Etched enclosures

[Hexjibber]

i use matt black , itscdry in 30 minutes and can be sanded with soapy warm water...im not a fan of gloss

I probably should've mentioned that as well, I also use matte black (engine paint) when doing black unless it's metallic etc.

[deadastronaut]

i use poundland matt black.. . cheap as... and pretty good stuff really...

[mfunky]

Battery-powered Zendrive. Still searching for buttons for 6.35 mm shaft with set screw with a max outside diameter of 12 mm, preferred less... any recommendations?

[vigilante397]

Just saw this in the 1590A thread and was hoping I would see it here as well. Really excellent build all around.

[mfunky]

Yeah, it's a double post... actually a triple post, because I started a mini-thread with 1590a build with battery. But actually, there are obviously not many people who share my passion for this approach

[deadastronaut]

the 'squeeze drive''  you 1590a guys...

[Cozybuilder]

You might consider wrapping the shaft with a little masking tape, then some black shrink tubing over it. Worked for me:

[amptramp]

I hope the battery case is not conductive on that Zendrive:

[atoff]

First etch.  I'd say it turned out so-so.

I'd say that's pretty damn good for a first go man, don't be too hard on yourself!

Looks to me like you could've done with a longer etch time if possible to get it a bit deeper, that would help with the sanding stage and using a flat block as the top layer of paint would be more easily removed.

Also I'd definitely recommend a couple of light coats of paint then waiting for it to cure overnight, if you sand too soon it lifts much more easily when sanding.

Finally, if you find the paint has dulled after sanding a couple of layers of clear coat will bring it right back and also improve the contrast.

Give it a go next time and see if that helps at all, as I say for a first etch what you've got there is really good!

Cheers,
Graham

Thanks very much.  You're definitely right, I needed to etch longer.  What happened was that I used nail polish to cover a few parts on the side the I didn't want etched, and after a while the NaOH was eating away the nail polish, so I stopped early.

But I've learned a few things from this go, so I think the next one will be much better. 

believe me thats really cool for a first etch.., nice...you shouldve seen my first one ...maybe not 

i use matt black , itscdry in 30 minutes and can be sanded with soapy warm water...im not a fan of gloss
black...nasty,  and when its sanded you may as well have used matt anyway...

just my 2p...

Thanks!  Yeah, I'm not a fan of glossy black either.  I used some decent matte black that I had around.  Pretty sure it's so dull because it needed a deeper etch, as Hexjibber said. 

What I'm going to try next is to paint black, sand, then use alcohol inks.  See if that makes it more interesting... hopefully it won't obscure the etch.. 

[mfunky]

I hope the battery case is not conductive on that Zendrive:

No, I put electric tape in the battery. But thinking of it, it would make a nice ground plane [emoji6]

[garcho]

^ strange, how we love cramming tiny things into small enclosures, unless of course, those tiny things are SMT...

i like the calligraphy and comic book stuff, well suited to the dichotomous art of etching

[mfunky]

^ strange, how we love cramming tiny things into small enclosures, unless of course, those tiny things are SMT...

i like the calligraphy and comic book stuff, well suited to the dichotomous art of etching

Yes, it is strange. No, I don't care [emoji6]

[mfunky]

You might consider wrapping the shaft with a little masking tape, then some black shrink tubing over it. Worked for me:

I saw that build before, great stuff. Lets start an upcycling-thread! The shrink-tube idea is cool... I think about that!

[atoff]

Okay, here's my second go.  I'm happier with this one.  I'm not sure I'm going to paint this one black, because there are really fine lines that I don't want to sand away.  I do want to go over it with some alcohol inks.  Still have to order those, so I have to hurry up and decide on colors.  Probably going to go for a purply jumble. 

[mfunky]

Very, very nice!

[Hexjibber]

Very cool indeed, you've nailed it! Sweet design as well!

[bloxstompboxes]

Agreed, very cool compressor and etch.

[atoff]

Thanks very much guys.  Here it is pretty much finished.  I should mention, this is the first pedal I've built.  It's a Ross/Dyna clone.  Picked up the PCB from Aion, as well as a Big Muff Pi and Klon.  I'm also picking parts for a LeVache (Madbean), for which I'll etch the PCB myself, and a Tremulus Lune (not sure where I'll be picking up the pcb for that yet).   I think I'll soon have gained an addiction.   My back will hate me.

I still have to grind away the inside of the knobs a bit so they'd fit better.  They're some cheapies and are a bit too tight, so they don't go down all the way.

[darron]

I still have to grind away the inside of the knobs a bit so they'd fit better.  They're some cheapies and are a bit too tight, so they don't go down all the way.

i use some that are similar and find the same problem. it's because i use pots with round shafts (from small bear) and not the standard "D" shaft.

so the trick is that i back the grub screw out a bit and get a file and very quickly take the burrs off from where they drilled out the brass for the grub screw. it only takes 5 seconds and then there's no problem. otherwise they are a headache to get back off if i force them down too.

[atoff]

I still have to grind away the inside of the knobs a bit so they'd fit better.  They're some cheapies and are a bit too tight, so they don't go down all the way.

i use some that are similar and find the same problem. it's because i use pots with round shafts (from small bear) and not the standard "D" shaft.

so the trick is that i back the grub screw out a bit and get a file and very quickly take the burrs off from where they drilled out the brass for the grub screw. it only takes 5 seconds and then there's no problem. otherwise they are a headache to get back off if i force them down too.

Yeah, they're on there super tight right now! I'm afraid I'm going to break the pots removing them.   Thanks for the tip though... I use the same pots with the smooth shafts.