Painting a Case

[ThePunkGeek]

i have an AOPEN case and i want to paint it.
The front is a plastic piece would i be able to easily paint that part?

[mw521]

Originally posted by ThePunkGeek
i can a AOPEN case and i want to paint it.
how would i be able to paint the plastic on the front of it, the same as the metal sides? Say What?
:beer:

[IFMU]

Yea painting it shouldnt be too hard overall. Just make sure that its sanded down real well first... Or the paint wont want to stick that well...

[Mike K]

I know MaximumPc did a great article on painting a case
I can' t find the mag though otherwise I would do it myself
Maybe check their site and you might find a reprint of it
http://www.maximumpc.com

[earthdick]

Originally posted by ifmu
Yea painting it shouldnt be too hard overall. Just make sure that its sanded down real well first... Or the paint wont want to stick that well...

Won't the sanding scratch the plastic? I was wondering because I want to paint the front of my case too.

[Mike K]

I don' t think you will need to sand the front piece because the paint will stick to the plastic-just make sure you use a good spray paint:cool:

[IFMU]

It will scratch it but that is the point afterall.. You do need to be careful with the grit of sand paper that you use to sand the front bezel down with. I still would suggest it however. I have painted cars for a living, we still have to sand down the rubber and plastic parts for the cars to paint them. To me it only makes sense to paint it the same way as you would a car - at least to a degree - But then again, if Im actually working on something I want it to look perfect...

Ah Well... Just my 2 coppers!~!

[Oni]

Use about 600 to sand the sides, and about 800-1000 to sand the plastic. Sand the sides w/ an orbital sander to get it done quicker . . . That paint is a real bitch-kitty to get off. Then prime it down and sand it again w/ 600 so its nice and smooth, then paint it, being careful not to get dust in it.

[Über~PhLuBB]

I used an orbital sander with some pretty hefty grit (120) PADDED sandpaper to take off most of the paint off the metal parts of my case.

I used the same sander apparatus to take the rough texture off the front bezel of the case.

Then I sanded by hand for almost half an hour with 220 paint sand paper (It has a tiger-stripe type pattern, you can get it at Home Depot) to remove what little marks were left over from the 120 grit.

Then I painted it with a coat of primer (If your final color is bright, such as white, light blue, light green, pink, etc, use white primer. If it's going to be dark, like black, green, maroon, blue, etc, use black or gray primer. Trust me).

I sanded it again with 220 paint sand paper to smooth out the primer, then sprayed it again with primer.

Sanded it again with 220 grit paint sand paper, then sprayed my first coat of paint.

Again, 220 grit paint sand paper, spray. And one last sand then spray.

I used a matte finish paint, so I didn't need a clear coat, but if you want to use a shiny paint (non-matte), then use 2 layers of clear coat WITHOUT sanding between coats.

Remember to wipe the case down before and after each sanding, and for god's sake, let the primer and paint layers dry COMPLETELY (for 15 hours at LEAST) before you continue with the next step.

My case turned out very well, but I only used 2 coats of paint and a single coat of primer. I regret it now, I should have used 3 primer coats and 3 paint coats.

I did just that to my front bezel about a week after i finished the whole case. The front bezel looks SO much better then the rest of the case, but I've already got my window mod in, and the top of my case is part of the chassis, so I can't repaint those 2 panels. Take that into concideration when you're painting, don't skip steps, you'll regret it.

[iggybaseball]

Originally posted by m_mike_k
I know MaximumPc did a great article on painting a case
I can' t find the mag though otherwise I would do it myself
Maybe check their site and you might find a reprint of it
http://maximumpc

U were refering to the May 01 issue:)

[TJ9]

Just a thing of note.
Paint won't stick to dirty smooth or oily surfaces. Make sure you remove all dust and oil from the case before you start paint or the paint will just flack off. Be careful with solevents on the plastic!
If you are repainting, puting on a second coat or painting plastic you may and probaly should go over the area with some sand paper.
But be carful or the scratches will show through the paint. since I haven't painted a case yet I can't tell you what grit to use but I learned a bit from painting other things.

[Legionnaire]

Do i have to sand the sides? I kinda like the texture...

[Über~PhLuBB]

Originally posted by Legionnaire
Do i have to sand the sides? I kinda like the texture...

The texture will dissapear anyway when you prime and paint--that's the point of primer. If you want a cheap looking case, but want to retain the texture, use a single, thin coat of paint. It's rather hideous, my friend has a half-assed case. I offered to repaint it for him, because it's an eyesore.

[Mike K]

I think you should use at least two or maybe three coats of paint.
At work when we paint houses or anything we always use 2 coats and 1 coat of primer before that.:D

[Billvill]

To scuff the plastic front panel for painting the easiest thing to do is to clean it with cleanser. Rinse it very well and that will be a perfectly prepared plastic surface for painting. There are soooooo many plastics on the market I would not use thinner or another chemical. The plastic may react. As for the sides, you could sand them with say 400 paper but it is much easier to scrub them with cleanser. Your not painting a submarine or a car that will be out in the elements. 2 light coats of paint is fine.

that's my advice , Billy

[Shoemaker]

DO NOT sand the plastic. Use primer to paint it and you will have no problems. Only sand the plastic after the first coat of primer has been applied. Then use some 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper. As for the metal parts, give them a good sanding first them apply primer and also sand with some 600 wet/dry. Look nice and smooth, and I mean smooth if you want that puppy to shine. Move on to the colour coats, let dry overnight and then sand with 800grit wet/dry. More colour, more drying, 1000grit wet/drysanding. More colour, more drying, 1500grit wet dry sanding. Top it off with some clear coat and let dry for a good 24 hours. Break out the rubbing compound, and shine that sunb@tch till you can comb your hair in the reflection.

[Crazy Jayhawk]

I used matte finish paint on my case, and I'm glad I did. It requires much less work than a gloss finish, and is more forgiving when it comes to weathering. Basically, scratches aren't as obvious.

I painted the case very badly the previous time, so I stripped off all the old paint using aircraft-grade paint stripper from Autozone. If you do this, be sure you thoroughly clean the metal before you paint it. The paint I used was Rust-Tough enamel, which doesn't require a primer. It's designed to stick directly to metal.

For the plastic, I sanded away as much of the bad paint as I could with 200-grit sandpaper. I didn't go any finer than that. If you want the paint to stick to plastic, it helps if it's a little rough. I didn't use primer for the plastic either and it looks just fine.

http://r.drunkencell.com/comp.jpg

Third time's the charm, I guess. First time I just didn't care how it looked (and it showed), second time I tried for a gloss finish (and failed), and finally I went with matte paint. And I'm glad I did.

[Mike K]

By the way, what kind color paint are you planning on using?
If its just black then it would be alot easier if you just bought a black case
unless you really like your case and already have the supplies or dont want to spend a lot of money

[mw521]

Gloss looks good on a nice '32 Ford Coupe but not too good on a puter. I like the textured finishes myself. A high gloss finish is a lot of work and does look good, but you are not driving that sucker down the road where everyone looks at it. If you go to a LAN party though it's nice to look at and does look sharp. The texture looks good and is much easier to do. Just an alternate opinion!:beer:

[CrystalMethod]

Originally posted by Shoemaker
DO NOT sand the plastic. Use primer to paint it and you will have no problems. Only sand the plastic after the first coat of primer has been applied. Then use some 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper. As for the metal parts, give them a good sanding first them apply primer and also sand with some 600 wet/dry. Look nice and smooth, and I mean smooth if you want that puppy to shine. Move on to the colour coats, let dry overnight and then sand with 800grit wet/dry. More colour, more drying, 1000grit wet/drysanding. More colour, more drying, 1500grit wet dry sanding. Top it off with some clear coat and let dry for a good 24 hours. Break out the rubbing compound, and shine that sunb@tch till you can comb your hair in the reflection.
I disagree, I'd sand the plastic befor I even applied the primer. On my Inwin case, I got away with using a primer meant for plastic that I bought separately, but the color doesn't match the rest of the case. It's rather odd that I spent all that time painting the case, and now it sits with the cover off... Oh well, just need a a few more components and then I'll be able to put the cover back on and have it sit and look pretty in a corner. BTW, which Aopen case did you get (hopefully not an HQ, or KF...)?