Cafe Racer Help...Tres...anyone...
 

Before I go hacking into this and wrecking it...can anyone tell me how to get these two panels off? And how do I get those buttons off?

If it is like my Bullet....The buttons pop off & there is a screw under
them......The side panel on mine has nuts behind it..You must unscrew the lower cover panel & reach up under to the back of
the big panel......Hope this helps......

birdog, are the buttons actually snaps?

Sean,

They are snaps. On my old Top Gun the panels were relatively easy to remove. They just "popped" in and out. I installed some speakers once. I had to remove the bolster as well to get the panel off.

"The buttons pop off & there is a screw under them"

Thats how my Cafe is.

And the person that redid my Cafe interior said there were no bolts holding the side panels on - they are those slip-lock connectors like they use on auto upholstery. If you have speakers near the bases of your bolsters pull them out and stick your hand behind the panel - that should tell you for sure.

Cool...thanks. My little gauge project is turning into a complete redo of the cockpit...i need to get rid of that black dash...anyone ever try to strip the black paint off down to the gelcoat, or have you guys just painted over it? I'm thinking of using Peel Away and then wet sand/compound/wax the gel...

What black Dash? Unless this is not your boat!

no..not my boat...i just didn't have a good pic of it... :)

Sorry......i was working on the boat !!!!!!!:D

You have to scuff & Paint the black :(

Paint over Black
 

I had my guy paint and clear over the black. Watch for runs under the steering wheel. We took the passenger station out and painted it outside of the boat then reinstalled it. Not too bad when you have a forklift.

For the helm station unscrew the gauge panel and tuck it insde the helm station. Nisonger marine has Cafe dash panels if you want to replace your old one.

I'm pretty sure you need to take the thru bolts that go through the bolsters to take the side panel out. There are thru-bolts that go from the bolster to the panel. Watch not to strip these.

surgin...

it looks like the nav station is held in by about 4-5 bolts on the topside...what else holds it in there?

also, once that is removed, is it then possible to remove the door, or is there anothe wat to get the door out?

The dash panels and gauges are what started this little project...now it's mushroomed...all of the hardware has been removed and is getting powdercoated...new gauges from AutoMeter, panels from Team Marine, bezels and speedo from Livorsi and Momo wheel from Marine Machine...

BTW...nice job on Surgin General!

cafe racer
 

i cant see what panels you are talking about but if they are the side panels, in my 89 cafe they are through bolted. pull out the speakers reach in and take the nuts loose. once you get the bottom panel off there is another cut out to get to the nuts for the upper panel. dont just yank like i did. also when you go to paint the dash make sure before you sand use polycracker to get rid of all wax and oil. take my word for it it had been loaded up over the years due to fading and will cause serious fish eyes. and i mean serious. to get the passenger pod will come off buy taking out phillips screws and cutting through caulk. once out you can take out cabin door. i also had my door tracks powder coated which is working very well. hope this helps.

allan

You guys are good. Craig

We are just tryin to learn from you Craig !:D

allan...thanks...I try to learn by others' mistakes...and hope to help others learn by mine. this is a great place and full of useful information from knowledgeable individuals. thanks to all for their advice!

You have it all handled on your own. You guys could build them....maybe better.....I learn something about these boats everyday. Craig

REf to painting
 

Make sure you sand it down good and use alot of fisheye remover, a lot of these dashes sit in the sun with dash treatments that got soaked up into the paint.