Allure experiment

[pxhil]

After following the carpet to Allure thread I thought I would try a slightly different application and try it on my dash. My boat is afflicted with the late 80’s Sea Ray burgundy/mauve color scheme and I am attempting to eradicate it whenever possible. I know there are a lot of issues with potential sun and water damage, but after long conversations with Home Depot staff and some trades people the general opinion was that it will be ok. No warranty but as one installer pointed out it is no different than installing in a sun room—at least as far as sun damage. Small amounts of water are no problem as it’s basically plastic. Granted we have a limited season and less exposure than others but the bottom line was a box of material for about $45 and a few hours labor.
If it does not work I can pull it out and have a very accurate template for something else. I will let you know how it goes over the summer. Still some final trimming but the photos will give you an idea of how it looks .

 

[kdumph]

Looks great, I suffer from the same era. I have an 87 and its a year older then me! I'm planning on replacing my carpet with this at the moment. Now I'm thinking of even more ideas.

 

[speakrdude]

Mine has the nice light Green. What were they thinking?

 

[SCORPIO]

Mine is dark blue. I cleaned it up with soap and water and put an acrylic coating on, shines nicely. Still holding up well and the arcylic was put on in 2008. I like the wood look, let us know how it holds up.
BTW did you have any problems getting it to bend to the dash contours?

 

[88dancer300]

My burgundy dash is actually not in bad shape, a little 303 and it looks good. I'd like to pull the windshield and refinish it to the color of the boat however. The allue looks cool on the dash, but I think I would be concerned about the effects of direct sun loosing the glue strips, mabey keep it covered at the slip. Innovative use of the product though

 

[Getaway]

Scorpio, Did you just use acrylic clear in a can? Great idea!

 

[pxhil]

Scorpio,
Bending the Allure is a pretty simple process. I have a heat gun for removing paint that I used to heat it and then set in place. Holding it for a minute or so lets it cool unough to hold the shape. If you ever try that make sure you wear gloves! I also suspect that the heat from the sun through the windshield will mold it to the deck---and may croak the glue strips. I'll know after a few hot days. This is pretty strong stuff. I had the heat gun on high and very close to the surface with no noticable color distortion or scorching of the surface. I think for most floors a hair dryer would be just as effective.
Credit 88dancer300 as it was your posting about the Allure that lead me to try it. I'll post durability results aver the summer.

 

[dpmulvey]

Very nice. Plus, if burgandy / mauve ever makes a comeback you're in!

 

[SCORPIO]

Getaway, yes clear acrylic. Clear poly would probablly work too.

 

[Getaway]

Thanks Scorpio. I call it a "brandywine" colored dash....LOL! The 80's will be back, I'm holding out!

 

[SCORPIO]

To get an idea what it will look like clearcoated, wipe a section with water and look at it wet, it will darken the color a bit and restore shine. You can use a satin finish if you don't want shine and possibly glare. I opted for shine and I like it. The texture of the dash kills the glare a bit anyway.

 

[88dancer300]

I have a friend with an 80s era Searay, he is a body man, and sprayed his dash with a product called SEM. The color is perfect, and has been down for 3 years. He did not remove the windshield, he masked it up. Boy and I'll tell you, you would never know. The only thing that concernes me is making sure there is no trace of all the crap we have put on it over the years to make it shine.