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iPod Painting your ipod

D

Decahedron

macrumors regular
Original poster
Aug 10, 2005
118
0
so i managed to drop my ipod nano (black) already. so yeah the aluminum case now has 2 tiny scratches.
anyway, anyone know where to find tutorials on painting your ipod nano? either 2g or 1g whichever, i just am looking for hints and stuff. mayube since its aluminum a tutorial on painting mini might help.

anyhow, yah i think im gonna paint my black ipod a dark gray/blue,

so far the idea is cover the clickwheel screen and jacks with something (sticker?) and a circular sticker to save the apple logo and "iPod" ont he back as well as a rectangular one to keep the engraving at the bottom. werd. anyone seen any ideas/tutorials/whatever?
 
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!


Dont do it....trust me if you ever plan on selling it and upgrading it, you will loose a substantial amount.

I would much rather have a somewhat scratched iPod than a Painted:eek: one.

Just my opinion anyway...take it with a grain of salt.
 
i dindt ask anyone's opinon on whether or not to do it. i realize nobody would want to buy one, espceially if hte job is poorly done. i dont plan to ever sell it, iv been through 3 ipods now, none have been resold or anything. unless you can answer my questions dont bother posting.
 
Here's my answer. Do not do it.

2 scratches? It adds character and that is a lot easier to deal with than covering your iPod in paint. People are not giving you an opinion, they are giveing you absolute advice that you should listen to. You will most likely wreck your iPod (paint in between the click wheel and body). Most likely the paint will chip and peel away anyway leaving a bigger eyesore than 2 scratches..

But if you do do it, Please post pics! Cause I gotta see this :D
 
Decahedron said:
i dindt ask anyone's opinon on whether or not to do it. i realize nobody would want to buy one, espceially if hte job is poorly done. i dont plan to ever sell it, iv been through 3 ipods now, none have been resold or anything. unless you can answer my questions dont bother posting.
Click to expand...

Well in that case just get a can of paint of your choice and spray the mutha ****a. I have other suggestion what to do with your Nano that do not include painting, but you wouldn't care.
 
hrmm, im trying to figure out the absolute best way to do it and stuff so yah. im not trying to be a dick but im really just interested in help with what i asked, not alternatives.
im kidna intersted in doing something DIY, not having a blacknano more than i am about the 2 scratches.
 
You could try car paint - LOL. Seriously though, go to a Toyota dealership or any other car place, and they sell these car-paint-in-a-pen-tubes, kind of like the white-out tubes you get at the store. They're used for minor touchups on cars, if you're looking for a DIY thing those might be your best bet.

They may or not be expensive, I don't remember.
 
Decahedron said:
i dindt ask anyone's opinon on whether or not to do it. i realize nobody would want to buy one, espceially if hte job is poorly done. i dont plan to ever sell it, iv been through 3 ipods now, none have been resold or anything. unless you can answer my questions dont bother posting.
Click to expand...


1. maybe you should be more careful with your pods, seeing as you go through them so quickly.

2. get a case for it?

3. have you ever painted anodized aluminum? good luck with that. go ahead and order ipod number 4 now.

4. who cares and live with the scratch.
 
Lebowski said:
1. maybe you should be more careful with your pods, seeing as you go through them so quickly.

2. get a case for it?

3. have you ever painted anodized aluminum? good luck with that. go ahead and order ipod number 4 now.

4. who cares and live with the scratch.
Click to expand...
1. its had to do with faulty ipods, not a faulty user.
2. doesnt change the fact that id like a new color/to try something for myself
3. i havent, can you show me pictures or something. half the reason i asked is becuase id idnt know how the pain would takea to it.
4. useless



alot more useless posts telling me not to.
get it through your head that thisis what i want to do.
a bunch of useless posts going "NOOO OMGZ DONT HOW STUPID" arent going to change my idesire to do this. if you guys cant help me out i can lookelsewhere ig uess.
 
Use watercolors, that way if you **** it up - and you probably will - you can simply hose it down and start from scratch (no pun intended).

:rolleyes:
 
Here's some information about anodised aluminium, which explains the process and why paint might not stick to it. It seems as if sandpapering it might get rid of the anodising enough to paint, but it says you need to take it apart first, because any aluminium dust that gets inside is going to screw up your 'pod.

Might be worth going and having a chat with some car sprayers in your area even just to see what they say? Also, whatever process you use, I'd definitely take it apart first and just paint the aluminium case.
 
Go for it

Quite right Deca, you do your own thing.

Have you considered using a high quality (or not) decal, cut away the obvious bits etc and stick on. Did this with an old phone many moons okay and it turned out okay, put a clear lacquer over it too but that did not turn out so good. Probably easier than painting given the surface material.
 
Someone on here had a brushed aluminium mod on his. I have not seen any 4 painting ipods, ibooks there are loads of but not ipods§
 
®îçhå®? said:
Someone on here had a brushed aluminium mod on his. I have not seen any 4 painting ipods, ibooks there are loads of but not ipods§
Click to expand...
what is this brushed aluminum mod.

so anyhow, i assume the nature of the aluminum ipod doesnt take to paint too well. hrmm. an interesting roadblock. ill keep looking for tips and advice. i was really suprised google brought me back no DIYs or even pictures of anyone who's done it themself.
 
ecopod said:
Quite right Deca, you do your own thing.

Have you considered using a high quality (or not) decal, cut away the obvious bits etc and stick on. Did this with an old phone many moons okay and it turned out okay, put a clear lacquer over it too but that did not turn out so good. Probably easier than painting given the surface material.
Click to expand...
this sounds interesting. can you give me more information on this?
 
Decahedron said:
what is this brushed aluminum mod.

so anyhow, i assume the nature of the aluminum ipod doesnt take to paint too well. hrmm. an interesting roadblock. ill keep looking for tips and advice. i was really suprised google brought me back no DIYs or even pictures of anyone who's done it themself.
Click to expand...

I think the problems already been stated- paint dosen't like to stick to the aluminum. What I think would be really cool is if you have A LOT of spare time and are REALLY GOOD with your hands you could make a wooden or laquer exterior- by taking out the insides, measuring the aluminum case and then basing the new case of the designs. I know that is a job for a pro and is probably not even possible but I thought that might be cool.

Do you want to paint the entire thing or just touch up the scratches? I think it'll actually be easier to paint the whole thing instead of trying to get a color to match the original. Sanding will for sure be involved, and no matter what you do, as mentioned before, REMOVE THE INTERIORS first so that you don't risk getting dust/paint in there and breaking the ipod.

Anyway, good luck with whatever you choose to do and make sure to post pics!

Oh, and sorry that you got so many useless "don't do it" posts. Come on guys, its his ipod, let him do with it what he will!
 
That's EAASY. Buy a permanent marker, and whalllaaaahhh. Cheap, and you can get high off it too!
 

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jsupetran said:
That's EAASY. Buy a permanent marker, and whalllaaaahhh. Cheap, and you can get high off it too!
Click to expand...
Nice idea. Build up multiple layers of the ink and you can have an ulta thick ipod.
 
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