10 DIY enclosures for 20 bucks

[George]

The past year i am going through a financially not so good period of my life as i am tryin to help the family business, find a job relative to my degree and find my own place to live. So not a lot of money are spended for guitars,pedals and amps. In contrast with the above the diy fever is stronger than ever before so I always try to find ways to keep the budget low and still make it possible for me to build stuff.

So with no further ado this is a guide on DIRT CHEAP enclosures

Step 1:
Go to your local  metal supplier (the place that ussually have heavy machinery to cut,bend or weld metal) and search for
      -   1,5mm or 2mm thick square pipes
      -   Standart dimentions i found that are suitable for pedals are
           4cm X 10cm wide and long as much as you want and
           4cm x 12cm
      - and a 4cm wide strip of metal for the sides (you will see it in the next steps)
      *PROTIP search for leftovers i purchased the two pipes in the photo for 7euros
PIPES

STRIP for the sides of the enclosures


Step 2:
     -Cut the pipes in the desired size
     -Cut the back opening of each enclosure
     -Then weld the side strip from the inside with small dot like welds or anyway you like it to form the box
     Unfortunately i didnt take photos of these steps but you can see what i did in the finished product
After the welding

After the paint preparation

Detail of the back opening and the side welding
I also weld two smaller strips afterwards to screw the backplate on

Detail 2


Step 3:
You can now drill the enclosures or just paint them and store them for later use.
I bought 350ml Automotive paint and paint preparation for around 12 euros
You have to drill the holes for the backplates and make the threads for the screws


Step 4:
Enjoy your diy heavy duty enclosures
I spend 20euros overall (7 for the material + 12 for the paint + 1 for sandpapers) but i had a variety of tools at my disposal (cutting and welding machines) + some hard work is involved too so its better to do a big batch all at once


now some finished enclosures in action




I hope you liked it

[flanagan0718]

DAMN this is impressive! Great job!

[G.G.]

those are super cool! The industrial-looking unfinished ones look pretty nice too, have you done any that are left unfinished?

[jimilee]

Daaaammmmnnn, there's your money maker right there!


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[midwayfair]

Great job ... machining your own anything is always a step beyond

[blearyeyes]

Super impressive.

[Willybomb]

That's awesome, and the finished pedals look good.

But for me personally, it's worth all the extra $$$ not to have to do all that!

[George]

those are super cool! The industrial-looking unfinished ones look pretty nice too, have you done any that are left unfinished?

I painted all of them , but i guess if you like the raw look you could clearcoat the enclosures so it doesnt rust or if you want something really raw you could artifically rust it and then clearcoat

Also bump for knowledge! I d like to hear a word from the chemists in the forum on how to easily rust an iron enclosure (not aluminium) fast?

[George]

That's awesome, and the finished pedals look good.

But for me personally, it's worth all the extra $$$ not to have to do all that!

After drilling and threading (for the backplates) and painting (i think that was the most painstaking tasks) i have to agree on that. Its easier and cost effective only if you have the tools the know-how and only in large numbers. I learnt alot though but still next time maybe i buy my enclosures

[matmosphere]

That's awesome stuff man. They look great. Makes me wish I has your welding skills.

I feel you on the broke front. I'm right there with you and it kinda sucks. I was thinking I'd have to stop the pedal building for a while so I could work in a guitar build, but right now I think I'll have to stop both for a while.

[monkeyssj1]

that's badass

[thesameage]

amazing!

[Jebus]

Great work! I didn't even realize you could make enclosures that cheaply. Awesome!

[George]

That's awesome stuff man. They look great. Makes me wish I has your welding skills.

I feel you on the broke front. I'm right there with you and it kinda sucks. I was thinking I'd have to stop the pedal building for a while so I could work in a guitar build, but right now I think I'll have to stop both for a while.

Sorry to hear that - I stopped for a while as well .
Until now the few pedals i made was gifted to close friends or stayed with me and to be honest I dont think its worth selling my first builds, considering the work i put into them (if you remember the Jack Daniels boost for example, most of them are really one of a kind). However as i see the footswitches,female jacks and pots to disappear I think i have to make a couple of ''easy'' builds (like some boost,od or distortion) to sell to some of my friends (the ones not close enough to get them for free  ) so i can at least buy some components to fuel my hobby.

[Leevibe]

Fantastic, George! Those came out so nice!

As far as rust goes, there's nothing easier than rusting mild steel. Just degrease it and lt it get wet. Salt water will do the trick really fast.