Going to spray paint my case in 2 weeks time when on leave. Can anyone give me any advice with what paper and paint to use when doing this case.

I just finished doing some painting on my case (a Lian Li clone). I used automotive wet/dry sand paper and DupliColor spray enamel. I got both from Pep Boys. Then I screwed up several attempts to paint my 3.5" and hard drive bays. Then I went to www.duplicolor.com and learned the right way to do it from their training videos. If you haven't painted metal before, I highly recommend it.

If you are painting metal, I recommend three different paints: primer, color, and clear. I just think it looks better with the clear than without. Also, although I got spray enamel, I think spray lacquer would have been the better choice (more forgiving). Both types will produce excellent results if used correctly, though.

If you're painting plastic, you'll need something different -- Vinyl Dye. I painted a drive bay bezel with it. It's very nice stuff, goes on very thin so there's no runs, and the color adheres very well.

My case had a brushed aluminum finish so I wasn't very interested in a glass-smooth, show-quality paint job. If you are, the whole key to it is surface prep. Be patient, and sand, sand, sand. You'll need to sand before and between every coat, but I don't know the recommended grit levels for sanding the paint surface. You should probably make it a point to speak with somebody knowledgeable at a paint shop before you drive yourself crazy.

One final thing: I'm very happy with my paint job, especially considering its first-time, DIY nature, but I wish I had been more patient about putting everything back together after painting. I might not have taken out the big chuck with the screwdriver if I'd given the paint a little time to cure. (I say big chuck, of course, because I know exactly where to look. I assume you'll feel the same way about your work...)

Good luck with it and be sure to post a picture or two!!



R.

Rather than add to what Rich posted I will simply link to a tutorial that covers stuff reasonably well.
Will vary a bit for any plastic parts as mentioned. You can probably find a separate tutorial for that somewhere.

mnpctech spray paint tutorial

Thanks guys will keep you guys updated.

Any updates? did this happen?

I am kinda interested in painting the inside of my case and was looking for tips. How much prep work do you need or is it just a matter of stipping the case down, masking over anything that needs it and rubbing down to remove dust and stuff, then painting?

i painted a coolmaster stacker. I did a flat black on the inside with a red and yellow and the outside with flames on the side panels. if you are doing metal i would start out with a 400 to 600 grit wet/dry paper then move up to a 800 then a 1000 to finish it off. remember if you want a good product you need to do a good prep job

ooooh....that sounds cool, pics?
And yea it would just be the bare metal inside the case. also i wanted to ask about the side of the metal you are not painting, do you cover it will paper + masking tape? I'd prefer not to redo the paint on the outside of the case and i am assuming you didnt paint both sides in one go so would have to have done something about this.

I will do some proper pictures on wednesday but battling to get the lighting right as it comes up orange but it is ferrari red and I think it came up awesome and when on leave in 2 weeks time I'll be putting on the final coat of the clear acrlyic

It's fun doing this but my best advice is don't rush this. If you have a garage do it in that rather than what I did and did it outside.
Also with the T-cut don't do what I did and let it stand for a while as it is supposed to be wiped on and then wiped off straight away.

On leave in 2 weeks time and then going to do the frame of the case in a gun metal gun metal colour and put the clear acrylic coat on the outer case.

I am busy designing something for the front cover but practising with blow brush is essential and will be giving this a go soon and as I do not have a garage a friend has offered me to use his and his compressor. As he does all the panelbeating for VW and Audi he will have all the tools for me to use.

Thats sexy! i love it!

nice colour, good job