Making your own dashmat

If anyone is unduly concerned with what may happen to one's dashboard mounting a dash mat with Velcro or VHB tape upon removal, Blu-tack will secure it in place just fine and be easy to remove with no damage.
 
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Dashmellow said:
I've mentioned Acktar before. It's a company that exclusively produces super black coatings many of which come fairly close to Vantablack's abilities such as MAXiBLACK. They even have an online store.
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WOW, did you check out the prices at the "Store", no way would I pay that kind of money for a few centimeters! Besides, I have it on good authority that Camouflage Rust-oleum Black is great :):D.
 
Lola said:
WOW, did you check out the prices at the "Store", no way would I pay that kind of money for a few centimeters! Besides, I have it on good authority that Camouflage Rust-oleum Black is great :):D.
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Yeah, it ain't cheap. Then again, anyone expecting Vantablack to be any cheaper is likely in for quite a surprise as I understand it's pretty dear.

But you can buy a nice 12cm x 30cm sheet of MAXIBLACK for only 95 bucks! :D

Anyway, these high end super black light absorbing materials are really intended for scientific instrumentation and optical use in such things as astronomy (fancy telescopes). This stuff is really overkill for car dashboards. Rust-oleum Camouflage paint and a good quality dash mat of the right fabric seems like the way to go. :)
 
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If you want affordable flocking material, check out Protostar flocking. I use it for my telescopes, very affordable and doesnt shed fibres. 60 cents per inch of a 24" roll.

http://www.fpi-protostar.com/flock.htm
 
Dashmellow said:
If anyone is unduly concerned with what may happen to one's dashboard mounting a dash mat with Velcro or VHB tape upon removal, Blu-tack will secure it in place just fine and be easy to remove with no damage.
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Blu-tack seems to be the way to go in placing down a dash matt, it also has lots of other uses such as posters in children's room without pulling the darn paint off the wall, for people who have been using masking tape:rolleyes: https://www.amazon.com/gp/B001FGLX72
 
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Lola said:
Blu-tack seems to be the way to go in placing down a dash matt, it also has lots of other uses such as posters in children's room without pulling the darn paint off the wall for people who have been using masking tape:rolleyes: https://www.amazon.com/gp/B001FGLX72
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Yeah, I love the stuff and always keep some around. Dollar Tree stores carry it if anyone in the US is looking for a cheap source for the stuff. They call it Jot Poster Tack but it's the same product as Blu-Tack.
I've found all kinds of dash cam related uses for it. It's especially useful if you need to eliminate any sort of vibration related noises or movement on or near a dash camera or cable. For example, my older SG9665GC cameras has a loose lens adjustment spring that allows the lens module to wobble up and down slightly and a tiny wad of Blu-tack secures the lens aim in place and prevents any vibration.
 
Dashmellow said:
Yeah, I love the stuff and always keep some around. Dollar Tree stores carry it if anyone in the US is looking for a cheap source for the stuff. They call it Jot Poster Tack but it's the same product as Blu-Tack.
I've found all kinds of dash cam related uses for it. It's especially useful if you need to eliminate any sort of vibration related noises or movement on or near a dash camera or cable. For example, my older SG9665GC cameras has a loose lens adjustment spring that allows the lens module to wobble up and down slightly and a tiny wad of Blu-tack secures the lens aim in place and prevents any vibration.
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I forgot to ask this, and couldn't find information. Will freezing weather/outdoors bother it?

I was reading the container of Lok Tite who makes a product like it (supposedly) called * Fun, and it said not for outdoor use. Now this has nothing to do with Blu Tack but made me wonder, do you happen to know?
 
Lola said:
I forgot to ask this, and couldn't find information. Will freezing weather/outdoors bother it?

I was reading the container of Lok Tite who makes a product like it (supposedly) called * Fun, and it said not for outdoor use. Now this has nothing to do with Blu Tack but made me wonder, do you happen to know?
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I've used it outdoors in my truck at all times of year with no issues, even the yellow Fun Tack product (also from the Dollar Store). I've never actually even thought about the cold weather or freezing but I would assume it gets pretty stiff or hard in those conditions. I have the feeling they may be concerned with it holding up posters on a wall in freezing conditions where maybe it looses its tackiness. I guess since it's January you could do some experiments and see what happens.

BTW, one place I use Blu-tack is to cushion and secure the battery or super-capacitor in my Mobius' instead of the supplied foam tape. It works really well and is easier to remove than the tape. Those cameras live in my truck year round.
 
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Dashmellow said:
I've used it outdoors in my truck at all times of years with no issues, even the yellow Fun Tack product (also from the Dollar Store). I've never actually even thought about the cold weather or freezing but I would assume it gets pretty stiff or hard in those conditions. I have the feeling they may be concerned with it holding up posters on a wall in freezing conditions where maybe it looses its tackiness. I guess since it's January you could do some experiments and see what happens.

BTW, one place I use Blu-tack is to cushion and secure the battery or super-capacitor in my Mobius' instead of the supplied foam tape. It works really well and is easier to remove than the tape. Those cameras live in my truck year round.
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Thanks for the reply and ideas also. Now to find me a Dollar store:cool::D.
 
Lola said:
Thanks for the reply and ideas also. Now to find me a Dollar store:cool::D.
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I guess I've been referring to it as the Dollar store which is a kind of generic term for such establishments run by different companies but the actually name of the store is Dollar Tree. They have stores in just about every corner of the USA. HERE is a list of all the locations in Maryland.
 
So yeah the Amazon one I bought and painted, looks terrible now that I've had it in awhile. It's rippled/warped, and it just won't lay flat enough no matter how many pieces of 3M VHB I add. The nap of the carpet is just too tall, and isn't impressive to look at over all while driving.

I think I'm going to try regular brushed suede and lightly paint that one. I want my vehicle to have a good balance of form and function, and right now it's not looking so impressive as is.

I think figured out why the first "suede" dashmat I bought sucked. They sent me Sedona (Pattern) Suede instead of Brushed (no-Pattern) Suede.
LTRxNyh.png


That explains the unexpected pattern full of holes look.

I might try this same company again getting the correct one this time, or another confirmed non-pattered suede elsewhere. Also looking into something called Smooth Poly-Fabric.

Street Guardian USA said:
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@Street Guardian USA, this is the brushed suede one I purchased and after 1 and a half years in service it still looks and works great.

To reiterate, I sprayed it with two heavy coats of Rust-Oleum Black Camo paint which soaked in nicely and left it still looking like an attractive suede surface but with less nap.

http://www.autoanything.com/dash-mats/60A4600A0A0.aspx

https://www.amazon.com/gp/B008FWRV70
This is not the greatest example but the best I can provide at the moment. Nevertheless, you can get a feel for how the mat looks on the dash. The only reflections I ever get are from the defroster vent but this only appears on the hood so is of no consequence. The A pillars reflect too but also are not an issue. Other than that the mat essentially makes a CPL unnecessary.
dashmat.jpg

 
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Here is a good demonstration of how effective a dash mat can be. I left a "pay & display" parking lot ticket on my dash board, on top of the dash mat and this is what you get. There is no CPL in use here.

This is my commercial brushed suede mat that I spray painted with ultra-flat black camo paint.

dashmat.jpg
 
@Dashmellow The angle and length of your truck's bonnet also helps a great deal, reflections from the air conditioning vents stays within the confines of the bonnet. Lucky or good choice!
 
harsh said:
@Dashmellow The angle and length of your truck's bonnet also helps a great deal, reflections from the air conditioning vents stays within the confines of the bonnet. Lucky or good choice!
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Actually, I could probably dig up some older pre-dash mat images to show you from this vehicle that have extremely severe reflections from this and other cameras, so I'm afraid I can't quite agree with your analysis.

The difference with and without the dash mat is quite dramatic.

Edit: You are right about those defroster vents though, but most vehicles should be somewhat similar. The other components of my dash board have been much more problematic and are the things that tend to reflect in the windscreen blocking the view in front of traffic.
 
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