The Vynide covering was torn and the original foam had disintegrated to powder. However, the ply arc and the hardwood ends were intact, although with some cracks and denaturing of the wood around the steel screws that attach the hardwood ends to the ply. I filled the cracks and blemishes with PVA glue and cleaned up the T headed studs which connect it to the dash. Even so, the timber components are fragile things so I drilled holes in a piece of angle to take the T studs and provide support during restoration.

To replace the foam I used foam pipe insulation available in UK to suit 15mm OD copper pipe. This has an OD of 42mm and is split on one side to slip over the pipe. I continued the split across the diameter of the insulation to make two half sections. I glued one piece of the foam centrally onto the plywood arc, sticking one side and then the other, making sure the foam was hard against the hardwood ends.

Then I sliced off the overhanging foam perpendicularly to the ply and sliced the top of the foam to replicate the hardwood ends. To ease the transition between foam and hardwood I used some cotton wadding. If I were doing it again I would use some thin foam. The Vynide was laid on the foam without adhesive, pulled tight and held in place with binder clips.

Then the assembly was inverted, the edges trimmed and glued to the ply and hardwood ends. Later on I stapled the edges to the wood and glued and stapled the piping to the top edge.