Quote from: Shoeman on April 27, 2025, 07:44:41 AMUse a round file to enlarge the hole in the direction you need the jack to go. Slide the jack away from the pot and use lockwashers to make sure it stays.  Easy fix in a couple of minutes.

unfortunatley i don't have these mechanical skills to do that (nor a file haha)
and i would be afraid to screw it up so i would just isolate the pot back and call it a day.

Quote from: GibsonGM on April 26, 2025, 04:17:40 PMI like Delta Toneworks!

When I screwed up my input jack hole, I made the output hole the same size, and used 2 washers so it would look ok

Delta Toneworks it is!
that's a neat idea as one jack with a washer would look strange.

i had another question mike, regarding painting.
i spray painted the enclosure and let it dry for 3 days now. i sent the decal to be printed but it's yet to arrive.

the problem with the vinyl decals i have available is that i tried to spray clear coat on top of them after sticking them to the enclosure and the clear coat kinda ruined it. made it look like it's soaked in water (it's not a waterslide decal).
so i would need to try to spray the clear coat on an extra decal first before applying it and see how it goes.

if it ruined it, can i clear coat the enclosure then apply the decal without clear coating or it wouldn't stick well due to clear coating the enclosure?

How thickly/thinly did you apply your coats of clear. Try a matt finish clear coat rather than gloss?

Quote from: davent on April 30, 2025, 09:52:35 AMHow thickly/thinly did you apply your coats of clear. Try a matt finish clear coat rather than gloss?

It was on another pedal that i made. I can say it was pretty thin, but maybe the type of decal is what made it go bad.

This time i will test one of the decals first by clear coating them and see if they go bad. If not then i will stick them and clear coat it and the whole box. If it was ruined then should i clear coat the enclosure then stick the decal to it?

I would apply a 'fake decal' to a totally different box, something non-porous and which you can throw away.  Don't do it to your actual enclosure unless you want to sand the whole thing down to bare metal if it fails   

Many things like this (compatibility) are hard to determine from can labels and MSDS etc.  In the real world, I am a painter. I come across things like this.  And I try things out, to see if they work (or not).    Nothing should be coming from your painted enclosure once it is CURED.   So, a piece of sheet metal or flashing or something would work fine as a test 'substrate'.   

If the clearcoat is ruining the decals, just applying to a fake decal should reveal this, as well. 

How did it fail in the past?  Did the decal MELT, or did it develop bubbles under it?   Did the edges peel up?
If you describe the actual problem we might be able to help.

1. Put your painted (not clear coated) enclosure in a warm, dry place for a few days (80 degrees F or so...) some people even bake them in a toaster oven at over 100F for a while!   This forces an 'off gassing' of any residual VOCs in the paint.  That helps remove the bubbles problem...

Decals: They come in all kinds but the ones I use are printed using solvent inks on clear vinyl. They are very robust and 10 years on my pedalboard with no overcoat, they are unmarked. Perhaps I have gentle feet? Dunno.

If I know that they are going to be really mishandled, I could laminate them but I've not found that necessary so far

Yes - I would be worried about incompatibilities between a clear coat and the decal, or the adhesive of the decal offgassing underneath the clear coat.  I use water slide decals for this reason - they seem to behave well with clear coat over them, and they're thin so their edges are not very noticeable.

If one can get away with no clear coat like Stallik, that seems like the best way to go if using a heavier decal!

Quote from: GibsonGM on April 30, 2025, 12:23:09 PMI would apply a 'fake decal' to a totally different box, something non-porous and which you can throw away.  Don't do it to your actual enclosure unless you want to sand the whole thing down to bare metal if it fails   

Many things like this (compatibility) are hard to determine from can labels and MSDS etc.  In the real world, I am a painter. I come across things like this.  And I try things out, to see if they work (or not).    Nothing should be coming from your painted enclosure once it is CURED.   So, a piece of sheet metal or flashing or something would work fine as a test 'substrate'.   

If the clearcoat is ruining the decals, just applying to a fake decal should reveal this, as well. 

How did it fail in the past?  Did the decal MELT, or did it develop bubbles under it?   Did the edges peel up?
If you describe the actual problem we might be able to help.

1. Put your painted (not clear coated) enclosure in a warm, dry place for a few days (80 degrees F or so...) some people even bake them in a toaster oven at over 100F for a while!   This forces an 'off gassing' of any residual VOCs in the paint.  That helps remove the bubbles problem...

Yes i would definitely not apply the decal on the enclosure but instead on a test box, maybe a tin box.

Well last time i applied a clear coat to a vinyl decal (it was not a clear vinyl decal, but the one i am waiting for now should be clear) it acted as if you put a paper in water.
It becomes weak and changes color. Also i remember that it was less sticky.

If this was the case however in the clear vinyl this time, could i clear coat the enclosure itself and THEN apply the decal? So it won't be ruined.

Also one more thing, the spray painted enclosure i did and it's now 3 days since i painted it. When i picked it up, it left some finger prints. Why!!! Shouldn't it be cured?


Also i noticed that the surface is not very smooth (it's a little rough when i touch it) and there are these little dots on the top surface. Did i fcku it upp?

The spray paint must be shaken well before use, be fairly new, and applied in very thin layers. 

Do many layers, letting each one dry for several hours before re-coating.  You should not get fingerprints/soft paint. That may mean too thick of a layer. It won't cover in 1 or 2 coats, it takes many, like 4-6 applications.

If it's not fully ruined now, bake it somehow! In the sun, in an OLD toaster oven set to 100F. Don't use a new toaster oven, it may ruin the oven!   

If it's messed, then get it dry in the sun, then light-sand it and re-coat it, let it dry.  By 'light sand', I mean like 400 grit to get the fingerprints off.  When it is FULLY dry, you can clear coat it. When the clear is dry, the decal should be ok if you do not cover the decal itself.

The key here is to not rush, and let each coat of any product FULLY dry. Even if it says "recoat in 20 minutes", I let it go for an hour.  Find a warm, dry, clean place to let it dry!   


EDIT: Looking at the pic, yes - If the decal won't cover the prints, I may let it dry completely, then very lightly sand the top a bit...400 to 600 grit...clean well, and re-coat the top.  Lightly    Let fully dry. 

Quote from: GibsonGM on April 30, 2025, 03:16:50 PMget it dry in the sun

OP lives in Egypt..
(they don't have any sun at all..)

They could probably get hold of some natron and mummify the thing!   

"Just place it on a pyramid facing south for 10 to 20 seconds, and the solvents will be completely gone..."

I should add - don't dry the paint TOO fast!  In hot sun, it may 'flash', where the agents that cause it to dry hard will evaporate before they have done their job.  So, maybe place it in a warm spot in the SHADE...

Quote from: GibsonGM on April 30, 2025, 03:46:24 PMThey could probably get hold of some natron and mummify the thing!   

"Just place it on a pyramid facing south for 10 to 20 seconds, and the solvents will be completely gone..."

I should add - don't dry the paint TOO fast!  In hot sun, it may 'flash', where the agents that cause it to dry hard will evaporate before they have done their job.  So, maybe place it in a warm spot in the SHADE...

hahaha that's true! excpet i would need to do it on the 29th of february under a full moon

i guess that was my mistake leaving it dry in a closed room with no sun or air. but one makes mistakes and should learn.

so from what i understood from what you said. i should leave it as is now in a shade of the sun outside and let it dry. then i should sand it with 400grit (wet or dry?) to get rid of the fingerprints then clean it and apply one more coat to it (thin). and then let it dry and apply clear coat.

do i have to sand and do one more coat or that's just for getting rid of the fingerprints? also do i have to do the whole enclosure or just the area where it got finger prints aka the top?

The sanding is to remove fingerprints, yes. I use dry paper (it is 'wet or dry' for auto use, but I just use it dry). You are only trying to 'erase' fingerprints, not get down to bare metal. You can use a sanding block (or block of wood) to hold the paper so that it is flat when in use.

Wipe it down with a lint-free cloth.   Then lightly spray just the top, where you sanded, holding the can about 12" away and moving back & forth so you don't apply it too thick.  Make sure your painting are is free of dust.

Allow plenty of dry time, then clear coat. Same technique, many light coats.  Some people lightly sand between clear coats, with maybe 600 grit, I don't, tho I will sometimes 'buff' the 2nd clear coat with 4-0 steel wool, then apply 1 or 2 more coats.  Don't sand at ALL until after the 2nd coat - the 1st one needs to protect the paint from any buffing you do. One has to experiment with this      

After so much of this, I can smell when it's no longer too wet to work on, ha ha.  You will too in time.  It takes me about 5 days to paint an enclosure due to allowing time for everything to really dry.

Quote from: GibsonGM on April 30, 2025, 04:27:15 PMThe sanding is to remove fingerprints, yes. I use dry paper (it is 'wet or dry' for auto use, but I just use it dry). You are only trying to 'erase' fingerprints, not get down to bare metal. You can use a sanding block (or block of wood) to hold the paper so that it is flat when in use.

Wipe it down with a lint-free cloth.   Then lightly spray just the top, where you sanded, holding the can about 12" away and moving back & forth so you don't apply it too thick.  Make sure your painting are is free of dust.

Allow plenty of dry time, then clear coat. Same technique, many light coats.  Some people lightly sand between clear coats, with maybe 600 grit, I don't, tho I will sometimes 'buff' the 2nd clear coat with 4-0 steel wool, then apply 1 or 2 more coats.  Don't sand at ALL until after the 2nd coat - the 1st one needs to protect the paint from any buffing you do. One has to experiment with this      

After so much of this, I can smell when it's no longer too wet to work on, ha ha.  You will too in time.  It takes me about 5 days to paint an enclosure due to allowing time for everything to really dry.

Thank you mike for all that help! I love you man.

I will do exactly as you said and will report back.
Btw the vinyl decals arrived. However they look a bit weird.







They look very reflective under a light source and they have this protective layer (maybe?) On top of them. Is this how they should look?

Difficult to tell accurately from the pictures but to me, it looks like they've been over laminated with a glossy film and you have some 'silvering'. The effect may reduce over the next week or two.

I could be completely wrong as this is clear vinyl and a similar visual effect can be caused by minute air bubbles trapped under the vinyl

You're certainly welcome! We get as much out of helping people enjoy DIY as the person receiving the help!

I think the only way to know how the decal will look is to apply one to something. Seems the key to them might be finding a way to make sure they apply flat and evenly - some kind of 'carding', which is running a smooth object across the thing as it's applied.  Maybe there's a youtube video?   I've done counter tops that are similar - you don't want ANY air bubbles under the thing!  I think they'll look great once you get the technique and process down