Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Morgan Aero 8, 2012< Plus 8, SuperSports, Coupe & Aeromax S1 Engine turned trim damaged

Hi All

The engine turned curved metal trim piece by the centre armrest which houses the electric window switches on my S1 was looking a little grubby so I thought I'd clean it with some polish & to my horror I managed to polish out the engine turned finish..

Does anyone know if this engine turned finish can be applied to a curved surface & who maybe recommend someone who can do it, or will I need to find someone to remake it from an engine turned flat piece - again, any suggestions as to whom? Or as an incredibly long shot , would I be able to find a spare part anywhere?

Suggestions most welcome please

I would be looking to some of the car wrapping companies to see if you can get a transfer that can be used perhaps? Some of the quality stuff I have seen from that world recently has been very impressive. It will be a lot easier to apply on that shape and is quite robust if you get the right grade? Get a few made up?

IIRC someone else posted a query with the same issue a couple of years ago without much luck

Simon of SiFab offered to make something but unfortunately he's evaporated off the planet with no trace of setting up again

As with anything it is possible, an engineering firm with turning capabilities could make this - but it won't be cheap.

The originals were made by the same company who made the dashboards for the Bugatti Veyron, to give you an idea!

A wrap of the same effect will be the only way to do it cost effectively, but you will lose the metal feel - my only other recommendation is exploring hydro-dipping - that may give you a finish over the metal but not sure if it will match as you have polished it.

Or try a bit of DiY ?

Volvos60s60
I faced a similar problem with the renovation of my Auburn Boat Tail dashboard.
In the end, I decided to make my own from laser cut 1mil stainless.
I made up a jig to do the engine turning on my home drill press.
The trick is to make the required size "turn" and get the "cut" straight and even as you can see in the photo.
At one stage I did contemplate using a vinyl sticky sheet with an "engine-turned" pattern.
These are easily found on the net in different sizes (as per the photo). I can send you purchase details if required.
(you maybe able to sales details in the photo)
Just the job for a quick fix.....

Nice bit of engine turning, I always found that very enjoyable, as a lad in metalwork class. Amazing what a simple wooden dowel with a bit of sandpaper on the end of , what intricate patterns can be produced with a little patience and care, I note you had marked out each section, we always went free hand, which gave a slight irregularity and individuality to the piece.

It was indeed an enjoyable project.
I used a kitchen door knob that matched the required size and glued a circular piece of cork floor tile to the face.
The cork provided a nice spongy surface that held the selected valve-grinding paste I used as the abrasive.
The art and the enjoyment was to maintain consistent technique and pressure with the drill press as well as alignment.
The Boaty Dash was my first attempt and could have been better.
It takes a bit of practice to get a good result but works well with stainless or aluminium plate.

Hi All

Thanks for all of your replies & suggestions.

I had already tried the engine turned wrap method but with the curves it is clearly very hard to get a neat finish without multiple intersecting cut lines. The wrap from an appearance perspective is ok & might be fine for a flat piece.

Regarding using a cork disk on a dowel & abrasive paste this probably would work but I can't see how it can be applied to a convex curve..

Maybe I need to focus on how to best wrap a convex piece, maybe it'll improve with practice. I suppose that at least you can have multiples attempts with a wrap. Otherwise I may need to get the part remade

If you use a wrap, you need to use a hair dryer to warm it and it will then stretch quite well. It is possible to wrap surfaces that are curved with a single piece. You also get several goes as when you re-heat it, it will shrink back. Look on YouTube and you will find several "how to" videos.

I successfully wrapped the steering column cowl on my 4/4 - although it was a plain vinyl.