Spray painting sheet Aluminium

[SuppyDucky]

Not really sure where to post this question, was going to post in the chassis/mods thread but this thread may well be more beneficial. Basically i'm wanting to spray paint the front panel of my PC case, with it being aluminium i wasn't quite sure how to go about this, having never really spray painted anything before. So, for those of you who have had any spray painting experience on car panels or any metal really, how should i go about this? Do i need some sort of primer? Any special sort of spray paint?

Hopefully someone can be of help, much appreciated.

[Knoxville]

If it's a bare metal finish you want to use an etch primer for better adhesion, if it's already got a finish on it sand down any imperfections and just use regualr primer. Then it really depends on the quality of the finish you want but it's best to scotch brite the surface down as flat as possible once the primer has properly dried anyway. Then throw on whatever your choice of top coat might be, because most of the painting I do is on aluminium Land Rover panels I always have lots of single pack coach enamel lying around so that's what I use but the worlds your oyster really.

The real key with priming/spray painting anything is lots of thin, evenly applied coats that are left to harden properly in between

[Saracen]

....

The real key with priming/spray painting anything is lots of thin, evenly applied coats ....

Agreed, and with that in mind, for a newcomer to painting, I'd strongly recommend practising a bit on scrap first. Because, "thin, evenly applied" is a lot easier to say than do, first time out of the gate.

For instance, not too far away but certainly not too close. Keep an even distance between can/spraygun wherever possible. Constant speed of movement, not too frantic, but not too slow. Try to start the spray sweep before you get to the bit to be painted, and stop it after the bit to be painted.

Oh, don't skimp on masking off, either.

And, don't get impatient. Remember, SuppyDucky, if the paint runs it was too heavy, in one go. So, either you were too close, or a little slow.

But, too far away and the fine paint droplets might dry before they reach the surface being painted.

It's a bit like writing music. Any idiot can slap some notes down, but getting a great tune takes practice, and a little skill at least.

Practice on something you don't care about 'til you get the basic technique right.

[TeePee]

Scuff it first for good adhesion, using something like a purple scotchbrite pad. Clean it, and then wipe it down with acetone to remove any grease. If there are plastic parts attached in any way, don't let the acetone contact them. You'll need al least an etch primer for bare AL. Better adhesion would come from a two part epoxy primer, but that's probably overkill for what you are doing. Start with a light fog of primer, and them build it up from there. Good coverage of primer is needed for the top coat to adhere to.

[hesham1516]

What kind of finish on the paint are you looking for? I have had some fun with a product called plastidip. It is a spray paint that acts as a sort of rubber coating used on cars. If the finish gets messed up, or if you are looking for a colour change, you can literally peel off the paint, and apply a new coat.

There are a number of plastidip clones on ebay and amazon, basicly the same product though.

Not a fan of MNPC tech lately, they have stagnated, but they have a good example of the paint on a pc case here:


Of course, if you are looking for an automotive finish with things like metal flakes, then I would just ask around my local garages and have them do it for me. Not as fun, but you get a perfect finish.

Good luck