Thread: Project 2003 Dodge Dakota

Today I applied more sanding to my screen bezel and prepped it for final painting. I took care as much as possible to address any imperfections that I could find and although I am quite sure in my own critical eyes I will not find absolute perfection but I think that I will get really good results given that it is my own project.



And here at long last is my freshly painted screen with approximately 5 layers of Satin black. Although it might appear that my screen is rather shiny, the screen had just been painted and when it dried much of the gloss left to reveal a very impressive OEM looking bezel that appears to be all one piece which is exactly what I was looking to accomplish.



Here is a good view of just how solid the screen bezel appears. The finished product is rather strong and feels solid. I am fully confident that the bezel will stand up to just about any bumps and vibrations that I expose it to in the truck as long as I don't overdo it. I can't wait until the paint is completely dry and I can re-attach the touch screen. I need to widen out the opening in my dash ever so slightly to account for the extra area that the paint is taking up. Shizzam, this project is really coming together now. I am very excited about what the next couple weeks will hold now that I am getting closer and closer to the end.

Although at first it seemed a little ghetto, it actually worked out quite well. I got my hands on a coaxial cable extension kit from Radio Crack and used that to use a piece of regular cable wire to simply extend the wire. I have noticed absolutely no loss in quality of antenna signal with this route and I will be posting some pictures in my worklog soon. If you are making this same console I can email you the patterns and measurements that I used to make this if you would like. Matter of fact, if anyone is requesting any of my methods to madness as well as any measurements that I have not posted, feel free to PM me and let me know, as I would be happy to share any of my work with anyone that would like that information.

Quick update,

While running my wiring, I noticed a slight bit of alternator whine coming from my antennae extension. I got ****ed and tore out the coaxial cable that I had used and decided that I was going to try and isolate the the problem one step at a time when I made a discovery, Lo and behold, Dodge has provided me a whole crapload of slack in the antennae wire when I pulled it down out of its stock location. So if you have a Dodge Dakota/Durango and are looking at re-locating your H/U, rejoice in the knowledge that you will NOT have to extend the antennae wire. Just a small update, but for me a major breakthrough because now I have no alternator whine!

Today I finished dremelling and sanding and I made the modified screen bezel fit nice and snug. I feel that I took a little too much off of the side on the bottom right but then again, I will be critical of my work no matter what. Overall I am happy with the way that it came out and I'm anxious to get the screen back together so that I finish running all wiring and have that puppy in there permanently.



Here is a nice close-up of my screen which shows a small gap that I am now stuck with because I got a tiny bit anxious. In the future and for the benefit of others, I would recommend more use of heavy grit sandpaper and less reliance on the dremmel to make any adjustments. Its always possible to take more off but not possible to add back on and that came to show through while trying to fit my bezel. But it is nice and tight and I have made a mounting bracket for the lower portion of the stereo/screen bezel that I modified and painted. I love the way that it looks and am looking to continue on the morrow. HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!

Today I took a crack at reassembling the screen and getting the computer programmed. During the process, I noticed that when I tried to put the buttons back in, the paint had run down into the space and was making the buttons stick. At first I tried using a small piece of sandpaper to remove the excess paint. DO NOT DO THIS!!! The easier way is to simply use a craft knife and scrape it away. The sandpaper scarred the edge where the buttons mount and although it is very hard to see, I know its there and of course I am my own worst critic. The knife method worked much better.



After reapplying the buttons I attached the button controls and and laid down some 3M double sided tape to re-attach the screen. It took a LOT of patience to get that puppy realigned because the lip inside the screen is a little too wide for it to simply drop in.



Here the screen is re-assembled and connected to my wife's computer. The resolution is currently set to 800x600 and man its clear! I set it up to the next setting but it chops a little bit and I wasn't happy so I set it back down. Its VERY VERY bright and the colors are excellent. I very happy with the quality of this screen and the results of my work.



Okay, this is where it sucks a little bit. LEARN FROM MY MISTAKES!!!! If you'll look at the bottom right hand corner of my screen, you'll notice a nice gouge. I was pulling the dash opening apart and positioning the screen down behind it when I finally got it into place and lo and behold, a metal fastener for the dash scraped across my fresh paint job. In the future I will be wrapping the screen in Saran wrap from now on when moving it down into place. I am toying with the idea of re-spraying that part but I think that I will think about it for a few days. I took the screen back out and set it up with the computer which is now in the process of getting programmed. I got a nice 250 GB HD to put all stuff on. Here you can see my computer loading up.



Well, I'm not too ecstatic about my nice little scratch but I am thrilled about the progress that I am making. Tomorrow in the console I am putting in my USB sound card and my USB hub in. I am getting frustrated with the wiring but I will take my own advice to go slow and take care in running everything. Let me know what you all think.

Patients is the key! LOL

Its comming along AMAZING. I was going to mention about the paint and button problem, but i completely forgot....It came out REALLY well i must say. I like the overall shape and design of the bezel.

REALLY NICE

You may be able jut to touch up the scratch
Spray a load of spray paint on a piece of cardboard and then use a paint brush to apply it to the screen. Its small enough and in the corner it should do the trick. If it were bigger or in the smack middle it may not look so good....