Switch Panel Material Options
All our material is rugged, UV resistant… made for the extreme marine environment. No metal to rust, no paint to chip, no powdercoating to flake.
Talk to one on of our panel estimators today to discuss your options. See details and pictures of most of our material styles below.
2. Gloss Acrylic “Blackout Dash”
2019 started a new trend in boat helms: The “Blackout Dash“. As the industry leader in this style we use genuine opaque, marine and UV grade acrylics – never the cheap & thin spray painted veneer you get from most copycats.
With a true UV grade 1/2″ – quality feel… , as well as provide an incredible looking zero-fastener appearance available with stud mounts. Laser etched backlit and non-backlit logos available in this awesome style too.
This material will give your old boat a brand new ‘glass bridge’ look on your helm, matching well with some of today’s large MFD screens with our premium “Reverse Flush” engineered electronics mounting options.
You don’t have to do an entire dash to take advantage of this style. We’ve done panels as small as 2″ high in this high quality feel.
3. Matte Black
Matte Black is the most popular material for our marine switch panels. Mostly because it matches everything and is a nice contrast against the normal white fiberglass.
Matte Black also looks good nearby instruments which often have a black bezel. It obviously contrasts well with white, so looks great with either backlit or non-backlit panel engravings.
Black could arguably be seen as a bit common or boring… so if you’re really looking for something unique consider some of our other options too!
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4. Black Carbon Fiber
Probably our second most popular material, our Black Carbon Fiber print laminate is super common on boats. The weave pattern also hides watermarks and smudges better than a flat color material like black.
Black Carbon Fiber has a nice gloss to it, but it’s not so glossy that it would reflect sunlight into your eyes.
This material looks nice with non-backlit and backlit logo etchings, but we DO NOT recommend it for small backlit text engravings. The grey in the material is just too close to the same color of Natural core material, and small text tends to be difficult to read at some angles.
5. Brushed Ebony
Brushed Ebony is great to add a little textured look, but maintain all the advantages of a black panel. We really like this material.
Like black, it matches pretty much any dash. Being very dark, it also looks spectacular with a graphic or text engravings.
Brushed Ebony has a really high end and classy look to it, and we recommend it as an alternative to our popular Black Carbon Fiber material if you have backlit text engraving on your panel.
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6. Brushed Silver
Brushed Silver is one of our favorite switch panel materials. It looks great on white fiberglass, and looks SPECTACULAR with a contrasting black logo engraving.
It matches most helms and like Brushed Ebony has a high-end and custom feel. It also looks a bit like aluminum, so has a sort of rugged quality to it without the corrosion issues of metal.
It does NOT however have enough contrast with a Natural core material, so backlit graphics are not possible with Brushed Silver.
7. Cobalt Carbon
Cobalt Carbon is an excellent substitute for the classic Black Carbon Fiber weave, but has greatly improved appearance of small text etchings.
This material has an appearance of ‘depth’ and It looks very nice with backlit logos and text. It’s quickly becoming our most popular on bocatech switch panels.
We carry this material on a natural core only.
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8. White Carbon Fiber
Consider this instead of flat white material if you’re looking for a lighter panel. The texture really breaks up the surface and looks really great.
It is a gloss material, but the pattern resist smudges that can be problematic on gloss black.
This material actually does contrast well with a Natural core – which is actually darker than the surface material – so it looks nice with backlit graphics.
9. White
Our white material is Matte with no gloss. It contrasts well with black switches, and can look good on white fiberglass.
It looks great on a black core with a non-backlit black engraving, and also with a black pinstripe… kind of the opposite of the classic “black with white pinstripe” that pretty much every boat built before 2000 sported.
It does not contrast well with a Natural core, so backlit graphics are not an option with White laminate material.
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10. Regal Burl
Woodgrains look nice on cruisers and interior panels. Not many center consoles go with Regal Burl, but is actually a really nice looking print.
Regal Burl is our go to with etchings (either backlit or not) as it comes on a natural core. Backlighting kind of defeats the purpose of looking like real wood, but hey… whatever floats your boat.
11. Dark Sheffield
Similar to Brushed Silver in texture, our Dark Sheffield is more of a gunmetal grey tone. It actually looks really good with a subtle black logo.
It has a high end look, and goes equally well on black or white gelcoat.
It does NOT however have enough contrast with a Natural core material, so backlit graphics are not possible with Dark Sheffield.
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12. Teak
We weren’t fully committed to Teak until we saw a few completed panels on our sample sheet. This light teak woodgrain on black really looks cool!
A black graphic, text, and especially with a laser-etched pinstripe around a panel looks great with this material.
Works on a flybridge of a cruising yacht – and believe it or not, actually can really pop in a center console type situation… fully UV resistant so, go for it!
13. Graphite Fiber
This gorgeous material is a second generation of our carbon fiber materials.
Unlike our Cobalt and Black Carbon Fiber materials, the weaves of the Graphite Fiber are a bit longer, reflecting the beauty of the intertwined gray and black detail. Graphite Fiber is the perfect combination of bold and sleek, giving your boat timeless detail for years to come.
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14. Graywood
Graywood is a glossy, modern take on a marine classic.
The shades of gray combine with a very slight brown hue to create a sleek, elegant wood grain appearance that’s ready to bring class to your craft. Our Graywood material allows for a timeless look without losing the modern style of the black-out style that’s so popular today.
15. Gloss Cherry
This rich, lustrous material is a wonderful addition to our wood grain family.
The warm, reddish tones bring you that full-bodied feeling that’s typically reserved for red wine (and women).
The graining pattern flows beautifully across the patinated wood appearance, creating a look that furniture aficionados could only dream of finding. The glossy finish ties this material together; giving the look of vintage wood a modern refresh your boat is ready to show off.
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16. Grained Baywood
Texture is the key when it comes to the uniqueness of this material.
From a distance, the warm, cinnamon-shaded wood catches your eye all on its own; but up close, the grooves and graining bring forth a subtle third dimension you can’t find anywhere else except on real hardwoods.
This material’s true beauty is captured best in the sunlight, making your boat the perfect home for our Grained Baywood.
17. Clear
Very common for livewell lids – we can use crystal clear acrylic, and etch incredible looking graphics into it.
Flat pricing on livewell lids shown below (hardware not included):
$275 3/8″ up to 36″ w/ logo
$300 1/2″ up to 36″ w/ logo
$325 3/4″ up to 36″ w/ logo
Must mail the old lid to us (or make a very accurate template).
