Case Repair Tips for a n00b

Hi all,

the title pretty much says it all, I'm new to console modding and am looking for general advice on do's/dont's, good/bad materials, paint types and any other general tips you more experienced guys can give.

My first repair is going to be filling a large VGA shaped hole in my Dreamcast - I mounted the VGA too low on the back panel so the case won't close and I'd rather relocate it than hack away at the laser's base to make it fit!

I was thinking of patching it up with sugru - anyone tried that and if so, is it suitable? It doesn't matter if it's not a perfect match as I'm planning on painting the console black eventually.

Any tips, guides, links etc. will be much appreciated.

 

what I use to fill holes on the cases is epoxy especially the one that is like a clay and can be molded.

 

This is why I stay away from case mods. Soldering is easier to fix!

 

Thanks, I hadn't thought of epoxy. I've ordered some Milliput

Haha yes I may have been a little ambitious with this as I have done zero case modding before, but you've got to start somewhere! Painting it is going to be most difficult to look right I think, looks as though vinyl dye is the way to go for that

 

You won't get it to look right - plastic has a texture to it that you're not going to get with Milliput, and it was never painted.

Best bet if you want it to look right is to use parts from a dead console. Filling the hole and doing something to the whole case (e.g. a respray) might come out OK, though.

 

I'm planning on spraying the whole thing black with vinyl dye, hopefully it'll make the milliput look OK - I know it'll never be perfect because it'll have a different texture, but as long as it's not obvious til you look up close, it'll do for me - unless I happen across a dead DC for next to nothing!

 

I gave up on some SNES units that were yellowed to hell and the cases were brittle as my frail old bones.
Spray painted one red, one black - mixing and matching the parts. Looks great from a distance...
I mean until you get up close and see how bad I am at spray painting... Ughhh.

Be sure to post pictures when you are done! :smile-new:

 

I use some vinyl paint on custom paint cases and they look good. I normally use the vinyl as a base to protect and hide some imperfections on the cases, like scratches, minor bumps and filled holes.

 

filling a hole > stick something flat over the front of the hole (the outside), fill(from the back making sure not to leave air bubbles) with any filler you can get, or epoxy or fiber glass kit overlapping at the back (so it doesn;t fall out), let it set / harden remove the flat thing you stuck over the outside of the hole, the filler should be nice and flat / flush with the rest of the case, if there's any cracks or bubbles sand down and full them in with epoxy sand again. prime and paint.

or the lazy way get some sticky back plastic and place it over the hole and just paint over it.

option 3: buy a dreamcast with a dead laser and use the case from that.