#21  
Old 05-03-2020, 03:41 AM
Aus78Formula Aus78Formula is offline
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Silver is one of those colours that suits some shapes and not others, and the paint has to be mint and super glossy, in order to look only good and somewhat shiny! Naturally, it can be hard to get every panel to match, being metallic, call that original since they were painted largely in pieces.

As for polishing an aluminium dash, you can clean it slightly if tarnished but anything more it will only start to buff the machined swirls off. The aluminium may have oxidised below the clear coat. You can strip the clear and recoat, lightly clean and buff the bare aluminium with cotton wadding, followed by wax remover, but that's about as good as it will get. Don't get an ok dash remachined, it's still worth something to someone, but a badly faded dash will remachine just the same.

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Old 05-03-2020, 08:51 AM
Warren Seale Warren Seale is offline
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Originally Posted by i4abuygto View Post
Also - is there a way to polish the dash bezel aluminum? it is in good shape just dull.
The bezel originally would have had a clear coating on it but they tended to get worn off (ha, or maybe evaporated). What I did on mine was to remove what clear coat was left on there with acetone or lacquer thinner, just be sure not to get that stuff on any of the painted parts of the bezel. If there is oxidation on the aluminum then use a very very fine polish to remove it, but don't rub to aggressively otherwise you will remove the machine pattern. Finally apply a fresh coating of clear. If the bezel is in really bad shape then it will have to have the machine turned pattern re applied. There is a guy that does this service and has a good reputation. I just don't recall his name.

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  #23  
Old 05-03-2020, 09:44 AM
78w72 78w72 is offline
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the signal flasher is under the dash near the fuse block, its a silver or gold round canister about 1" long. should be able to hear it click with the signal or flashers on.

& the bezel restore guy is randy combs.

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Old 05-03-2020, 10:01 AM
Grand73Am Grand73Am is offline
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Randy Combs is the bezel restorer. Here's his website: http://www.transamdashbezels.com/

The turn signal flasher is originally on a mounting clip attached to the front of the parking brake assy. It's the one in the center of the photo below. Sometimes, it's just hanging loose by the wires in that area. The flasher above the fuse panel is for the 4 way emergency flasher.

001 by grand73am, on Flickr

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Old 05-03-2020, 10:34 AM
Grand73Am Grand73Am is offline
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Also, as was said you can spruce up your dash bezel yourself, and can often get a good result. I took my bezel completely apart as seen the photo below. I cleaned what was left of the old lacquer clear off with lacquer thinner. As the guys said, do not scrub on the swirls, since they are light and can be rubbed smooth. After wiping the bezel clean with thinner, I lightly wiped it with a tack cloth to make sure the surface was dust and lint free. Then sprayed clear paint over it. I painted the black rings and upper panel separately. Once everything was dry, I reassembled it. It turned out good for an old bezel...bottom photo. Of course the less wear and scratches it has in the first place, the better the results. If it's too bad, then find a better one to re-do, or send it to Randy for full restoration. For your clear lenses, if they aren't too bad, you can use plastic polish on them to make them clearer, or you can buy new ones for a reasonable price.

009 (2) by grand73am, on Flickr

004 by grand73am, on Flickr

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  #26  
Old 05-03-2020, 11:44 PM
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Is the clear coat and black for the bezel a gloss, satin or flat.

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Old 05-04-2020, 12:19 AM
Grand73Am Grand73Am is offline
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I used gloss clear urethane enamel, and satin black.

I would think lacquer clear would be closer to original...probably not as glossy as the enamel. But I'm happy with mine.

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Old 05-05-2020, 11:51 PM
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I appreciate the advice with all - I have some work to do and will probably do the dash work later this year.

I replaced the turn signal flasher and signals work good.



I am stumped with the tach though.
I have 12volts at the tach when the ignition is on - the needle will drop from the stationary position of 500 rpm to 0 with the ignition applied. When I shut the car off sometimes the needle will stay at O until I tap on the face of the tach and it will jump to 500 rpm even with the ignition off.

I measured the distributer output at the distributor with a digital multimeter and it measures at idle 6 volts AC and runs up to approx. 17 volts AC. as I rev the engine to a reasonable rpm. I then tested the signal wire at the back of the tach plug and got the exact same reading - 6v to 17v as throttle is applied. I have good ground as I applied direct ground from the battery to the screws at the back of the gage and the dash lights work in the gage which should tell me the gage is grounded.
I guess my conclusion is that the actual tach gage is bad.

Also - No dash lights in the fuel gage or voltage gage.

  #29  
Old 05-05-2020, 11:56 PM
Aus78Formula Aus78Formula is offline
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Normal for old style tachometer and where weight of needle hangs down when off.

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Old 05-06-2020, 05:23 PM
Grand73Am Grand73Am is offline
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It doesn't really matter where the tach needle is when you turn it off. On my 79, it doesn't go to zero when it's turned off. When I turn the key on, then it drops to zero(or close to it), and after starting the engine, it works as it should. So, if yours acts like that, it's fine.

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Old 05-06-2020, 08:50 PM
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So if the needle is working as it should and drops to zero with the ignition on and I am getting good signal from the distributor, 12volts from the fuse block- why doesn't it work. Clock works and lights work so I should have a good ground.

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Old 05-06-2020, 09:30 PM
Grand73Am Grand73Am is offline
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Okay, you didn't mention before that the tach wasn't working. I thought the concern was the needle not settling to zero. Sounds like you've checked everything, so maybe it is bad.

I think you already know the simple wiring, but here's a diagram from the manual anyway:

TACH WIRING 5-6-20 by grand73am, on Flickr

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  #33  
Old 05-06-2020, 11:31 PM
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Thanks Grand73Am,
I hooked up one of my 67 GTO original hood tachs to the system in the TA and that tach works great. Kind of makes me think I want to put a hood tach on this bird. So, I believe the indash tach is bad so I think I will purchase a new circuit board and go that route. Have people had good luck with those.
Also many loose wires.
Below is a photo of a plug that looks like a power switch hookup in the console coming up from the floor- what is it for?
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  #34  
Old 05-06-2020, 11:46 PM
Grand73Am Grand73Am is offline
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That's probably a power window switch connector. That's the only thing that would be under the console. If you don't have power windows now, it's possible the car had them originally and somebody took them out. I've heard of people doing that when something went wrong, or they wanted to save weight.

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  #35  
Old 05-08-2020, 12:03 AM
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Looks like the car may have had power windows at one time - I will be sending out for the PHS to see what options it had.


You have been very helpful - I will be pulling the dash bezel at some point to clean up and refinish the bezel and repair the tach, -

I have to replace the dash lights do you recommend LED and is it a T10 bulb - how many are needed? What bulbs do you recommend

One turn signal bulb is out in the dash - is that the same size bulb?

Also - what type of transmission fluid is used - is it dextron?

I installed the hood latch cable tonight and lubed up the hood hinges - pretty easy fix. No vice grip needed now.

Thanks guys for your help.

  #36  
Old 05-08-2020, 08:37 AM
Grand73Am Grand73Am is offline
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Here's an example of the transmission fluid to use, which now normally comes as Dexron/Mercon.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Valvoline...yABEgJYHfD_BwE

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  #37  
Old 05-08-2020, 09:22 AM
Grand73Am Grand73Am is offline
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Most of the original dash bulbs are 194's. Since the old incandescent bulbs are much too dim for my liking, I replaced some of them with LED's. I only replaced the cluster illumination bulbs with LED's, since the overall illumination is where the original bulbs fall short. So, the LED's brighten up the dash a lot over the originals.

I find that the other original 194's work fine for the turn signals, high beam, and warning lights. They are bright enough for those things. So I did not change them to LED's, which also saves some money.

I did mine a couple years ago, and used some Sylvania LED's for replacing 194's. They're working good. But, if I were doing it now, I would buy from https://www.superbrightleds.com/ . Since I haven't bought 194 replacements from superbrights, I cannot recommend the exact bulbs to buy. They have a number of choices. They have a vehicle application and compatibility function, so you can actually choose a 79 pontiac firebird and they'll show you all the LED bulbs available for the dash and other inside bulbs, as well as outside the car.

I have bought other bulbs from Superbrights for the courtesy lights and dome light, and they're great.

When looking at the dash bulbs, or any other bulbs, check the specifications for the bulb you're looking at. Some bulbs are "polarity sensitive", which means they will work when put in only one way. That's the way my Sylvania's are, so I'd put them in and couple wouldn't be working, so I'd have to pull those out, turn them around and plug back in, so they'd work. That's a pain. With a bulb that is NOT polarity sensitive, it doesn't matter which way you put it in, so that's a lot better. So, in the specs for the bulb, next to "polarity sensitive", you want it to say NO.

The gas gauge and voltage cluster uses a different bulb, 1895 I believe, so you'll need an LED replacement for it too.

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  #38  
Old 05-08-2020, 10:35 AM
TAKerry TAKerry is offline
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I used the reg old replacement bulbs in my car, got them at AutoZ for a couple of bucks. No they are probably not nearly as bright as the led's but that's all part of the charm of an old car. I did get a new dome light bulb from the superbright people and have to say the service was excellent. Honestly I dont understand why people buy an old car then want to have all of the modern amenities, LS motors, fuel injection, 20" wheels, etc., etc. When I want to have an easy modern drive I will take out the wifes mustang. But one of the beauties of this hobby is seeing how everyone does something different with their cars.

On a side note, I just read an article about the race at LeMans. White paint was the colour of the American entries, along with a single blue stripe. In the late 50's Briggs Cunningham modified that and put a double blue stripe on his white cars (so they are not necessarily a chevy item).

  #39  
Old 05-09-2020, 01:31 PM
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Thanks for your ideas - you guys are very helpful.

I have received many compliments on the car and the paint scheme. Believe it or not - people seem to like the blue stripes (except for those that want the bird on the hood). It is amazing how many people want to talk about these cars and share their Trans Am and Firebird stories. And it is good for me because I know so little about them.

I appreciate your help. I will be ordering the LED bulbs and circuit board for the dash and tach. I will refinish the bezel when I take it all apart. The block off plate on the dash is noticeable more "brown" than the rest of the dash bezel. I hope it cleans up well.

I need some seats and the Transmission inspection cover - if anyone has parts available.

All of the wiring appears to be there for power windows - I am not sure why a previous owner would have removed PW to save a few pounds. So, I will be finding some PW regulators and motors. It is kind of a shame as the door panels are brand new with new window cranks. I believe there is only a dual switch needed that is suppose to be mounted in the console.

  #40  
Old 05-09-2020, 03:31 PM
Grand73Am Grand73Am is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by i4abuygto View Post
Thanks for your ideas - you guys are very helpful.

So, I will be finding some PW regulators and motors. It is kind of a shame as the door panels are brand new with new window cranks. I believe there is only a dual switch needed that is suppose to be mounted in the console.
Yes, the dual power window switch mounts to the console. No need to worry about the holes in the door panels after you remove the window cranks. The holes in the door panels left by having power windows were filled with bird emblems, as shown in the pics below. You can find reproductions of the bird emblems at the restoration parts places, under "door panel emblem". They come in red or gold. Red is for regular TA's like yours. Gold is for Special Editions (SE's) .

door panel bird emblems a by grand73am, on Flickr

79 ta silver with red d by grand73am, on Flickr

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