Need some help for a build

[CiddoTech]

Hey Everyone,

 

I'm building a rig for my girlfriend for Christmas. I bought a White Bitfenix Prodigy case and I want to paint it yellow (Like the minions from despicable me), and I want to 3D-print Gru's logo from the movie to replace the Bitfenix logo.

 

I've been looking around the forums a bit and I'm seeing a lot of suggestions to take it to a car body shop which is definitely out of my price range. If I wanted to do it via spray paint, what are some steps I need to take with coats and stuff? Where can I get the logo 3D printed?

 

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

 

[nanowatt]

Well if you know how to use a pain spray without leaving nasty mark then go ahead BUT!Take the case apart.When i say that i mean it.Paint each piece individually and with a fast movement.Try not to paint the interior because it may look bad.About the logo hmm to be honest you need a very good 3d printer to make it perfect and beside i think a minion would fit better.Maybe find a metal keychain trinket and glue it to the case.All of this being said good luck i hope she will like it

[GiveHelp]

For gru's logo, I think you can go to someplace that cuts vinyl like a sign shop (they make road signs and such). I work at one called signarama and it seems very possible to make gru's logo from black vinyl. although i doubt you have a signarama is nearby where you live.. but look around your city, maybe you'll find a place that cuts vinyl. the price for just getting a some vinyl cut is decently cheap, and the application is as simple as applying a sticker (literally). All the best and I hope she'll like it!

[W-L]

Hey Everyone,

 

I'm building a rig for my girlfriend for Christmas. I bought a White Bitfenix Prodigy case and I want to paint it yellow (Like the minions from despicable me), and I want to 3D-print Gru's logo from the movie to replace the Bitfenix logo.

 

I've been looking around the forums a bit and I'm seeing a lot of suggestions to take it to a car body shop which is definitely out of my price range. If I wanted to do it via spray paint, what are some steps I need to take with coats and stuff? Where can I get the logo 3D printed?

 

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

 

Welcome to the forums!

 

For spray painting you can do it yourself but it depends on the finish you want to get from the paint. If you plan to get a glass like mirror finish they have on cars you'll need to be very patient and spend a good few hours to cut back and polish out the clear coat.

 

First though for painting ideally you want to take apart the case and give all surfaces a good sand with 400 grit sandpaper or scotch brite to rough up all surfaces for paint, clean the parts using some alcohol or wax and grease remover before masking areas and getting ready for paint. For plastic parts I would give them a thin coat of primer to promote better adhesion before continuing with the base coat, for metal though no primer is needed as long as the part is not bare metal, bare metal parts should receive a coat of self etching primer. As usually when applying spray paint go light and even giving it the manufacture's drying time between coats, a good idea is to lay the parts flat and paint them instead of hanging it up, I personally find it's easier to get more even coats of paint while preventing runs.

 

If you are going for the car finish you will need to let the base coat dry before apply the clear coat, same procedure with apply the base coat going light and even letting it dry the required time building up the thickness needed. After letting it dry and fully cure which is important, this can take up to a week before the clear coat is fully cured, you can then start cutting back the clear coat to get that smooth finish. You'll want to get very fine grit wet sand paper 1000-4000 grit and use a sanding block to knock down the clear coat using wet sanding until you have a flat finish progressing through finer and finer sand papers. Once it is perfectly flat and smooth you can then buff and polish out the sand marks to get a very flat mirror like finish using a polisher with some cutting compound and different pads.

 

As for the 3D printed logo try Shapeways they can print and create it for you in variety of materials as long as you send them a 3D model of the logo. 

http://www.shapeways.com/

 

This one is a bit old but has the same techniques:

 

Another one with similar idea on how cars are polished:

[CiddoTech]

For gru's logo, I think you can go to someplace that cuts vinyl like a sign shop (they make road signs and such). I work at one called signarama and it seems very possible to make gru's logo from black vinyl. although i doubt you have a signarama is nearby where you live.. but look around your city, maybe you'll find a place that cuts vinyl. the price for just getting a some vinyl cut is decently cheap, and the application is as simple as applying a sticker (literally). All the best and I hope she'll like it!

 

Thanks for the advice, I do plan on going to a vinyl shop for more minion character cuts, but I feel that 3D printing gru's logo will give the case that premium feel. I kinda want it to look like it still came from bitfenix in a sense since I'm replacing the logo.

[CiddoTech]

Welcome to the forums!

 

For spray painting you can do it yourself but it depends on the finish you want to get from the paint. If you plan to get a glass like mirror finish they have on cars you'll need to be very patient and spend a good few hours to cut back and polish out the clear coat.

 

First though for painting ideally you want to take apart the case and give all surfaces a good sand with 400 grit sandpaper or scotch brite to rough up all surfaces for paint, clean the parts using some alcohol or wax and grease remover before masking areas and getting ready for paint. For plastic parts I would give them a thin coat of primer to promote better adhesion before continuing with the base coat, for metal though no primer is needed as long as the part is not bare metal, bare metal parts should receive a coat of self etching primer. As usually when applying spray paint go light and even giving it the manufacture's drying time between coats, a good idea is to lay the parts flat and paint them instead of hanging it up, I personally find it's easier to get more even coats of paint while preventing runs.

 

If you are going for the car finish you will need to let the base coat dry before apply the clear coat, same procedure with apply the base coat going light and even letting it dry the required time building up the thickness needed. After letting it dry and fully cure which is important, this can take up to a week before the clear coat is fully cured, you can then start cutting back the clear coat to get that smooth finish. You'll want to get very fine grit wet sand paper 1000-4000 grit and use a sanding block to knock down the clear coat using wet sanding until you have a flat finish progressing through finer and finer sand papers. Once it is perfectly flat and smooth you can then buff and polish out the sand marks to get a very flat mirror like finish using a polisher with some cutting compound and different pads.

 

As for the 3D printed logo try Shapeways they can print and create it for you in variety of materials as long as you send them a 3D model of the logo. 

http://www.shapeways.com/

 

This one is a bit old but has the same techniques:

 

Another one with similar idea on how cars are polished:

 

 

This post was a big help. Thanks for welcoming me!

 

I don't want to paint it as far as a car's paint job goes, that's a bit too much work and I plan on putting some vinyl stickers and decals around the case. I just want a solid shiny yellow finish, almost like the yellow corsair 380t, that's pretty good.

 

To be honest I originally wanted to build this rig in a yellow 380t but since that specific color hasn't been released yet so I had to change plans.

[CiddoTech]

I'll be posting my results as I progress!

[W-L]

This post was a big help. Thanks for welcoming me!

 

I don't want to paint it as far as a car's paint job goes, that's a bit too much work and I plan on putting some vinyl stickers and decals around the case. I just want a solid shiny yellow finish, almost like the yellow corsair 380t, that's pretty good.

 

To be honest I originally wanted to build this rig in a yellow 380t but since that specific color hasn't been released yet so I had to change plans.

 

Have you consider wrapping the case in some yellow gloss vinyl, it's a quick and easy way to change the color and look without too much work, some of the more complex parts such as handles could be painted to match.

 

Hope to see more soon 

[CiddoTech]

Have you consider wrapping the case in some yellow gloss vinyl, it's a quick and easy way to change the color and look without too much work, some of the more complex parts such as handles could be painted to match.

 

Hope to see more soon 

 

 

I didn't want to do the Vinyl wrap because I felt like that could peel off at some point for any random reason. Here's my progress so far: 

 

http://imgur.com/sSNirLL

I disassembled everything of course. I ordered the windowed side panel so I decided to practice the spray painting the current one.

 

http://imgur.com/V9ZRlM4

 

A better look at the side panel I practiced on and it worked out pretty great.

 

http://imgur.com/MjgkQy8

 

Spray painted both side panels together

 

http://imgur.com/t7DTnf2

 

Ran into my first hiccup. I sprayed some primer onto the plastic front panel and let it dry for an hour. Then I applied a coat of yellow and I started getting all of these cracks and the paint didn't sit too pretty with the primer. I tried spraying another coat to hopefully cover all of the weirdness and while it did reduce it some, ther 

[LukaP]

Just change the area to where you are. it usually costs very little (atleast here) and gives a perfect finish

[CiddoTech]

3D Printed Gru Logo in....

[CiddoTech]

If anyone knows how to polish them or w/e that would be very nice.

[CiddoTech]

 

 

Definitely not the video card I plan on keeping in there. I was testing the spacing.

 

So the other day I tried applying a clear coat enamel to the I/O side panel to protect it and make it more shiny.... I ended up completely wrecking the side panel and the finish became so cracked and uneven. I ended up re-sanding the side panel and tried to re paint and to hopefully cover up my mistake. It kinda worked, but now the color is a few shades darker then the rest of the case...

 

Overall, I'm a bit disappointed for trying to go the extra mile, failing and then trying to cover my mishaps. There are many imperfections that I see that kinda make this an eyesore since I'm a bit of a diva, but for my first DIY paint job I'm a bit happy I went this far. After all, it's going to be the hardware inside that makes this great. I just hope my girlfriend will like it.

 

This would have been a lot easier if Corsair just released the yellow 380t though

[W-L]

@CiddoTech

 

For the logos you may want to try something like this to smooth out the parts, I've seen others try it out with great success but it does take some trial and error to get it right:

 

http://sinkhacks.com/building-acetone-vapor-bath-smoothing-3d-printed-parts/

 

 

I'm not exactly sure why you clear coat would crack other than maybe temperature being too cold or it was applied too soon after the yellow base before it had time to gas off.

[CiddoTech]

@W-L

Thanks for the post, I might be too scared to try the acetone bath thing though. Especially since some of my more recent failures haha

[W-L]

@CiddoTech

 

I know what you mean I would be a bit weary unless I had a 3D printer easily on hand to make a new one, maybe try sanding it down in one direction to give it a brushed metal type look.

[CiddoTech]

And we have post!!!!!

[CiddoTech]

 

 

[CiddoTech]

Vinyl Prints are in!!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

The side I'm most proud of (covers some of my mistakes)