Aion FX Calliope (Karma Suture)

[Aleph Null]

This is a stock silicon version of the Calliope, which is the Catalinbread Karma Suture, which is based on the Interfax Harmonic Percolator.



Aion layouts always make for clean builds. I used a 2N3906 for Q1 and a 2N5089 for Q2. I bread boarded the circuit and played with some components, but the original is so well voiced I found I couldn't add anything to it. Increasing R2 made it more splatty and grating. A BS170 for Q2 made for softer saturation and more germanium-esque sounds. The Harmonic Percolator circuit seems to be pretty insensitive to value changes on the whole.



Purple and pale pink hydro dip finish over red powder coat.  I'm finding I like to put down two sparse layers of hydro dip color because it gives the finished product more depth.



This effect is hard to describe. If's an overdrive with the heart of a fuzz.

[dawson]

If's an overdrive with the heart of a fuzz.

Interesting description!

Your hydro-dip turned out really impressive- am I gathering the process correctly?
Starting with a white enclosure, you dipped it in Red, let it dry, then dipped it a second time in Purple?

[Derpinador]

Nice effect with the color combo, and the percolator was pretty fluid for parts, even the originals, from the creator of Interfax,  were never the same batch to batch except for the general sound.

he said red powder then dipped the rest.

[Bio77]

That looks great! 

[jimilee]

That's really cool looking, so it's a clone of a clone?


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[Aleph Null]

Forgot the gut shot!

Starting with a white enclosure, you dipped it in Red, let it dry, then dipped it a second time in Purple?

I started with a red powder coat enclosure, then dipped pink and purple (at the same time). I actually did two dips to increase the coverage and to add depth.

That's really cool looking, so it's a clone of a clone?

Thanks! It's an adaptation of a highly modified clone.  (I used different transistors than Catalinbread).

[dawson]

Nice- I was way off!

[jjjimi84]

That is really neat, do you have any recommendations on how to start doing hydro dipping?

[Aleph Null]

That is really neat, do you have any recommendations on how to start doing hydro dipping?

A lot of the tutorials I found recommend model paint or a special kind of acrylic. They'll also suggest warm water with borax added. None of that worked for me. I only had success with spray paint.

Fill a bucket with water (a lager bucket than you think you'll need), then spay the paint at a low angle across the surface. The propellant is usually enough to get the paint swirling, but you could stir before adding paint to get the water moving too. Do short bursts and let the paint settle in between each burst. You can slowly build up the coverage you want on the surface this way. It takes way less paint than you would think. Too much and you get bubbles that will pop and leave empty divots.  After dipping, you can wick away excess water with a blow dryer.

Definitely prime the enclosure first, but I haven't found it necessary to rough up the surface or anything once it's primed. If you want complete coverage (the traditional hydro dip approach), you'll have to build up the paint on the surface of the water until you can't see through to the bottom of the bucket. Plan your route to pick up the colors you want. You can move the enclosure back and forth across the surface to pick up more color. Starting with a corner seems to work best. If you want clean lines, avoid moving the enclosure up and down. The enclosure should always be moving deeper into the water to avoid mixing the paints.

For this dip, I didn't want perfect coverage because I wanted the powder coat to show through. I also dipped twice and didn't even wait for it to dry first. This is what gives it depth and what made the light blue color: that's the purple and pink mixing. If you want layers, you'll have to eyeball it and work in multiple passes.

Definitely wear gloves for this: the paint will stick to everything. I'd also recommend practicing on a scrap enclosure or a piece of wood first to get a feel for it. I've had the best results dipping the lid and enclosure separately and after drilling (drilling can chip the paint). Let it dry for a day or two, the clear coat as usual.