So after wanting one for some time I finally undertook the REC to REN/RER conversion. Those that have done it know you'll need a handful of different things to complete the conversion, including some type of bezel, because the dimensions of the REC are different than the REN/RER.
There are a few different ways to do it, but I decided to pick up a third party bezel I found for sale on eBay. However, before I even bought it I knew I didn't like it and that I'd probably want to modify it, since there aren't a ton of other options.
Now a well designed bezel should blend in with either whatever is inside, or outside of it (if the two are different). If you're adding a REN/RER radio it's most likely you want to have something that integrates well with the vehicle, not only electronically, but also physically, and visually.
The eBay bezel does almost the exact opposite for two reasons: One because it has a high gloss finish, while none of the rest of the Commander interior does. Two because it has a textured finish that doesn't typically match what's inside or outside of the bezel.
So I decided to fix both of those things by sanding the bezel smooth, and then painting it with a flat black paint. I wouldn't necessarily recommend this modification unless you know beforehand that it's very possible you'll damage the bezel. I actually got a slight crack in mine but I filled it from the back with some super glue and it still functions normally. The problem is that the sides are very thin, which is just out of necessity, but it makes sanding the bezel tricky to do without damaging it.
I'm actually hoping the guy that sells these on eBay will consider modifying his production to make them look like mine does.
So here is how the original bezel looks:
You'll see the two issues I mentioned, the high gloss finish is one. The second is that although some vehicles do have a dash with a texture to it, the texture on the bezel is totally different but more importantly doesn't match either the finish inside or outside the bezel. It would be too much work to match the outside, which in this case is either silver, wood grain, or smooth grey, so the obvious solution is to match the one consistent thing in all three images, the REN/RER MyGig unit, which is smooth and flat black.
Here's how mine looks:
(BTW I think it looks better in person)
For anybody that might want to undertake it, carefully sand the bezel and finish with Krylon Camouflage Paint in Ultra Flat Black, which O'Reilly Auto Parts should have for about seven bucks.
There are a few different ways to do it, but I decided to pick up a third party bezel I found for sale on eBay. However, before I even bought it I knew I didn't like it and that I'd probably want to modify it, since there aren't a ton of other options.
Now a well designed bezel should blend in with either whatever is inside, or outside of it (if the two are different). If you're adding a REN/RER radio it's most likely you want to have something that integrates well with the vehicle, not only electronically, but also physically, and visually.
The eBay bezel does almost the exact opposite for two reasons: One because it has a high gloss finish, while none of the rest of the Commander interior does. Two because it has a textured finish that doesn't typically match what's inside or outside of the bezel.
So I decided to fix both of those things by sanding the bezel smooth, and then painting it with a flat black paint. I wouldn't necessarily recommend this modification unless you know beforehand that it's very possible you'll damage the bezel. I actually got a slight crack in mine but I filled it from the back with some super glue and it still functions normally. The problem is that the sides are very thin, which is just out of necessity, but it makes sanding the bezel tricky to do without damaging it.
I'm actually hoping the guy that sells these on eBay will consider modifying his production to make them look like mine does.
So here is how the original bezel looks:
You'll see the two issues I mentioned, the high gloss finish is one. The second is that although some vehicles do have a dash with a texture to it, the texture on the bezel is totally different but more importantly doesn't match either the finish inside or outside the bezel. It would be too much work to match the outside, which in this case is either silver, wood grain, or smooth grey, so the obvious solution is to match the one consistent thing in all three images, the REN/RER MyGig unit, which is smooth and flat black.
Here's how mine looks:
(BTW I think it looks better in person)
For anybody that might want to undertake it, carefully sand the bezel and finish with Krylon Camouflage Paint in Ultra Flat Black, which O'Reilly Auto Parts should have for about seven bucks.