Talk To Me About Enclosure Art

[turdadactyl]

I've looked at many of the methods for finishing enclosures...screenprinting, waterslide decals, handpainting, laser etching.  But as for best practice, are most (or all) of the boutique pedals out there screenprinted?  I'm thinking of JHS, Wampler, Mojohand, EQD, Walrus, etc.

[amz-fx]

Many boutique pedals are actually printed with a Roland flatbed uv printer.  This makes it easy to do complicated designs in full color without having to make multiple screens...  you just print directly on the box!

regards, Jack

[PRR]

> Roland flatbed uv printer

Youch! I'm guessing few pedal-makers actually own one; they must send it out.

[ElectricDruid]

> Roland flatbed uv printer

Youch! I'm guessing few pedal-makers actually own one; they must send it out.

Not half. You'd have to sell a lot of pedals to see a profit back from that, even at boutique prices!

[PRR]

I see that larger models can print mattresses and even guitar cases. And other ones can print building-size banners (but maybe not thick stuff).

I can see that every large city "needs" several of each model (thick, long, etc) for everybody's printing needs. There may be a medium banner printer an hour north of me (the university loves banners, and a few merchants too). I'd probably drive 3 hours before finding a box/case printer.

There's a guy nearby does car window stickers. Even that is beyond my current needs. The Dymo finally died so I'm on a Brother sticker printer.

[amz-fx]

Youch! I'm guessing few pedal-makers actually own one; they must send it out.

Roland has a lease program that makes it affordable for larger pedal makers. Also, several of the pedal parts suppliers have printers and do work at wholesale rates - PPP is one and there are others that are less known in the DIY hobby.

regards, Jack

(skip ahead to 8:20 in this video:)

[Benoi31]

They are two ways to make professionnal grade looking guitar pedals : silkscreening or UV-printing.

Silkscreening looks more professional (in my opinion), however, you cannot print many colors. It works with a mesh that lets the paint pass trough holes like a stencil, but much more precise.
It is also using a special kind of paint that will not tear off even after many gigs.
Strymon pedals, Walrus Audio pedals are examples of silkscreened pedals.
It is quite difficult to do it at home. I would advise to outsource the production of the mesh, as it is quite a complicated process. A mesh can cost you around $30, depending on the size and the precision of it (for effects, 300 is good).
Here is an example of website that makes mesh: http://www.screenprinting.com/cat/screen-printing-mesh (I never used it)
You can also find kits to paint pedals yourself. Silkscreening pedals is a messy process. You will need some space, gloves, apron and other protective gear (I believe the paint is quite toxic). The process is also not easy to master, you will probably need a few try before making a perfectly fine pedal. But once you master it, it is really quick, and you can paint a lot of enclosures really quickly!
Here is a video example:

I have never tried it, because of the lack of space in my flat in Paris ^^

Another solution is UV printing, with the huge machines you can see above. They are indeed very expensive, but you can lease it and outsource it as well. One good thing with UV printing is you can use as many colors as you want. However, I find that it looks a bit less precise than silkscreen. Don't get me wrong, the enclosures look beautiful and 10 times more professional than with decals, however you can "see" that it is printed (the colors are not completely perfectly "flat")
They are several suppliers that can UV print enclosures for you.
Pedal part plus can do it for 5 enclosures (which is low), Mammoth for 10 enclosures.
Here I have written a shortlist of 14 suppliers with pros and cons for each ones, including mammoth and pedalpartsplus:
http://www.coda-effects.com/2016/11/top-electronics-suppliers-for-guitar.html
I have already work with pedalpartsplus and they are great! The team is very helpful and the print quality is top notch!
You can see the pedals I have UV print here:
https://fr.ulule.com/codaeffects/
They can also drill holes, so you receive ready to use enclosures. A nice thing with Mammoth is that they also print on the sides of the pedals.

For small orders and complicated designs, I will strongly advise you to go with UV printing at Pedalpartsplus or Mammoth Electronics.
If you plan on making a lot of pedals, I would advise you to go with silkscreening.

[ElectricDruid]

A really useful and interesting post, Benoit. I had no idea about a lot of this stuff. Thanks very much.

Tom

[Tony Forestiere]

The Dymo finally died...

I feel for your loss. The pistol-grip one my Grandparents gave me for Christmas 1973 is still going strong, and I have a few colors of "tape".
Condolences.

[turdadactyl]

Benoi, thank you for that awesome answer!

[Benoi31]

That knowledge about silkscreen is parts of the perks of having an artist younger brother !   

I might write a sum up of all the methods you can use to make enclosure art on my blog, I think it can be interesting.