Don't you have to worry about painting the metal case to match the front plastics (which all yellow differently) or do you guys paint them as well?

I have an old dual 5.25" XT with a very yellowed faceplace and a very scratched metal case (inside is pretty much mint) that I repainted a couple years ago and it turned out ok.

If the case has scratches or the colour differs largly, I pait it as well.
I first spraypaint the hood once and let it dry - repeat with a second or third coating.
On the last coating I treat the surface with a foam roller for the surface finish.
Worked well for the last two cases I did.

Hi! There's an Android program called "Color Grab".
It can identify colours quite well, I think, even in different lighting.

From my experiance a real colour chart/guide is more helpful.
I've got some (Pantone/HKS/RAL etc.) but they are usually quite exprensive to buy, but maybe you can borrow one at your local DIY store ...

Anyone here try Rustoleum Smokey Beige? I've read on Reddit that it's a good match. The few times i'm in a big box store they haven't had it. Might just order it on Amazon to try out. Have a card reader i'm trying to blend into a retro build.

recently I have been asked how (my favourite) spraypaint colours RAL 1013 VS 9002 look in comparison.
... so I've put two cases side by side an took a snap shot.

ildonaldo wrote on 2023-02-03, 08:42:

recently I have been asked how (my favourite) spraypaint colours RAL 1013 VS 9002 look in comparison.
... so I've put two cases side by side an took a snap shot.

RAL.jpg

That RAL 1013 looks pretty much exactly like what my color comparison chart showed. I think 9003 is a better fit for most machines than 9002 still though.

If you Google something like "spray paint for retro PC" this thread is one of the first hits. So I just wanted to add my own two cents and findings.

I think one very important factor is the sheen. In my opinion, when spraying plastics you need to use either flat or matte. Any higher sheen will make plastics look bad. Satin isn't too horrible, but still not passable in my opinion. Semi-gloss and gloss are definitely not even worth trying. At least, textured plastic sprayed with semi-gloss or gloss looks horrible to me. Smooth plastic is something else, if that's the look you're going for. But most retro PC stuff is textured.

That said, I think the commonly found Rust-Oleum Heirloom White can be a good color match, but it's unfortunately only found in satin. There are no matte or flat options for this color, as far as I can find. And similarly, Ivory Bisque is only available in semi-gloss, which makes it a non-starter for me.

Krylon Fusion has long been my favorite rattle can for spraying plastics. As long as you stick to flat or matte, and build up very light coats (do not try and cover in one coat - this is the common mistake many people make) it ends up looking mint. Unfortunately, a lot of stores in my area no longer stock Krylon so it's becoming harder to find locally. And it's useless trying to match color samples on the computer screen. But I was able to find one, Matte Clamshell, and it's definitely a contender!

Over the last few months, I've been casually browsing the rattle can shelves whenever I pass by one. I've just been keeping an eye out for good color matches because the only real way to know is to spray a sample and see what it looks like. I've trained myself to ignore anything that isn't Krylon or Rust-Oleum 🤣, so recently I've been unlearning that behavior. And that's how I noticed the brand Magnolia Home in Lowe's. Apparently it has some sort of affiliation with Kilz. It says "Crafted with Kilz" on the bottle, so I don't know if that means Kilz makes it or what. I've never used it before, but it seems OK from the few test sample I did with it. And they have a very good color selection. I ended up picking up the colors Shiplap and Yarn.

I've been holding the can lids and my test pieces up to various computer cases and drives. A better match seems to depend on how yellowed something is. But I've also found that I have different opinions on the colors based on the lighting conditions when I'm looking at it. So I might think one color is a good match, but have a different opinion of it under brighter lights.

Sorry for the awful lighting conditions in the above picture. I didn't realize how bad the lighting is that room, and how bad the shadows are. These were laid on top of a metal cover from a generic PC case from 1994. The one on the far right, the Heirloom White, is the 5.25" bay cover from that PC case. The 3 other samples are 3D printed 3.5" bay covers, so they have a texture but not the same texture as what you'd typically find on a retro PC. Still, good enough for a quick test.

Above are the same samples, but under much brighter and whiter lighting (the lighting in the other room was a little dimmer and much warmer). It's not immediately apparent, but I believe it's still noticeable that the satin Heirloom White bounces more light off of it compared to the other 3 pieces. The Shiplap color ends up looking much closer to white in this picture, again this was under very bright and white/cool lighting, but in person it's more of a light grey.

There's a limit of 5 attachments per post. I will follow up with another post with more pictures of these samples installed in a computer case.

If I had to pick the closest match for this exact PC case, I think I would go with Krylon Fusion Matte Clamshell.

Magnolia Home Yarn isn't bad, but it's much more grey than the case (perhaps the case yellowed slightly). Still, if I installed a drive in this case that was the color Yarn, I don't think it would look out of place. And I am considering this color for a case that I'm restoring.

Shiplap is of course much too light grey for this case, but I can see this color matching other computers. Especially colors that are closer to what they looked like when new. And I might consider using Shiplap if I'm going to spray a case, where I don't have to match anything. It's a nice light-grey in person, it just ends up looking more like white in the pictures.

Heirloom White is just not a good match at all for this case, although it looks like a better fit for other PCs I have that are more yellowed. Still, I don't like that it's satin. I feel like no matter how good of a color match Heirloom White is, the fact that it's satin will make it stick out in any PC case. I've heard that if you spray a matte clear coat over a satin paint, that can do the trick. But I haven't tried this myself, at least not yet.

Anyway, just wanted to share my findings. If you're trying to match colors, I would definitely pick up Clamshell, Shiplap and Yarn and see how they work for you.

And I just figured I'd share these quick tips here... Whenever spray painting plastic is brought up, I very often see people say that their paint jobs always end up looking awful. There's a few key rules, and if you follow them you can get amazing results (just practice a few times on things that don't matter until you get your technique down). One, when spraying plastics, stick to matte or flat. No matter how good your technique is, gloss will make plastics look horrible. Two, you have to thoroughly clean plastics but do not sand them or you will remove the texture they have. Three, when spraying be sure to never stop moving. If you hold the can still while spraying, bad things will happen. Start and stop spraying OFF of the item your painting. Practice your technique on cardboard or something, which is always a good thing to make sure you aren't spitting snots or anything like that. And lastly, and probably most importantly, spray VERY LIGHT coats. Do not try to cover in one coat. At best you'll get a blotchy mess, at worst you'll fill in some of the plastic's texture and change the entire appearance of the piece. And possibly you'll get drips, depending on how it's oriented. That said, lay your pieces flat whenever possible. Spray light coats, one coat at a time until it's fully covered (following the suggested time between coats printed on the side of the can).

edit: Just wanted to add some updates.

I've sprayed 3 coats of Magnolia Home Yarn on the front plastic bezel and metal top cover of a PC case. It sprays just as well as Krylon or Rust-Oleum, and seems to cover and lay out just as well too. I would rate it closer to Krylon Fusion, which is a good thing in my opinion. It also seems to have the drying properties closer to Krylon Fusion, which is another plus in my opinion. The can says dries to the touch in 15 minutes, which was try for me. I was able to handle the front bezel by the edges so that I could brush off some crusties between coats. No issues there.

One thing occurred to me though. I never used this "ultra matte chalk" paint before. I don't know how ultra matte compares to regular matte or flat. Basically, the more sheen the easier it is to clean. Flat can hold grime really well. By I never had an issue with Krylon Fusion flat or matte paints, as far as getting dirty or not being able to clean well. So only time will tell if this ultra matte chalk paint was a bad choice or not, in regards to getting dirty and ability to be cleaned. It's summer on Long Island, so it's as humid as it can get. It always takes longer for things to fully cure. I will update my thoughts on the finish once it's cured and I feel like I can start handling it. I figure the worst case scenario is that I spray over it with Krylon Fusion Matte Clamshell, and then problem solved.

I also forgot to mention before... Anyone looking to spray the metal chassis of a PC case, I found that Rust-Oleum Metallic Aluminum is pretty much perfect.

https://www.rustoleum.com/product-catalog/con … -metallic-spray

Before:

After:

Krylon - Matte Clamshel looks the best to me. Normally, when it comes to the situation in which I'm missing the factory 3.5" slot cover, I will try to populate the 3.5" bay with a device, e.g. SuperDisk, Zip, Gigamo, tape drive, etc. I keep different bezels for each of these so that I can match the colour pretty well without painting.

For other situations, if I need something painted to match the bezel, I've started going to Home Depot and getting a small paint can colour matched and just use a very fine roller or brush to paint the part. For painting metal cases, I can say that the most matte finish doesn't look or feel quite right. I think satin or semi-gloss might fit best here.

For painting plastic to match a plastic bezel, then I'd agree that matte is probably the most suitable.

The bezel that I sprayed with Magnolia Home ultra matte chalk paint is dry enough to handle a little more. I have to say, I'm not entirely pleased with the results. It just didn't lay out as flat as Krylon or Rust-Oleum does for me, using the same technique.

Pay no attention the badge area, I was too lazy to clean all of the old glue residue off before spraying it. However, the rest of this bezel was cleaned very well prior to spraying. I only mention this to say that I don't believe the results are from anything I did wrong.

Anyway, it has a sort of fuzzy roughness to the finish that I do not like. I will have to sand it down to get rid of the roughness, which I never have to do with Krylon Fusion. I could try and use a very high grit paper, maybe even wet sand it, to try and get rid of the roughness without scuffing it up any. But to be honest, I might just sand it down with a sponge and go over it with the Krylon Fusion Matte Clamshell. Right now I have the 5.25" bay cover to this bezel that I've been using to test things. I have sanded it down enough to get rid of the roughness but not wreck the natural texture of the plastic, and sprayed over it with Krylon. If I like the results, then I'll probably do the same to the bezel and call it a day.

Just wanted to mention all of this in case anyone else was interested in using Magnolia Home chalk spray paint. I've never used a chalk paint before, so I don't know if these results are typical or not. Maybe there's something I'm suppose to do differently for chalk paint? I'd be interested to hear if anyone has any tips.

feipoa wrote on 2024-08-03, 06:41:

Krylon - Matte Clamshel looks the best to me. Normally, when it comes to the situation in which I'm missing the factory 3.5" slot cover, I will try to populate the 3.5" bay with a device, e.g. SuperDisk, Zip, Gigamo, tape drive, etc. I keep different bezels for each of these so that I can match the colour pretty well without painting.

I initially had the same thought, to just stick another drive in there. I actually picked up a 3.5" IrDA sensor thing off eBay to fill this spot (FYI, 3.5 and 5.25" IrDA sensors are plentiful on eBay right now and are a great solution for this). But Krylon Clamshell is such a good match for this particular case, I may just do that instead.

feipoa wrote on 2024-08-03, 06:41:

For painting metal cases, I can say that the most matte finish doesn't look or feel quite right. I think satin or semi-gloss might fit best here.

Yes, I would have to agree. I sprayed the top of my metal case with matte to color match it. I knew going in that it would be an experiment using matte on the metal part of the case. And you're absolutely right, it just doesn't look or feel right. I have a can of Rust-Oleum satin clear enamel on hand. I think I will spray this over the matte finish, that should do the trick! Semi-gloss might be a bit too much shine though.

I'm in the process of restoring the AT case to the best possible condition. I sprayed the front with RAL 9002 and it looks amazing, like new. I've already noticed that dirt sticks more easily afterwards, although it's not a big problem (tap water helps). I've also tried retro brightening of the plastics and it helps a little, but then it's even worse and it's too much work.

I decided to paint it, on these pictures it looks good but indoors its awfully yellow. I will post after pictures tomorrow.

Did you first rough up the surface (light sanding) and add a primer base before spraying the beige?

Not all paints require sanding and priming. Krylon Fusion and Rust-Oleum 2X, for example, are paint + primer and do not require a separate primer to be sprayed first. Krylon Fusion also states "no sanding required." Any plastic that has a textured surface, I would advise against sanding because you would be smoothing out that texture. The important part would be cleaning it well, and with something that can get in the plastic's texture (rough side of a sponge, medium-hard bristle brush, etc - just not so abrasive that you put scratches in it).

ziggy587 wrote on 2024-08-25, 12:49:

Not all paints require sanding and priming. Krylon Fusion and Rust-Oleum 2X, for example, are paint + primer and do not require a separate primer to be sprayed first.

I think it depends on the substrate (and the paint) to determine how effective those paint + primer solutions are. Some year ago, I was trying to use a paint + primer can on a bare metal case, which I had cleaned prior. Within a 15 minutes of applying the paint + primer combo can, the paint started to turn brown, as if the metal was reacting with the paint. I removed the paint, and tried again, but the same thing happened. I removed the paint, sprayed on just primer, then painted with the paint+primer can, and all was fine.

As for plastics, I've tried spraying over bare plastic, but found the paint chipped off easier than if I had used solo primer, then paint.

Your experience may vary, but after these tests, and some others, I always use primer on bare substrates.

Another example I had was with an old water stain on the ceiling of our shower. It didn't matter how well I cleaned up the paint - if I didn't use a solo primer spray can, or an oil based brush-on paint first, the water stain would keep coming through the paint.

Krylon fusion, for its sub $10 cost, its good for metal & plastics.. my friend painted the interior of a VW Golf with it, with good effect

- Ivory (COLORmaxx), appears to be PC beige

I have ordered a K7 RAL chart and waiting for it.
My MACASE cases kind of matches Belton Molotow Light Stone Grey pretty well.

RAL 7044 - Silk Grey is my favorite RAL/standard color so far.
Have anyone tested RAL 9001 - Creme White? I have high hopes for that one, since it is in the same club as the others, but all the yellow 10xx series are a bit off.

Anyone have any idea what color charts were available to Taiwanese factories at the time?

I have nothing valuable to contribute but I want to say thank you for all the expertise and hard work so far!

feipoa wrote on 2024-08-24, 00:50:

Did you first rough up the surface (light sanding) and add a primer base before spraying the beige?

It's not needed in this case I think. Maybe this can be a problem when surface is smooth, but it's slightly rough. Before painting, I cleaned the surfaces with extraction gasoline and that is enough.

I haven't finished painting this case yet, it needs more coats to cover this “ADAX” lettering.