center console trim / bezels

[RobbartK]

Lotus family, I have had a new dash made for my car. A very pleasant Amish cabinet maker stepped outside his comfort zone and helped me. Attached is a photo of the dash, while on the workbench. Sorry purists, I have taken creative license with colors and blanking of the glove box. I am delighted. However, I am finding that the openings he cut in the wood do not fit the switches as nicely / cleanly as I would like. I am trying to find a product to trim out the switches. The silver bezels (?) on the center console will work the trick. I do not know where to source them. I am sure there are other solutions. I would take your ideas and suggestions. Thanks for chiming in. Woodstock and Robbart

[BDA]

Your Amish cabinet maker did a great job! 

[dakazman]

 Absolutely beautiful! Love the gold bezel behind tach and speedo.
Dakazman

[Gary t]

Very nice. I used many coats of a nice brownish paint to seal the plywood edges.  Choose a colour you like and be patient.  The edges need to be sealed anyway.  If the panel seems too thick for a switch the back can be routed but raw wood needs sealing. 

[EuropaTC]

After sealing the wood with either paint or varnish, is there enough room to for a 3D printed bezel ? Something printed in black PETG or similar should work quite well and not look out of place against the recessed switch. It depends how much room there is between the actual switch and woodwork, but even if they are a tight fit you could get something printed to lie on the surface and surround the switch.

Brian

[GavinT]

Googled "rocker switch bezel" and came up with these. There's many others.
Probably need to take note of the dimensions involved.

https://www.autoloc.com/catalog/Switches-and-Buttons/Power-Window-Cases/AUTCASES/Black-Flush-Mount-Single-12V-Switch-Bezel-Frame-Trim-Car-Power-Windows-Door-Lock

https://www.moss-europe.co.uk/bezel-headlamp-heater-switch-chromed-37h4495.html

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/122091539057

[RobbartK]

Fellow Lotus Fans, Thanks to Gavin T for the links that started me on a rabbit hole of an internet search. One thing turned to another, and I had a brainstorm. I had an MGB and remember that the B had light, hazard and fan switches with silver bezels. The hazard and light switches even had lights that would alight when engaged. I bought them on eBay and installed them on my dash. I have attached a photo of the result. The switches are new but not yet connected. They look period correct, and the bezels match the silver bezels in the center console. Top result. I will update this thread with a photo of the final result. Thanks to all that chimed into the conversation. Y'all are the best. Woodstock and Robbart

[BDA]

That looks very neat and the grain of your dash is really nice! I'm looking forward to a picture of it when it's all put together!

[GavinT]

Pretty neat, RobbartK.

Is the chrome bezel a separate part from the switch as per the pic below?

There seems to be a few variations on this chrome bezel theme attributed to MGB's.
The 'Moss' one seems to be a full depth enclosure for the switch proper whereas others seem to be more of a separate upper embellishment.

I'm just curious to understand if it might be adaptable to the Lots switches.
As far as I know, the OEM Europa S2 chrome bezels are unavailable (unless someone chimes in) and this might be a decent solution for those folk.


https://mossmotors.com/141-265-bezel-headlight-heater-switch-chromed

[RobbartK]

Gavin T, The switches I purchased have the chrome bezel that you shared an image of. These are "full depth" of the switch. They are intended to be inserted into the dash from the front side. The interior length x width x depth dimensions are larger than the Lotus switch dimensions. So much so that I do not see that they would work as a bezel for the original switches. Surgically altering the bezels would ruin the aesthetic effect. When I landed on the B switch idea I stopped searching for other options (there are a lot of them). There may be a workable option out there. There are several bezels online to look at and choose from. I wish dimension info was more readily listed in the descriptions. I hope this helps. R=Woodstock and Robbart