In both cases I removed the binnacles, reinforced the front mounting points with small washers and deployed soft plastic U shaped panel edging around the lower edges to stop them clattering against the dash.  One binnacle had a couple of cracks in but turned out fine once i had repaired with bumper filler and reinforced the underside. A coat of textured paint followed by a couple of coats of matching upholstery dye and a matte laquer sorted it convincingly though.

There are, in addition to the front peripheral screws, two at the back & these share the same fate as the rest of the binnacle shroud, they brake.
It’s the absence of these which give the percussive accompaniment to your journey. I have to say it is a looong time since I did this job, so you might have to interpret what you see against my recollections, but we’ve managed to get here by applying common sense, why should that fail us now.
Unfasten the front screws & lift away the shroud, you will see the remains of the original fixtures. Dispense with the wreckage & push the screws back through the dash, these will fall into the heating duct. A magnet & a little inspiration will recover these. You can buy from your friendly eBay store U shaped rubber / plastic edging, run this around the bottom edge of the dome & reassembl.e

Sorry, I was never good at posting pictures at the best of times & now with the new look I’ve been pushed back by three years. I was thinking of adding an accompanying picture for my recent comment & ended up posting without these masterpieces; I’ll try via this route. 

I did mine over 2 years ago and I've been to sleep since so the details are fuzzy, as mentioned to do it as OE it's a dash out job so no go. I used metal reinforcing plates from the local hardware shop bent to fit the curvature of the binnacle and then fit to the dash panel underneath these were then 2 packed to the binnacle. To locate the plates to the dash panel I put the binnacle in place and marked the holes, drilled (carefully) the dash panel and used those screw in plasterboard/dry wall fixings (2 packed in again) the mounting screws then go into these.
I used the plates because the holes allow the 2 pack to squeeze thru and make a good bond with the binnacle but cleaning and keying is also important. 

These seems to be a very typical problem. While I have been fortunate so far not to have it - but have read about how difficult it is to repair - would it not be possible to simply remove the instruments and then put a thick amount of silicone glue all around the inside edge of the binnacle where it contacts the dash? Regular glue would not hold (it cracks off the plastic after a while) but my experience is that silicone has sufficient 'flex' to work well. Has anyone ever tried this solution?

It could work. I think maybe the only reason silicone has not been the go to fix could be concern about the messiness of silicone, applying it thickly enough to provide strong adhesion whilst leaving only a very small and clean visible join.
To avoid a distracting reflection in the windscreen It would need to be in a neutral colour and not to be shiny ; a lesson learned from my first attempt, white plastic U channel edging was swiftly removed and replaced by more discrete black edging.

There is a practical advantage in having the binnacle relatively easily removable as it can make changing the dash bulbs less fiddly

I’ve said on a number of occasions that had I found a replacement shroud with the fixings intact you would all be the first people to hear about it & if no one made me an exaggerated offer for it I would ceremoniously remove them.
Taking the instrument cluster out isn’t a regular process but when it’s required you want it to be straightforward, how you’re supposed to undo the connectors with the shroud in place is a mystery. Older & less prehensile hands make this hard enough as things stand, calling for a grand child to help would be the only option it those fixings remained.
M

Made some progress today and have the binacle off and in the process of doing that one of the white nylon securing blocks dropped out of place (the thin bridge of plastic had been lost in the passage of time). Can I find it can I heck. It dropped out and presumably into the area around the fuse panel.
This is one of the blocks that locate around the rim nearest the driver and accept the final securing screws.
They are about 6 to 8mm square roughly.
Anyone know of a source for these please? Rimmers don't appear to stock them.

I replaced all of those nylon inserts with rivnuts epoxied in. The original design was poor & the assembly poorly executed , there is insufficient material around those inserts to adequately resist the turning moment of a self tapping screw when initially assembled, thus the frame is weakened from the start.
Fitting rivnuts reenforces the framework & allows you to reassemble without the original fitting dictating the torque required to tighten; that remains firmly in your hands. The machine screw you are now using is totally under control.
M

+1 for the reliance on the expanding inserts being a poor design. On both of mine they had caused the front rim of the binnacle to crack. On my current TF I reinforced the plastic rim with some short length of metal  , bitsI had left over from fitting a car stereo ( looks pretty much like strips of meccano ).

If you do need the inserts though then Darren at Bitz has some 2nd hand ones

Thank you all for the suggestions. After a good sleep and refreshed I had another look with sunlight shining from a slightly different angle and found the thing.
I’m waiting for some suitable 2 pack glue to arrive and will bond them in for now.
Rivnuts sound a good idea but you do need the tool to pull to form the clinch.

Now, how in the name of what’s his name do you part the top half of the steering wheel nacelle from the bottom?
Which half has to be squeezed to release it from the other half?
Can anyone help with that.?
It is now obvious that you need that top half removing to give enough room to withdraw the instrument panel surround away from the instruments so that it disengages from the clips at the bottom of the instrument covering clear face.