Tutorial:Prepping and Painting MDF (56k warning)

[haha im a panda]

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/Untitled-1-5.png



A few people have been asking fr some tutorials on tools, painting etc so i decided to take care of the painting.

what you need:

- Something made out of MDF (HDF is probably fine too).

- Wood putty ( a lot).

- Sandpaper 150 and 320 grit should be fine.

-rubbing compound and wax

- paint, primer, clear coat. use the same brand paints for primer, color and clear. Rusto paint and krylon clear hate each other in my experience.



Paint selection.

- You need to select a primer that coordinates with your paint color (black primer with white paint is not a good idea).

These seem to work well for me

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/paintprimer.png



- Same brand paints, i can't stress this enough.

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00060.jpg


- I like using Rustoleum, it covers nicely and is quite durable. price isn't bad either

- Duplicolor is great too, twice the price per can though.



Preparation:

- Sand you're box to 150 grit, be sure to round any sharp corners as paint doesn't cover them too well. putty and large blemishes.

- Sand to 320 grit and completely cover and angled cuts you may have made with putty.

Let the putty dry and then sand it down with 320 until its completely smooth. you may want to do the inside of chamfered button holes to smooth them out. you should have something like this:

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00059.jpg

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00061.jpg



Priming:

- Lay your box on a paint able surface (don't anger mommy).

- Spray a light coat of primer. Quickly sweep back and forth approximately 14" above you're box. the primer will most likely bring out small imperfections in the wood. if they're really bad wait for the primer to dry completely and then putty and sand smooth. If the imperfections are small, primer should fill them after a few good coats.


First coat:

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00062.jpg

This corner has a pretty bad imperfection that slowly fills as coats of primer are applied

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00063.jpg


Second coat:

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00065.jpg

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00066.jpg


Third coat:

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00067.jpg

The corner is now pretty much filled and the blemish should be invisible after paint. The stick should now have a good coat of primer around the whole thing.

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00068.jpg


Painting:

- lightly Wetsand your final prime coat with 320 grit sandpaper

- spray your first coat of paint just like you sprayed primer


First Coat of "Dark Machine Gray"

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00074.jpg

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00075.jpg



put on at least 3 coats of paint and follow up with a clear if you would like (i didn't like the look of it with the clear so i painted over it)


finishing

- lightly wetsand the final coat of paint

- grab your rubbing compound and wax of your choice

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00091.jpg


- get a rag and and rub down the paint with your rubbing compound. this should help even out any color imperfections left by wet sanding and will make a nice smooth finish.

- apply a coat of wax and let it sit for a couple of minutes. wipe off the wax until its smooth and glassy.

- i usually use a couple coats for added protection

- it should be quite shiny and reasonably reflective

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k119/hahaimapanda/DSC00090.jpg


adding a hand glaze will add to the shine if you're looking for a mirror finish.


thanks.

[Mizkreant]

This may be a stupid question, but under Primer Color what does the half gray/half white box mean? That you can use either gray or white?

[haha im a panda]

yup.

[haha im a panda]

small update.

[KabaL]

This is great Panda, keep it up!!

[haha im a panda]

This is great Panda, keep it up!!

thanks, pal. should be on to wet anding and clear coat tomorrow.

[speedsterharry]

Good job, no doubt all this will end in the essential stick building thread !
Keep the good job and post some more custom sticks of yours when you have some new, I love them :)

[NotANoob81]

thanks, pal. should be on to wet anding and clear coat tomorrow.
You don't wet sand mdf:sweat:

[Vietexan]

Thank you panda, ive been waiting for a guide like this :tup:

[haha im a panda]

You don't wet sand mdf:sweat:

it seems to work just fine if you wet the paper the start sanding. its not like im holding it under the faucet. MDF is more resilient than most people seem to think...

[Green]

I've always been under the impression that paint magnifies defects instead of hiding them. I'd make the primer coat perfect before painting.

[haha im a panda]

final update :china:

[Tetsuosan]

Great job and I hope that this is going to be put on the essentials sticky.

[haha im a panda]

Great job and I hope that this is going to be put on the essentials sticky.

me too, hopefully someone finds it useful.

[Domz]

great writeup panda :)

[SinJul]

Wow, great job. Now I know what to do when I built the case for my stick, thanks! :D

[Green]

I've heard that this stuff (or any oil-based [poly]urethane finish) works great for priming MDF:

http://www.minwax.com/products/oil_based_clear_protective_finishes/high_build_polyurethane.cfm

[haha im a panda]

i don't think i'd risk it. it seems like it might make it quite mushy. i think im gonna bondo my newest stick and see how that turns out.

[Green]

Mushy? I don't think MDF will absorb the polyurethane finish like it does water.

If you have access to plastic laminate (e.g. that used in cabinetry) that would probably be the most surefire way to keep the MDF from absorbing anything.

[haha im a panda]

i guess i misunderstood. is the polyurethane more viscous or something?

[Green]

Not really. It's a type of finish for wood. Not very permeable.

Read this whole thread:

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=83141

[NotANoob81]

Rustoleum Professional FTW!

Rustoleum's pro series of spray paint is my favorite of all time. Just finished painting my Blast City stick with it over the weekend, and it levels out very well a dries pretty fast too.

Question:
Although it seemed fully dry, don't you thinks you waxed it kinda early? Unless your build was super time lapsed or something, they say you shouldn't wax for atleast a month?

[haha im a panda]

Rustoleum Professional FTW!

Rustoleum's pro series of spray paint is my favorite of all time. Just finished painting my Blast City stick with it over the weekend, and it levels out very well a dries pretty fast too.

Question:
Although it seemed fully dry, don't you thinks you waxed it kinda early? Unless your build was super time lapsed or something, they say you shouldn't wax for atleast a month?
i agree, rusto is awesome. it was the first time using the professional stuff and i dont think i'll quit using it anytime soon.


sue me, i'm impatient :P. it was more of a practice stick than anything anyway. i'll probably pull it apart with my winch for the lulz *shrug*

[bafiaris13]

very nice thing of u ^ man to make that thread..

i ve found it very usefull and im applying all this stuff to my current builds..

one question though how did u sand the side holes so smoothly?

[haha im a panda]

just fill them with wood putty and then sand em'.

[controlcommerce]

Good read.