Finishing pedal enclosures

[jugglindan]

All my recent builds have used acrylic lacquer spray cans and waterslide decals. While this works, I want to try something different. My favourite enclosure so far is the polished metal phase 45, so I am thinking of trying an etched enclosure. Not sure yet which type of chemical process to use.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvPIM5ZFWXw

[jugglindan]

Also this for a slower caustic soda etch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1874TiqzLs

[Simon Barden]

Will you be inviting people up to see them? ;)

[jugglindan]

Sure. Although some are a little daring

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[JohnH]

Ah, cool! Ferric is good, but be prepared for everything you own to turn yellow lol.

We did a bit of aluminium etching using copper sulphate, which is cheap and easy but the etching process is pretty hectic - lots of spitting and fizzing

[jugglindan]

Ah, cool! Ferric is good, but be prepared for everything you own to turn yellow lol.

We did a bit of aluminium etching using copper sulphate, which is cheap and easy but the etching process is pretty hectic - lots of spitting and fizzingI am leaning towards the caustic soda method at the moment, slower but less discolouration. I have some old aluminium plate to experiment with.

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[ThatCluelessGerman]

I used Iron III Sulphate to etch many parts for my second guitar build. It worked very well, although it can be a bit tricky if you have thick and thin elements in the same design. The bigger elements get etched much faster and also raise the temperature which results in even faster etching.
Also better etch when temperatures are low, like in the morning or on rainy days. I prefer longer etching times (10-15 minutes) so I have more control. If the solution is too warm, 30 seconds can make or break a design. Get a sheet of scrap aluminium to practice first.

36357

36360

36359

[JohnH]

I am leaning towards the caustic soda method at the moment, slower but less discolouration. I have some old aluminium plate to experiment with.

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Good call. Less mess, and slow is usually better when the etching itself is the artwork as you have more control.

[jugglindan]

Great advice, thanks. Middle of winter here, so cool days are not a problem [emoji3587]

Your guitar is amazing. I will be happy with something much less artistic.

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[ThatCluelessGerman]

Thanks, I got it as a factory second as it has a huge crack in the veneer. Still turned out pretty decent and it actually sounds pretty good. I wanted to take some better photos but was too lazy so far...

How do you transfer the design to the enclosure? I am using toner transfer with an old (but professional) laminator that can go up to 160°C, that works very well for flat sheets of metal.

I guess a hot iron could work for an enclosure, or maybe an old heat press (for transferring t-shirt designs)?

Otherwise, you could of course also stencil the resist on with spray paint, or maybe try a vinyl cut?

[McCreed]

I'm beginning to think ThatCluelessGerman is very far from clueless! ;)

Nice work there ThatNotSoCluelessGerman!

[Simon Barden]

I'm beginning to think ThatCluelessGerman is very far from clueless! ;)

But everyone knows that Lucille is a 355 (well now a variant of one), not a LP! ;)

[ThatCluelessGerman]

Ha, just an experienced googler, and of course asking a million dumb questions here. Really, without this forum I wouldn't know about scale lengths or staining or anything at all. Ask Simon, he answers most of my stupid questions with a huge amount of patience ;-)

The name actually is from The Walking Dead ;-)
I was joking around with my husband, telling him I'd swing the guitar at him and knock him out. So he suggested I'd make it "Negan's Lucille".

[jugglindan]

I am going to try toner transfer using a clothes iron. I have seen several versions of the technique using different paper. Will experiment on an enclosure until I sort out the method. A bit of acetone to remove toner between attempts.

And I love the guitar as weapon motif. It's not called an axe for nothing!


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[ThatCluelessGerman]

My favorite paper for toner transfer is the dirt cheapest glossy inkjet(!) photo paper you can get. It was around 7€ for 50 sheets A4. It works so well, you don't even need to peel it with water, just wait until you can touch it and peel. The whole gloss layer will stick to the metal and the paper peels right off. If you want to try it, get the cheapest stuff available.

[jugglindan]

Found this today for an alternative toner transfer method without heat. It uses printing to the waxy backing paper from adhesive labels.

What I find really interesting is the design is not being used as a negative mask for etching. The toner is the design, so it's good for etching and as a direct alternative to waterslide decals. But with no decal edges and mess to contend with. And once the transfer is made, just clear coat right over the top.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL0fVtREgRA

[jugglindan]

And this video probably explains the magic behind the last video. The acetone (or acetone-related solvents) in the clear lacquer soften the toner so it releases from the waxy paper.

Pretty sure this is the toner transfer method I will experiment with first:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBIxvwZ_0og

[DrNomis_44]

I need to get back into etching my own PCBs, I etched one for my DIY Univibe using some blank (un-etched) PCB material, blue Press N Peel film, and some Ammonium Persulphate etchant, all bought from my local Jaycar Electronics store of course, oh and also a Laser Printer (remember those?) with a full Toner cartridge, I got some pretty good results that way, oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention that I used a standard electric clothes iron to transfer the artwork on the blue Press N Peel film to the un-etched PCB material.

[jugglindan]

Press'n'Peel film sounded interesting until I saw the cost! I am definitely going to experiment with toner transfer using the acetone+alcohol mix from various papers first. If that fails totally then I will try the heat-based methods.

In the ideal world in my head I would get a great transfer from plain white printer paper. As unlikely as that is, I now have a method to easily test it.

But first, my mantra is "Ohm, finish the tele, Ohm"

[DrNomis_44]

Press'n'Peel film sounded interesting until I saw the cost! I am definitely going to experiment with toner transfer using the acetone+alcohol mix from various papers first. If that fails totally then I will try the heat-based methods.

In the ideal world in my head I would get a great transfer from plain white printer paper. As unlikely as that is, I now have a method to easily test it.

But first, my mantra is "Ohm, finish the tele, Ohm"


Yep, as with everything, you go with whatever works for you, I wouldn't mind giving the acetone+alcohol toner transfer method a go and see how it works for me, in the meantime I usually make do with either vero board or pad-per-hole board for building circuits, I'm in the process of experimenting with using an app called Veecad to do all my board layouts, it's a free bit of software.

[jugglindan]

I am also quite comfortable with veroboard for pedals at the moment, even though it doesn't lend itself as much to super neat enclosures. The connection points just don't line up neatly with pots and jacks the way a good PCB designed with the enclosure in mind does.

I would also like to find some software for making my own vero layouts, either for new circuits or mods to existing layouts. But see my mantra ... must finish telecaster ...

DC

[DrNomis_44]

I am also quite comfortable with veroboard for pedals at the moment, even though it doesn't lend itself as much to super neat enclosures. The connection points just don't line up neatly with pots and jacks the way a good PCB designed with the enclosure in mind does.

I would also like to find some software for making my own vero layouts, either for new circuits or mods to existing layouts. But see my mantra ... must finish telecaster ...

DC


Here's a link to DIY Layout Creator, it's a free app for creating layouts for pcbs, vero board, turret boards, and etc, I use it myself and highly recommend it:

https://bancika.github.io/diy-layout-creator/