Custom enclosure graphics

[SpaceCowboy]

Hmm so I've been looking around in the pics subforum and I've got some cool ideas for custom enclosure graphics. Is there a website or location,in Canada or abroad that does quality powder coat or custom graphics for guitar pedal enclosures? I'm thinking of a matte powder coat with custom graphics/logos and ponies overlaid on top.

All the chicks will be like that guys custom guitar pedals are so cool. :DD

[Eric.nail]

Set up some screen printing...It's expensive...but if you do a few it pays for itself.

[SpaceCowboy]

Hmm how do the pros paint their pedal enclosures? If I have access to my school's machine shop I can powder coat the exterior of the case, and then... perhaps heat transfer decal? I want to digitally print my designs and put them on the box!

Edit: gotta git me summa those waterslide decals!

[Canucker]

Hmm so I've been looking around in the pics subforum and I've got some cool ideas for custom enclosure graphics. Is there a website or location,in Canada or abroad that does quality powder coat or custom graphics for guitar pedal enclosures? I'm thinking of a matte powder coat with custom graphics/logos and ponies overlaid on top.

All the chicks will be like that guys custom guitar pedals are so cool. :DD

Girls won't think that! Sadly they will just think "wow he learned how to make guitar nerdy!". I don't say it cus I'm a jerk I say it cus I proved it. 

[darron]

i've never used them... but... these guys will drill, powder coat, and screen print your enclosures relatively cheap. i say relatively, because it's a lot of work to setup screen printing. it's not really worth it to do ONE.


http://pedalpartsplus.com

their quality that i have bought hasn't been the best at all though in terms of enclosures and drill patterns. sorry if you're a fan of them or affiliate

sounds like they make it really easy and cheap though compared to organising it all yourself.

yes, there are machines that can print directly on the box. they cost thousands of dollars.


if you can powder them yourself then that's great. if not, take them to a local powder coating place and ask them to pop them in the next time some guy drops off a batch of gates or bike parts to get done in white/whatever. hopefully they will just charge you a few bucks. beware though, if you use print decals and stuff it up then you'll have to remove it and it's not like spray paint where you can just sand it back and try again.



have fun and keep us posted

[SpaceCowboy]

Hmm so I've been looking around in the pics subforum and I've got some cool ideas for custom enclosure graphics. Is there a website or location,in Canada or abroad that does quality powder coat or custom graphics for guitar pedal enclosures? I'm thinking of a matte powder coat with custom graphics/logos and ponies overlaid on top.

All the chicks will be like that guys custom guitar pedals are so cool. :DD

Girls won't think that! Sadly they will just think "wow he learned how to make guitar nerdy!". I don't say it cus I'm a jerk I say it cus I proved it. 

Curses. My hopes are dashed yet again. Lol.

i've never used them... but... these guys will drill, powder coat, and screen print your enclosures relatively cheap. i say relatively, because it's a lot of work to setup screen printing. it's not really worth it to do ONE.


http://pedalpartsplus.com

their quality that i have bought hasn't been the best at all though in terms of enclosures and drill patterns. sorry if you're a fan of them or affiliate

sounds like they make it really easy and cheap though compared to organising it all yourself.

yes, there are machines that can print directly on the box. they cost thousands of dollars.


if you can powder them yourself then that's great. if not, take them to a local powder coating place and ask them to pop them in the next time some guy drops off a batch of gates or bike parts to get done in white/whatever. hopefully they will just charge you a few bucks. beware though, if you use print decals and stuff it up then you'll have to remove it and it's not like spray paint where you can just sand it back and try again.



have fun and keep us posted

Anyway, I've decided to do a polish, waterslide decals and acrylic coating.
I've got my designs for the decals already... think Imma go with a 1590p box.
It's gonna have a microcontroller and a color changing LED. Shh... It's gonna be sick.

[armdnrdy]

Okay...I see that you registered on April Fool's Day, your avatar looks like a refugee from a 5 year old girls toy box, and you are talking about putting pictures of ponies on your stompbox.

The gig is up......who is this??
Which member has pulled the wool over the eyes of this whole online community?

[SpaceCowboy]

Okay...I see that you registered on April Fool's Day, your avatar looks like a refugee from a 5 year old girls toy box, and you are talking about putting pictures of ponies on your stompbox.

The gig is up......who is this??
Which member has pulled the wool over the eyes of this whole online community?

Did I register on the first of April? Coincidence no doubt.
I think perhaps you should reserve judgement on my artistic expression before one has had a chance to see the finished result.

[PDGoss]

If I'm not mistaken if you go the Acrylic Enamel route you will need to bake it to ensure high durability; I would need to confirm the finite details, but I've done some pretty funky finishes like the one below:



EDIT: By the way, Kinko's can print water slides for you and it's fairly inexpensive.

I also found one guide on baking enamel paint:

Instructions

       1. Thoroughly wash and dry the surface to be painted. Rub alcohol over the surface to remove any grease or residue.

       2. Stir or shake the paint before applying. Spray or apply a very thin layer of paint over the surface. Do not use spray enamel in temperatures lower than 50 degrees. Do not use enamel paint on eating utensils.

       3. Bake medium to large objects in the oven for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F. Bake small projects at 325 degrees F for at least 10 minutes or at 300 degrees F for at least 20 minutes. Check the time on the paint instructions as some brands differ in their baking time.
       4. Allow the baked enamel to cool and apply a second coating of enamel paint, if desired, repeating the baking directions in Step 3.

Source: http://www.ehow.com/how_5534056_bake-enamel-paint.html

[SpaceCowboy]

Wow sure seems complicated...
I looked on youtube and there are some vids of enclosure graphics application using waterslide decals and they involve nothing more than a clean surface, some warm water and Krylon clear arylic enamel to coat the decal and finish the decal surface once it's on the enclosure.

[PDGoss]

Acrylic Enamel is tough but it will chip/scratch easily in lieu of baking; if that isn't an issue for you, then you could forgo the baking process.

I've tested it and there is a definite difference in hardness and durability; and it really blows to invest the time in making something pretty, unique and then see it get messed up from something as simple as dropping it and...

The stuff I use for me, shoot, I don't go through all that; heck, I don't even use enclosures I stuff em in whatever they'll fit in that is different and roll with it. Eclectic I suppose, lol. Cigarette boxes, carved wood, stuff that doesn't look like a pedal enclosure; just more fun and creates conversation and a touch of mystery.

[SpaceCowboy]

Acrylic Enamel is tough but it will chip/scratch easily in lieu of baking; if that isn't an issue for you, then you could forgo the baking process.

I've tested it and there is a definite difference in hardness and durability; and it really blows to invest the time in making something pretty, unique and then see it get messed up from something as simple as dropping it and...

The stuff I use for me, shoot, I don't go through all that; heck, I don't even use enclosures I stuff em in whatever they'll fit in that is different and roll with it. Eclectic I suppose, lol. Cigarette boxes, carved wood, stuff that doesn't look like a pedal enclosure; just more fun and creates conversation and a touch of mystery.

Haha... you should see my last pedal project it was all breadboard and loose wires, sufficed to say, it didn't impress the crowed as much as it was working. To put it aptly it was "mickey mouse"... anyway will baking it still work for decals? Im worried that the inkjet paint might get burnt or something...

[darron]

Baking clears can discolor them too since you are concerned about the ink. I used to have to keep it below about 70deg C from memory. Higher than that and clears tinged yellow.

I've been wondering about mixing powders with decals but they bake at 200.

[PDGoss]

My favorite was a JFET Vulcan I modified and stuffed in a cigarette box; it gathered a rather large crowd at Guitar Center when I let the guys try it out, lol.

You are correct on some clear coats yellowing at higher temps. Typically, the modus operandi that;s worked for me has been 3 coats of primer (let dry), paint of choice - typically 3 coat it (let dry), then 2 coats of clear(let dry), apply the slide decal, then (going to sound over the top) but 10 or more coats of clear, letting each coat dry, then baking at lower temps as darron pointed out.

It's been a while since I did any baking that I had forgotten that I did have to drop my temps to prevent yellowing; but since I used actual slide decals printed for me as opposed to a inkjet transfers, I am not sure what the results would be. I imagine you could easily obtain the MSDS for your inkjet cartridges and see what it's boiling point is. Being sandwiched between all those coats "in theory" should prevent runs, but if it boiled it would no doubt blister.

All that being said and the multiplicity of variables that exist that can result in diverse results is to grab an enclosure and perform some tests to find what works and what doesn't. You could try different methods on several sides and start at lower temps and longer bake times and fine tune. I know it seems like a hassle, but if you want a quality looking piece that can stand up the test of time, it's worth it.

I will contact my friend that I taught to make pedals; he's made it a full time job and was able to invest more time than I had at my disposal in perfecting the enclosure finishing process (I had a full time job and for me it was a hobby) and will relay his method. I have a sense of pride that I was able to impart my little bit of electronics knowledge to him and see him able to grow in knowledge, expand and support his family; he's a disabled veteran and it felt good to see the lights come on and him be successful at it. I'm still the master of circuits and components, but he blows me away now on board etching (I just don't have the time and rush things; started doing more point to point stuff anyhow).

People seem to appreciate point to point more than a perfectly etched board and I personally think a perfectly etched board and pristine component layout is a sign of skill, but in the boutique world, when people see the hand wired point to point work, the marketing mind kicks in and they somehow get the notion that it's better; much the way that when I worked at Radio Shack way back in the early 90's, the phones had lead weights added to them  because the buyers mentality is, heavy = quality. What a croc.

I'll post the details once I get them; but keep in mind, he too uses the slide decals from Kinko's. If you by chance use a color laser printer to create water slide decals (Hobby Lobby has the paper), keep in mind that laser printer toner is nothing more than powdered plastic. Before press n peel blue, I used glossy magazine paper and my black laser printer to do my PCB transfers; I remember my first board. Being a typical male, I didn't read the instructions and it took dang near three hours to do a tiny board... it was 45 degrees  :icon_rolleyes:outside where I was doing it LOL. Oh, you gotta keep the Ferric Chloride warm?

That was one of those DOH!!!! and multiple explicative spewing moments.