drilling enclosures AFTER finishing?

[fuzzmonger]

Hi folks,

Just wondering what's so wrong with drilling enclosures after decalling and clearcoating. I'm guessing it must cause problems seeing as nobody really seems to do it this way despite it seemingly being easier (using the decal as a drilling guide, no clearcoat getting in the holes, making them tighter)

Teach meeeee

-Fuzzmonger

[gcme93]

It can chip the finish a little (if its painted, varnished etc), but for me thats never been more than what gets covered up by the washers? I would have thought drilling after a decal/sticker would be absolutely fine... I may be missing something too though

[deadastronaut]

i would print off a copy of your 'decal/template' and drill first.

or you may rip/tear/lift your decal off after, and chip/scratch your paint too....


i only etch, and that becomes my drill template for the face too...

[fuzzmonger]

 Damn you etchers with your talent and patience and such!  seriously? It can even eff up the decal affter a heavy brushed-on clearcoat?

-fuzzmonger

[stallik]

This may fly in the face of conventional wisdom but I always drill after finishing. I find it easier to place the holes in the right place rather than get the graphic lines up afterwards. However, I'm using a 'silent' drilling technique (family in bed &all that) which involves centre punching then manually drilling a small guide hole using a hex bit in a screwdriver handle. I then enlarge the hole using a reamer. Quiet, accurate & a good finish but not suitable for a run of pedals...  Paint & vinyl finishes survive the process provided I use the reamer from the front and finish gently. It works well even for led's without bezels

[deadastronaut]

+1 on the reamer...i always use it. handy tool.

[fuzzmonger]

So decal > clearcoat > centre punch > drill hole > ream to size by hand, right? Probably for the best. I can see my old unibit spazzing out and tearing the decal off 

Side poll - Waterslide or clear self-adhesive sheets? I thought the ol' stickyback stuff might look a little unprofessional until I read that Paul Marossey does all his stuff that way (although he's not a commercial builder, IIRC). I used a full-face OHP transparency spray-glued on a personal build once and drilled through it, causing a load of swarf to collect in the gluey layer, hoping the self-adhesive stuff won't do the same. (I should really just be less lazy  )

@gcme93 - any pics of these builds, chips an' all?

-Fuzzmonger

[JRB]

I have never drilled after putting the decal on, I did do it after painting doh. What I do is just wrap the whole box up in painters tape (the beige paper like tape) and then drill all the holes. Remove tape and you got a unchipped enclosure.

[stallik]

Tried the tape but it removed the paint when being removed. Learned a lot about primers on ally

[Mark Hammer]

And keep in mind it is not so much the little metal bits or the drill bit one has to worry about; often it's the spinning curly shavings sticking to the drill.

[defaced]

And keep in mind it is not so much the little metal bits or the drill bit one has to worry about; often it's the spinning curly shavings sticking to the drill.

Often in materials processing, the work is covered in a thin plastic layer to prevent damage to the finish during processing (plexiglass and stainless/aluminum sheet are what I've seen this on most often).  DIYer's can do something similar with any common tape that releases from the finish well.  Painters tape would be my first go-to try. 

[JRB]

Tried the tape but it removed the paint when being removed. Learned a lot about primers on ally

Weird I have done most of my pedals that way and have never had the paint come off. Just to be clear I'm talking about this stuff

[stallik]

Never? it's easy!
1. no primer
2. non suitable paint
3. no patience
It also helps if you use REALLY sticky tape....

but I've learned now

[AudioEcstasy]

I've drilled after painting and before the clear coat with great success. When trying to drill after clearcoating it can cause cracks and runs the few times I've tried it.

[mremic01]

Damn you etchers with your talent and patience and such!  seriously? It can even eff up the decal affter a heavy brushed-on clearcoat?

-fuzzmonger

I started etching specifically because I couldn't get painting right. It's also much easier to drill if you mark the holes on the mask and let the etchant eat out a nice little guide-dot. Then the bit will just fall into place.

[Mustachio]

I pretty much always start with a drilling template I build up in photoshop and do the graphic layout based around where I decide to put all the hardware. Ill print a cheap black and white copy usually ill hide the layers with graphics and only have cross hairs for the drill template. I'll tape on to the enclosure and drill first.

Ill drill first and then paint and then apply graphics and then clear coat with pour-on and at the end ill drill again through the thick clear coat. The easiest way is I put a light under the drill press and it shines up through the holes and I can see where to position the bit. It glides through the clear like butter.

It's pretty safe I haven't had a problem with lifting paint or decals under the pour-on. But I'm pressing down against it at the end. If you try to drill out the clear from the bottom up it will defiantly pull away from the surface.