Best way to paint a 2-slot case?

I figured i'd ask this here since it's kind of tech-related:

Here's the deal: i'm finally planning on consolizing on of my 2 slot boards and i've been searching for parts and information, and so far so good.
But here's my problem: i'm planning on doing a really nice paintjob on the case and i found this excellent tutorial: click

I don't know much about painting and was wondering if i could use this exact info. The reason i'm asking is that the tutorial is about a pc-case, which is most likely powdercoated and the guide doesn't assume you remove all of the original paint, but that you sand it so the primer will stick (it does say it's ok if you sand through to the metal in some areas).

So could i just use the suggested products or would i be better off using a different kind of spraypaint?

I have no idea what kind of metal the 2slot case is and what that matte finish on it is, i'm hoping someone here has some experiece he can share in this area.

Thanks in advance

I took mine to Maaco. They did an excellent job. I also had a decal made at a sign store that says NEO GEO real big under the cartridge slots, the SNK logo on the bottom right, and the MVS logo on the top right. Maaco also applied the decals. I ended up being about $100 but it was worth having pparfect paint. Plus my Neo now has a 10,000 mile warranty.

That should work just fine. Only thing is, you may need to go down to bare metal as the paint may not want to stick to the zinc(?) plating. Hopefully someone who has modded these will chime in with what they have done.

I am looking to paint my 4 slot as it is in rough shape.

Just use a disc sander and polish that baby up!

loopyeddie said:

Just use a disc sander and polish that baby up!

Click to expand...

I thought that's what you're certainly NOT supposed to do if you intend to paint the surface, i thought the scratches created by the sandpaper help the paint stick to the metal.

The problem is that i'm not sure if the case is coated in something or not, around the corners i can see shiny metal coming through the otherwise matte finish case, i just want to be sure i'm using the primer that's best suited for the job

Well, maybe polish wasn't the right word. Just sand it well and you should be fine.

Furrikain said:

I figured i'd ask this here since it's kind of tech-related:

Here's the deal: i'm finally planning on consolizing on of my 2 slot boards and i've been searching for parts and information, and so far so good.
But here's my problem: i'm planning on doing a really nice paintjob on the case and i found this excellent tutorial: click

I don't know much about painting and was wondering if i could use this exact info. The reason i'm asking is that the tutorial is about a pc-case, which is most likely powdercoated and the guide doesn't assume you remove all of the original paint, but that you sand it so the primer will stick (it does say it's ok if you sand through to the metal in some area's).

So could i just used the suggested products or would i be better off using a different kind of spraypaint?

I have no idea what kind of metal the 2slot case is and what that matte finish on it is, i'm hoping someone here has some experiece he can share in this area.

Thanks in advance

Click to expand...

That's exactly the guide that I used to paint my 2-slot. I followed it exactly except I sanded it right down to the metal because the old paintjob was a mess. The corners were a pain in the ass but now it looks great. I'm going to post some pics of it on here soon.

I have built several 2 slot consoles and let me hook you up with some advice in regards to painting the shell.


Don't.


I suggest taking the shell, once you are done drilling and making sure all your connectors will fit in it, to an automotive shop and having it powdercoated and then a layer of clear coat applied to it.


You will get a more durable finish on it than anything you can do at home. Plus the paint tends to chip/peel around the cart slots due to insert and removal of the games with a regular paint finish.


Whilst it will cost more, it will look more pro like and be more durable.

GiLL said:

I have built several 2 slot consoles and let me hook you up with some advice in regards to painting the shell.


Don't.


I suggest taking the shell, once you are done drilling and making sure all your connectors will fit in it, to an automotive shop and having it powdercoated and then a layer of clear coat applied to it.


You will get a more durable finish on it than anything you can do at home. Plus the paint tends to chip/peel around the cart slots due to insert and removal of the games with a regular paint finish.


Whilst it will cost more, it will look more pro like and be more durable.

Click to expand...

I have been wondering about the paint chipping around the cartslots, and the only thing to prevent it that i could think of would be to widen the slots just enough to run some plastic stripping along the edges; i don't know the actual name of the stuff, i'm referring to those rubber strips that are used to place a plexiglass window in a pc case.

I was kind of hoping that with a paintjob as extensive as that tutorial i pasted it wouldn't be necessary though. But seeing as Adamaki has followed those directions, perhaps he can tell us if the paint will chip.

Alternatively, would it be possible to just paint the case like the tutorial suggests and afterwards taking it to an autoshop and just have some strong automotive clearcoat applied? I'm guessing that would cost less than having the entire case powdercoated as well.

One person posted that a paintjob cost him 100$, but that is definately more than i'm willing to spend, the way i calculated it 100$ would be the total cost of the project, the main costs being a psu that can fit inside the case and some aluminum LED illuminated buttons (i'm in EU so i can just run the RGB to scart, no need to buy a JROK/Neobitz/whatever thingie )

If there are people that have solved the chipping problem around the cartslots in their own creative way, feel free to enlighten me

Powdercoating is $40 here.
Your best bet.

Well I followed that guide but it wasn't as easy as it looks. I definitely learned a lot along the way and I'm sure I'd make a much better job next time. The main thing is making sure you get a good coat of primer on the bare metal, otherwise any colour coat you put on will chip really easily. If you end up sanding the primer too much and sand through to the bare metal that's where you'll have problems with chipping later on. Around the edges, especially the cart slots are most important as these are most likely to chip as you have mentioned.

Apart from that it's just a long job and a lot of sanding involved, and it's really frustrating when you've just sanded it smooth only to realise you've cut through the colour coat with the sandpaper and you have to give it another coat! I didn't apply a clearcoat as I couldn't find one that was suitable but I'm sure that would make it more durable. The only chips I've had so far are one on a corner where I'd sanded through the primer and around the connector holes when I pushed them in, but those aren't visible anyway.

I reckon a well done paint job following that guide would be fine, but just bear in mind it's not easy to get it right.