February 2006
Feb 22, 2006
I’m the copycat
With all this talk of custom painting my 8600, I wondered if I was an original. The idea of customizing the external look of PC boxes seemed like a marketing goldmine. What company looking to impress it’s clients wouldn’t want to show off a bull pin of desks with desktops sporting the company logo? Hell, the first company I worked at had regulation desktop images and screen savers with the company logo. The idea was that everything was brandable. And everything the company owned should be branded. So was had no one stumbled into this potentially lucrative space?
Well, it’s turns out that people have. And most of those people are amateurs. I say amateurs, because mostly I found poorly put together sites offering one or two color paint jobs IF you buy the moniter from them. These sites borthered me for two reasons: 1.) it was clearly a one person business who was in all likelyhood working on weekends out of their garage and 2.) how do you know that you got the moniter you paid for? Paint covers everything…even serial numbers.
I did find two professional outfits. And I must say, I was impressed.
The first is a place called Falcon Northwest. PC gamers will be well familiar with them. Falcon Northwest builds PC from the ground up. They do everything; the box, the components, the cabling and the software. Apparentally, the fully assembled PC is a work of art and it’s speed is unmatched. In addition to all this, the boxes are custom painted in the same way a ‘57 Chevy might be custom painted. These are professionals. No doubt about that. Check out their work. It’s awe-inspiring. Unfortunately, I prefer macs. And I consciously avoid gaming. So I am not their market.
The second place has me targeted as a customer. Colorware will take your mac, paint it one of 20+ colors, double-gloss clear coat it and return to you a stylish one-of-a-kind (almost) mac. Their work looks immaculate. And I love their color selection and preview page. My only criticism is that they paint only areas without too much text or symboling. The result is a mac that “looks” painted instead of a unit that may have come right out of the factory.
Both companies have shown me one pit fall that I was worried about. It might be my personal preference, but the glossy finish of their paint jobs are not to my liking. They will show too many flaws; finger prints, chips, scratches, etc. They will also, in my opinion, look completely out of place where ever it comes to rest. My hope is that with a matte finish I will create a look that will be interesting without overpowering. That remains to be seen, but I am confident. I know I am giving up the “wow” factor, but my computer’s exterior is supposed to start plesant conversations, not shouting matches.
Feb 19, 2006
Supplies Part 1
I spent the early part of the afternoon at Utrecht and Pearl today. I thought I might get lucky and be able to buy everything I need without resorting to online sales. I also thought I remembered Pearl selling the Belton paints, but they must have stopped carrying them. I found most of what I need. The two remaning supplies are the decal paper and the belton paint.
I did find primer, tape and matte clear coat, so I can get started with some of the perliminary work. So here’s half the supply list. Another 2-3 days should find me with the rest.
And as a happy little surprise the Krylon Matte finish was on sale at Pearl. I might actually come in under budget.
Total Budget: $36.00
Total spent so far: $15.05
Feb 17, 2006
The 8600 Project Plan
So let’s recap: My PowerMac 8600 is getting a facelift. Here’s the plan as I forsee it. First, I will have to clean each of the pieces of the computer. It’s about 10 years old and all the oil dirt and sweat from those years is now caked onto all surfaces. Second, I will want to prime it. Different sides of the computer have seen differing amounts of sun over the years. I want an even cover so this somewhat optional step seems like a good way to ensure a factory finish. Third is the paint. I want to paint different pieces of the tower separately. There are so many vents and electronic components to mask that I really believe I should tackle smaller sections at a time. Finally, it’s time for decals. I settled on decals because the thought of reproducing my logo with all it’s curves sent shivers down my spine. I have done a fair amount of silkscreening throughout my years and the one thing I learned was that cutting precise curved stencils, even with french curves, is next to impossible. I learned about custom decal paper recently and it seems like the perfect solution. As a final finishing step, I will put on a layer matte-finish clear coat. That should hide the edges of the decal and give the entire project a professional feel.
I have no project timeline. That’s not because I’m lazy. The only time I can work on this is when I have free time; and that is inconsistent if at all. Ideally, it would take a week, it I could do every piece at once. However, I guarantee you that will not be the case.
As for the project budget, that’s a little bit easier. Here’s the breakdown:
Scotch 3M 3/4 in. X 60 yd. Blue Painter’s Masking Tape: $4.00
1 Can Krylon Primer Gray 12-oz: $6.00
2 Cans Belton Molotow Premium Black Forest Green 11-oz: $12.00
10 Sheets 8.5″ x 11″ Inkjet Waterslide Decal Paper: $8.00
1 Can Krylon Matte Finish 11-oz: $6.00
Total: $36.00
( The printer ink and printer don’t count because I don’t want them to. Plus I already own them. )
The next step? Ordering supplies.
Feb 16, 2006
Facelift
My wife and I are a little more than a month away from closing on our first condominium. We couldn’t be happier to finally have a place that we can call home and not waste thousands of dollars a year. Part of owning property also means that we are able to modify it as we see fit. When suddenly presented with the option that everything can be customized, suddenly everything should, nay, WILL be customized. I want to blame this on viewing too much HGTV, but I believe it falls more on the repressed frustration of a serial renter. (Note to landlords: white and off-white are not paint choices.)
So in spite of being over a month away from closing, my wife and I have already chosen paint colors, decided where new overhead lights should be installed, determined which appliances in the kitchen will be updated and replaced the rug in the living room with a combination of laminate flooring and tile. Cost be dammed.
I relate my experience of first-time home buyership so that you, the reader, may gain some insight as to where my inspiration for my next project is coming from. In honor of my recent site overhaul, and inspired by pathology to never leave well enough alone, I am giving my computer an extreme makeover. Although, in the interest of full disclosure, much of the internal workings have already been extremely made over.
My subject is a PowerMac 8600/300 bought in 1996. This was, and still is, a great computer. It was my first. And I have found it all but impossible to let it go the way of the garbage dump. To that end, I have installed a Sonnet Crescendo G4 800mhz daughter card, a gig of RAM and a USB 1.0 PCI card. OS X Panther is running problem free and my USB peripherals cannot tell the difference. On special days, it runs as a makeshift Tivo with the addition of Evolution TV. The only problem is with the exterior. The casing has taken some pretty big blows and I’ve forgotten where most of the scratches have come from. It’s been colored by the sun and now has that sickly yellow color that screams obsolescence.
The general plan is to go from this…
…to this. Notice the clever rebranding. (Details to follow)
