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Post by ritalin on Mar 3, 2008 19:39:21 GMT
In the next few days I hope to get my hands on a Quicksilver case. I fancy refinishing it in black. Anyone got any tips as to how to go about this? I want to achieve a reasonable quality of finish. I know painting plastic can be a bit dodgy, paint reacting with the plastic and all that!
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Post by nikonnut on Mar 4, 2008 1:11:39 GMT
Rit, I'm not an expert by any means but I know that there are paints specifically formulated for refinishing things like the vinyl door panels in a car. The brand I've heard good things about is plasti-kote. Their How-To seems very informative. Here's a link; www.plasti-kote.co.ukHope this helps. Nik
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Post by ritalin on Mar 4, 2008 20:27:29 GMT
Yeah, it looks like plasti-kote will do the job. I've just been googling for black powermacs. Here's two I found. I like the look of the black MDD. I think the original paint has been striped and the panels have been painted on their inner most side.
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Post by aquamac on Mar 4, 2008 21:46:34 GMT
I was looking for a site that showed you how to remove the paint from the inside of the plastic panels. I will put it up if I can find it again. Here you go! That Black MDD does look the business. I was looking on the intel site and they have a micro BTX board that may be the ultimate G4 hackintosh. It would require some major surgery as the processor ends up where the front HDD's and drive cage are. But I still love the look of the MDD chassis, even if it did suffer from bad air circulation! Watercooling may be the answer!
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Post by ritalin on Mar 5, 2008 19:38:13 GMT
Okay, so do you think this is the stuff I need to remove the paint? I'm not 100% sure, but I think it's the right stuff. I wonder if you can get it in Wickes or B&Q.
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Post by aquamac on Mar 5, 2008 19:47:05 GMT
Hi Rit,
I am no expert but it sounds like the stuff to me. Guess you need to try on a bit of plastic that is not seen, just to check it does not damage it. If it does not dissolve the plastic, then I am sure it will remove the paint. I think from what I heard from various people, that it is fairly labour intensive. Maybe best to leave overnight to soften things up so to speak.
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Post by nikonnut on Mar 6, 2008 2:55:34 GMT
Rit, For a cheap source (I think) of really pure (99.9%) Isoproply Alcohol you might look for a product called Iso Heet. It's a fuel system drier that is available at most automotive chain stores. I use it to clean thermal paste off GPUs, CPUs etc. I think it's about $.99 for a 16oz bottle . Might just do the trick.
Cheer, Nik
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Post by nikonnut on Mar 7, 2008 22:27:36 GMT
Rit, Found this article and thought I would pass it along. I make no claims as some of this stuff is dangerous and it might wreck a mac panel so user beware. www.bonediggers.com/1-3/strip/strip.htmlThe Castrol Super Clean is what really caught my attention. Cheers, Nik
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Post by ritalin on Mar 12, 2008 19:21:28 GMT
Picked up the Quicksilver today. It's actually a nearly a complete unit, the only thing missing is the CPU. I got the thing of unwantedmacs.co.uk. It was sold to me as just the case alone. I guess the logicboard is faulty, or something like that. I don't think I can make us of any of the extra stuff, shame. The case itself is in okay condition, it's intact and free from cracks. There are a few scuffs, but I think they will polish out. ;D ;D ;D
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Post by aquamac on Mar 12, 2008 19:29:58 GMT
Should make the basis for a fine hackie, I always liked the Quicksilver case - looks classy and should take a micro ATX without too much fuss. I also like MDD's but it's definitely a BTX motherboard for one of them. Would be great to see one in another colour, other than Grey!
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Post by ritalin on Mar 12, 2008 19:42:39 GMT
Just measuring things up. The LB of the QS is 11.5" wide. A full ATX MB is 12" wide. I'm wondering if ,with a little case surgery, I couldn't get a full ATX board to go in there? I would need to drop the board back a little, to the widest part of the tray, and move the IO plate back accordingly. Not easy, but possible maybe?
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Post by aquamac on Mar 12, 2008 19:53:43 GMT
Main thing to look out for is the CD drive, or are you planning a slot drive mod again? Would certainly be nice to get a full board in there. The biggest problem may be if you have to make a slot higher than the current graphics slot as the drop down door starts to narrow there.
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Post by ritalin on Mar 12, 2008 20:10:13 GMT
The CD/DVD won't be a problem. I'll use a laptop slot-loader again. I may even have it pop out of the top like the Mac Cube. Your point about the IO slots is spot on. I don't mind loosing a couple of slots, but I will have to make sure I retain access to a PCI-E 16x slot for the GFX card. I will have to have a close look at the available motherboards.
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Post by originalmacnut on Aug 11, 2008 15:39:08 GMT
This might be a stretch, But what about using the eraser wheel the they use in the automotive repair shops? They use them for taking decals and pin stripes off, I bet after a good soak & with the wheel, taking off the paint would be effortless.
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Post by aquamac on Aug 11, 2008 18:21:59 GMT
Hey OMN,
I would be quite interested to see what one of those looked like, can you find a pic?
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