Tweet
It's been over 4 weeks since the last update, and I have no idea how to get to my previous thread on Sunosub III, so I'm starting this new continuation of my construction of Sunosub III. (Is there a search feature on the HTG or a show the topics from the last "so-and-so" days ago?)
November 1, 2000
Well, it's finally November, and I'm still waiting for the Tempest drivers. But I hear that they are finally being shipped out from Adire, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to work on the subs this weekend or next weekend.
Here's some photos of the final sanding for the bottom endcap from September 25, 2000:
Photo 62 : Here's a shot of the bottom endcap's surface and edges being sanded smooth.
Photo 63 : This is a close-up shot of sanding down the edges of the endcap.
What have I been doing for the past 3 weeks? Destroying my table top. My original plans was to go for a piano black finish on the table top for Sunosub III. Well, I'll document the horror story that I created all on my own through my ignorance.
Don't do what I show in the next section of photos. My fundamental mistake was using normal ENAMEL spray paint underneath LACQUER paint. You'll see what happens and what I tried to do to fix it...
Photo 64 : I spray primer on the underside of the endcap.
Photo 65 : I then spray on the black ENAMEL paint (don't do this!)
Photo 66 : After I primed the top side, I painted it with black ENAMEL spray paint. Here's the wetsandpaper I used (both 400 and 600 grit) and a cup of water - I use a big bucket of water later on).
Photo 67 : I start to wetsand the surface with the wetsandpaper.
Photo 68 : More wetsanding of the top surface.
Photo 69 : This is what happened when I applied a coat of clear LACQUER! Yuck! It's downhill from now on...
Photo 70 : I sand my butt off and then fill in the gaps with wood filler. It's just plain sad.
Photo 71 : Well, I painted it with black LACQUER paint, so it look okay...but...
Photo 72 : Here's a photo of the clear and black LACQUER spray paint that I start to use from now on (I bought lots of cans at $4/can at Home Depot).
Photo 73 : The surface was still pretty yucky, so another round of surface repair attempt with more sanding and wood filling.
Photo 74 : I re-paint the top and then wetsand it yet again. I still have lots of problems with the surface. It's becoming futile...
Photo 75 : At this point, I see that it's just not going to work...
So I decide to use the other side of the table top MDF. There's a lot of sanding by me to get as much of the ENAMEL paint off from the new side that I'm going to work on. Plus I also used some paint thinner to get the stuff off.
Photo 76 : I prime the other side in an effort to start anew.
Well, you get the idea of wetsanding and painting: paint the surface, and then wetsand out all the imperfections. On the new side, I did this with only LACQUER spray paint (both clear and black), and for some reason, I still would screw stuff up with inadvertent gouges into the surface with my finger nails as I was wetsanding the surface, and had to do minor repair. I won't bore you with anymore horror photos.
I applied about 6 coats of alternating clear LACQUER, wetsand with 400 grit and then 600 grit, black LACQUER, wetsand with 400 grit and 600 grit.
Finally I am tired of going for the absolute flatest possible surface, I ended the painting process with 2 clear coats with no more sanding. Here's the final results.
Photo 77 : Using no flash, here's the 1st photo of the "shiny" surface.
Photo 78 : As you can see by waviness of the reflection of my garage door apparatus mounted on the ceiling, there are surface imperfections in the flatness of the table top.
Photo 79 : Here's one final shot of the table top. Whew, I have no idea how many cans of LACQUER paint I used and wasted, but it's a lesson that costed me quite a bit.
So here's what I learned: Never, ever, use ENAMEL paint underneath any LACQUER paint. It's a road paved with bad intentions. You must absolutely have good air flow when you spray LACQUER paint, that stuff will give you a headache if you inhale too much of it. Also, I'll be letting the table top's painted surface "harden" for 3 months before I wax it to get the final shine of the surface.
Also, I must confess: I've played the game of golf, but I've never cussed as much as I did when I saw what ENAMEL paint does when it interacts with LACQUER paint. I was cussing under my breath for quite a few days as I work to try and salvage the top. But I felt better once I moved to use the other side. It did go better once I figured out what I was doing.
Hopefully my Tempest drivers will show up soon so I can finish my Sunosubs!
PatCave; HT Pix;Gear;DIY Projects;DVDs; LDs
November 1, 2000
Well, it's finally November, and I'm still waiting for the Tempest drivers. But I hear that they are finally being shipped out from Adire, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to work on the subs this weekend or next weekend.
Here's some photos of the final sanding for the bottom endcap from September 25, 2000:
Photo 62 : Here's a shot of the bottom endcap's surface and edges being sanded smooth.
Photo 63 : This is a close-up shot of sanding down the edges of the endcap.
What have I been doing for the past 3 weeks? Destroying my table top. My original plans was to go for a piano black finish on the table top for Sunosub III. Well, I'll document the horror story that I created all on my own through my ignorance.
Don't do what I show in the next section of photos. My fundamental mistake was using normal ENAMEL spray paint underneath LACQUER paint. You'll see what happens and what I tried to do to fix it...
Photo 64 : I spray primer on the underside of the endcap.
Photo 65 : I then spray on the black ENAMEL paint (don't do this!)
Photo 66 : After I primed the top side, I painted it with black ENAMEL spray paint. Here's the wetsandpaper I used (both 400 and 600 grit) and a cup of water - I use a big bucket of water later on).
Photo 67 : I start to wetsand the surface with the wetsandpaper.
Photo 68 : More wetsanding of the top surface.
Photo 69 : This is what happened when I applied a coat of clear LACQUER! Yuck! It's downhill from now on...
Photo 70 : I sand my butt off and then fill in the gaps with wood filler. It's just plain sad.
Photo 71 : Well, I painted it with black LACQUER paint, so it look okay...but...
Photo 72 : Here's a photo of the clear and black LACQUER spray paint that I start to use from now on (I bought lots of cans at $4/can at Home Depot).
Photo 73 : The surface was still pretty yucky, so another round of surface repair attempt with more sanding and wood filling.
Photo 74 : I re-paint the top and then wetsand it yet again. I still have lots of problems with the surface. It's becoming futile...
Photo 75 : At this point, I see that it's just not going to work...
So I decide to use the other side of the table top MDF. There's a lot of sanding by me to get as much of the ENAMEL paint off from the new side that I'm going to work on. Plus I also used some paint thinner to get the stuff off.
Photo 76 : I prime the other side in an effort to start anew.
Well, you get the idea of wetsanding and painting: paint the surface, and then wetsand out all the imperfections. On the new side, I did this with only LACQUER spray paint (both clear and black), and for some reason, I still would screw stuff up with inadvertent gouges into the surface with my finger nails as I was wetsanding the surface, and had to do minor repair. I won't bore you with anymore horror photos.
I applied about 6 coats of alternating clear LACQUER, wetsand with 400 grit and then 600 grit, black LACQUER, wetsand with 400 grit and 600 grit.
Finally I am tired of going for the absolute flatest possible surface, I ended the painting process with 2 clear coats with no more sanding. Here's the final results.
Photo 77 : Using no flash, here's the 1st photo of the "shiny" surface.
Photo 78 : As you can see by waviness of the reflection of my garage door apparatus mounted on the ceiling, there are surface imperfections in the flatness of the table top.
Photo 79 : Here's one final shot of the table top. Whew, I have no idea how many cans of LACQUER paint I used and wasted, but it's a lesson that costed me quite a bit.
So here's what I learned: Never, ever, use ENAMEL paint underneath any LACQUER paint. It's a road paved with bad intentions. You must absolutely have good air flow when you spray LACQUER paint, that stuff will give you a headache if you inhale too much of it. Also, I'll be letting the table top's painted surface "harden" for 3 months before I wax it to get the final shine of the surface.
Also, I must confess: I've played the game of golf, but I've never cussed as much as I did when I saw what ENAMEL paint does when it interacts with LACQUER paint. I was cussing under my breath for quite a few days as I work to try and salvage the top. But I felt better once I moved to use the other side. It did go better once I figured out what I was doing.
Hopefully my Tempest drivers will show up soon so I can finish my Sunosubs!
PatCave; HT Pix;Gear;DIY Projects;DVDs; LDs
Comment