Sunking (AKA Big Bad Love)

[Jamiroking]

This is the board that I got from Danny in his pay it forward a while ago and it has become the ultimate pay-it-forward board! I ended up letting my brother try his hand at building it and then halfway through we decided to give it to a friend of ours once we finished as a thank you for some Bon Iver tickets he gave me. My friend is the lead singer of a great band that I used to play for called Wires in the Walls so I decided to name the pedal after one of their songs, "Big Bad Love" and incorporate some of their album art into the design. You can check them out here www.wiresinthewalls.com. I'm going to give it to him later today.








As for the finish, this is my first "all over decal" job and I also started using the envirotex stuff that some people have mentioned on hear. It does give amazing results but it is suuuuper messy and a bit of work to apply. Because it is made for flat surfaces, you can get some problems with the pooling on the bottom edges as it drips off. I don't mind the lip that forms from it pooling but the big drops don't look that great. 

Here's the method I've found that works the best

1) Tape up the screw holes (Trust me!)
2) Put tapes on the actual edge of the pedal (where it would touch the lid) This will allow the envirotex to flow down something instead of just forming a big drop.
3) Mix the stuff real well but wait a couple minutes before applying. It is recommended to warm the solution and apply immediately to be able to get out bubbles but this only works by making the stuff more fluid which doesn't help us since we have a 3 dimensional object. By waiting, it'll be a little thicker and will stick to the sides a little.
4) Pour it on the top and use a plastic knife to spread to the sides
5) Scrape up the stuff that drips off and re-apply it to the top of the sides, letting it drip down again
6) Get rid of bubbles by blowing on it
REPEAT 5 and 6 until it is thick enough that it's holding its coverage over the whole pedal.
7) Pop any bubbles with the knife since it'll be too thick to blow out. It'll still be liquidy enough to recover from the knife mark though
Let it sit in front of a space heater to speed up the curing.

[k.rock!]

Man, this is rad....u really did a great job here. And thanks for the details! Really useful stuff man. Im digging that all-over-pedal decal!! Super sweet


-Kaleb

[dwstanford]

Wow, tremendous job!  That turned out better than i could have hoped.  I am gonna have to try the envirotex.  Looks great.  Ive done countertops with similar epoxy and it definitely takes some getting used to. 

[marauder]

Some more envirotex hints.

Don't mix a small quantity, less than 30ml.  I've found that the measuring cups I used, are probably not quite accurate in the markings, and I've had a few pours than didn't harden properly.  It's not my mixing techniques, as the first few I did, I mix 30-40ml of the stuff, which was way too much for a single pedal, and it hardened perfectly.  Only when using less amounts have I had problems.  I'm now mixing 40ml, and doing a few pedals at once.

It is possible to just pour on the tops which gives a nice look if the enclosure is bare metal, and given a but of the polish.  Check for runs regularly, and wipe them off with alcohol on a rag.  If you notice one after a day, be very careful, and cut vertically through the run using a razor or scalpel.  Try not to touch the top as it hasnt fully cured.   The cut edge will polish up with 1500 wet/dry paper and polish after a week or so.

To avoid flow marks, don't have holes in the top when you pour.  I've noticed this can give a strange finish.  Also, don't drill the enclosure after pouring, as the metal particles can get between the enclosure and the envirotex, and ruin the box.

As the above seems to be a conundrum, its taken a few attempts to get a good finish.

1.  Pre drill the box.
2.  Apply the decals.
3.  Pour envirotex, and let it fully cure.
4.  Using a craft knife, cut off the decal from the inside of the holes. This stops any particles sticking to the decal, and being pushed between metal and envirotex.
5.  Carefully drill using a step bit the envirotex, but leave 1-2mm.  Don't go the the edges of the metal.
6.  Using downstrokes only, cut the remainder of the envirotex from the holes.  It might lift slightly, but don't worry, as there's no particles around, it should press back down, and the washers will squash it anyway.

It takes longer than expected, but give such a good result I'll stick with this method.

[Jamiroking]

Some more envirotex hints.

Don't mix a small quantity, less than 30ml.  I've found that the measuring cups I used, are probably not quite accurate in the markings, and I've had a few pours than didn't harden properly.  It's not my mixing techniques, as the first few I did, I mix 30-40ml of the stuff, which was way too much for a single pedal, and it hardened perfectly.  Only when using less amounts have I had problems.  I'm now mixing 40ml, and doing a few pedals at once.

It is possible to just pour on the tops which gives a nice look if the enclosure is bare metal, and given a but of the polish.  Check for runs regularly, and wipe them off with alcohol on a rag.  If you notice one after a day, be very careful, and cut vertically through the run using a razor or scalpel.  Try not to touch the top as it hasnt fully cured.   The cut edge will polish up with 1500 wet/dry paper and polish after a week or so.

To avoid flow marks, don't have holes in the top when you pour.  I've noticed this can give a strange finish.  Also, don't drill the enclosure after pouring, as the metal particles can get between the enclosure and the envirotex, and ruin the box.

As the above seems to be a conundrum, its taken a few attempts to get a good finish.

1.  Pre drill the box.
2.  Apply the decals.
3.  Pour envirotex, and let it fully cure.
4.  Using a craft knife, cut off the decal from the inside of the holes. This stops any particles sticking to the decal, and being pushed between metal and envirotex.
5.  Carefully drill using a step bit the envirotex, but leave 1-2mm.  Don't go the the edges of the metal.
6.  Using downstrokes only, cut the remainder of the envirotex from the holes.  It might lift slightly, but don't worry, as there's no particles around, it should press back down, and the washers will squash it anyway.

It takes longer than expected, but give such a good result I'll stick with this method.

Thats strange that you were not getting accurate mixing. I've just been using the little plastic containers you get at salsa bars to mix it all up and havent had any hardening problems at all. Are you talking about 30ml of each bottle or 30 ml combined? For my first pedal, I just filled the little 1oz salsa container half way up with resin and then the rest of the way up with hardener, completely eyeballing it.

As far as flow marks, are you talking about marks within the finish or just drips that form? I've been drilling all my enclosures first and just taking an xacto knife to any hangy drips or the stuff that collects in the holes making the hole too small to fit the component in.

[TNblueshawk]

Damn that looks killer. I used to decal all sides and then stopped due to ink cost and time really.

Use a propane torch to get rid of bubbles. When I blow I spit 

Maybe Maurader is talking about the pillowing around the top holes? Dunno.