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S4 MINI Classic (S4M-C)

Zero

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Jan 27, 2017
120
262
So I presume you are selling an set of panels and a bezel?

I had the panel off for illustrative purposes, and I'm keeping the bezel for whenever there's a high-end Mini ITX card that hits my performance wants. The 1080ti has an astronomical amount of performance for just 220w TDP; in five more years probably the majority of GPUs can be Mini ITX, between both lower cooling requirements and HBM ram allowing the PCBs to get ever more compact. If most of them are still large when even the high end cards are below 150w, it'll only be because of marketing (i.e. "GPU can't be powerful if it's small" mentality).
 

BrainTaste

Average Stuffer
Jan 3, 2017
66
93
steamcommunity.com
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Ceros_X

King of Cable Management
Mar 8, 2016
748
660
I always wonder if Josh dies a little inside when he sees his carefully powder coated cases plastidipped and dremeled. :D
 

CubanLegend

Steely-Eyed NVFlash Man
Dec 23, 2016
834
1,011
smallformfactor.net
Howdy all, especially @CubanLegend, I was thinking of spraying this stuff on my S4 mini Side Panels to add a rugged-ish look to the case as well as making it scratch-proof.

Stuff: http://www.quadratec.com/p/bed-armo...KQTXlpAo19rMv_lSIHDdU2Mu32zCO_qVQAaAutF8P8HAQ

I think it would have the added bonus of looking pretty tight.

Thoughts? Concerns? Better ideas?

Edit: The general consensus of the truck community is that Duplicolor works well
Hmmmm... So are you going for a powder-coated look? Nice, I like the idea. Is this bed-liner as easily removable as plastidip or is it a one-time, once-and-forever application? Is your S4 mini one of the batch 2 versions in brushed aluminum or is it already powdercoated like some batch 1 units?

And I'm just speaking out loud here... but... Why not get even MORE creative and spray some sort of logo onto your side panel using a paper or something like a stencil? To sort of get a result like this case I spotted in one of Josh's recent videos (the HDPLEX-300 video):

HINT to my future S4-mini exterior mod plans: I'm actually planning to do one side of my case in ORANGE like that Half-life logo above, and the other side in BLUE with the Aperture Science Logo, and then I was even going to color in the circular white LED on the power button down the middle to match each side, kinda like two-face :D (I know it's an ugly art idea but I love Half-life and Portal a TON so yeah)

You have more color options with Plasti Dip. But if you are going for "rugged" bed liner is probably better.

https://www.dipyourcar.com/

https://www.youtube.com/user/DipYourCarcom
I also wanted to do plastidip to my side panels as well. (And I still plan on a dual tone or two-faced look... so we'll see.) But I'm worrying about my case's styling AFTER I get my LP53 in and AFTER my delid once my performance and temps are where i want them. Besides, I actually really like the brushed aluminum, its VERY scratch resistant, every time im afraid i accidentally scratched it with my screwdriver, I brush my fingers over the "scratch" to see how deep it was and it disappears, magical! :)

I always wonder if Josh dies a little inside when he sees his carefully powder coated cases plastidipped and dremeled. :D
I mean, I feel like @Josh | NFC must cringe at least little bit inside when he sees them, because that's not how he originally intended his cases to look... but I also feel he'd be okay with it considering his cases (which are already a work of art) are being used as a canvas for self-expression on the part of the users he sells them to all over the world. So that no two S4 mini's are ever the same, they are all unique snowflakes...
 
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rokabeka

network packet manipulator
Jul 9, 2016
248
269
I always wonder if Josh dies a little inside when he sees his carefully powder coated cases plastidipped and dremeled. :D
well, dremeling maybe. but plastidip... he did this himself :) and the outcome is awesome. it has a completely different shine and really interesting touch.
 
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GreatestUnKnown

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Dec 30, 2016
108
154

Got my tag in the mail today.

That's the attention to detail that gives me a moto-b***er. Even has the MIL-PRF for chemical identification to correspond with an MSDS. I love it! Maybe an NSN or METCAL to add your info as CDI or place your name somewhere like how Plane Captains do on the side of aviation?
 
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Curiosity

Too busy figuring out if I can to think if I shoul
Platinum Supporter
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M...M...M...M...Multi-Tier...Subscriber...
Apr 30, 2016
724
838
Looks awesome, who did you use to get it made?
 
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Curiosity

Too busy figuring out if I can to think if I shoul
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M...M...M...M...Multi-Tier...Subscriber...
Apr 30, 2016
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I won't speak for @Smallform Gaming but we used local shops that sell trophies for engraving on plaques and other similar projects.
Ah yeah that would make sense, I'll have to go ask the trophy shop near me to see if they can whip one up for me or something. can't believe I didn't think of that!
 
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Smallform Gaming

Cable-Tie Ninja
Aug 10, 2016
154
163
Looks awesome, who did you use to get it made?

@RenG was kind enough to share the contact info with me for the data plates. It is an Etsy seller and did a fantastic custom job. Keep in mind these plates are small: 10x44mm and the company does military grade outdoor plates with adhesive backing. The faux screws were my idea for an embellishment to make it look more military like without drilling into the mini.
 
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Smallform Gaming

Cable-Tie Ninja
Aug 10, 2016
154
163
That's the attention to detail that gives me a moto-b***er. Even has the MIL-PRF for chemical identification to correspond with an MSDS. I love it! Maybe an NSN or METCAL to add your info as CDI or place your name somewhere like how Plane Captains do on the side of aviation?

Thanks! The devil is in the details.
http://everyspec.com/MIL-PRF/MIL-PRF-030000-79999/download.php?spec=MIL-PRF-32348.046604.pdf

Turns out this paint in accordance with Military Performance, in addition to being Chemical Agent resistant, is infrared reflective, water resistant, and has a specific measured "hiding power.
 

CubanLegend

Steely-Eyed NVFlash Man
Dec 23, 2016
834
1,011
smallformfactor.net
It was my fault, but it had a bunch of build-up spots. I removed the Plastidip and am instead just adding glossifier to it. I want that super sleek shiny black look.
Ah I see, yeah just remember to do even strokes and keep the nozzle the same distance apart from the surface you're spraying on. Also remember the first 1-3 coats wont give you full coverage, just wait 15 minutes between coats and keep adding and by the 4th or 5th coat you should have full coverage and then you can add as many more coats as you want after that.

Look at my sig for my S4 build thread to see how I plastidipped my read Cosrair RAM heatspreaders with Black Plastidip, if you're worried about how the first few coats might look. :)
 
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