Dash Metal where the Radio Goes

[Chief Brody]

This is probably a stupidly simple question, but somewhere along the way my Blazer's dash was cut to accommodate a new style radio....
I want to put that metal back...if I went to a parts yard, how the heck would I cut that piece out with no electricity available? Any such thing as a battery powered cutting tool?

 

[sweetk30]

sawzall = cut real wide as you will be thankfull in the end as it will warp a little near the cut.

but post a wanted ad here as lots of guys have diy4x dashes and might have not tossed there old panel yet and might cut it out for you.

 

[Chief Brody]

sawzall = cut real wide as you will be thankfull in the end as it will warp a little near the cut.

but post a wanted ad here as lots of guys have diy4x dashes and might have not tossed there old panel yet and might cut it out for you.

Thanks...headed there now.

 

[owenst7]

Make me a pattern of what you want and I'll send you mine for the shipping charges. I have no need for it in my trail rig. I'll cut it with a grinder so it doesn't get all cobbled up.

Probably just gonna tack in a panel there for switches or something anyway when I get around to it.

 

[Chief Brody]

I need to remove the bezel and take a pick and see what it looks like

 

[Blue85]

Assuming you will use a good plastic dash to cover this - you could start with sheet metal from almost any old car. Or just any piece of sheet metal. It just has to hold the shafts in place. Cut any kind of rough rectangle hole for the radio face and drill two holes for the shafts. Whatever method you use will just weld or rivet to the existing sheet metal. You could possibly even just weld two washers on for the shafts to pass through. Then the plastic covers all the ugly.

I would also be surprised if nobody sells a DIN-to-shaft mounting kit.