After several weeks of fretting the finish on the dash is, well, good enough.
There were three coats of Pelucid folowed by two coats of Minwax Helmsman Spar Urethane brushed, which went on too thick. I block sanded them with 220 and re-applied a 20 percent thinned coating with a fresh brush, which worked better. Waited four days and blocked that with 400 grit and then I put many coats on with a folded cloth, like this guy recommends. Thinned it 50 percent with denatured-alcohol-based thinner and put it on as smooth as I could.
Dust settled in it but, after letting it dry 5 or 6 days I sanded with 800 grit, then 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500 and 3000 grit, which took the gloss off about 20 percent.
Polishing with a Turtlewax polishing compound brought most of the shine back after about five or six rounds, but it still didn’t reflect the overhead lights like a mirror, so I went ahead and coated it one more time with the Minwax.
There are still flaws in the finish–a bubble here, a dust speck there. But I’m tired of reworking it and have other chores. So this is gonna be it.
A few more days on the drying rack and I’ll reinstall the hardware and test fit it one more time to make sure the door still closes.
Bet I’ll have to take it apart again and sand off some of the Pelucid along those inside edges….