I painted my XPS M1530 lid...

Well, I had to be different. I thought my tuxedo black was a little bland, (a flat black instead of glossy?) so I painted mine Dupli-color auto areosol spray Metallic ruby red. Sort of in-between the Current XPS m1530 & the older XPS 1710 style. I took my sweet time masking it perfectly, then wet-sand lightly with 2,000 grit sandpaper to rough it up a bit so the primer will stick, then I painted 4 coats of Dupli-color auto areosol spray grey primer, 4 coats of Dupli-color auto areosol spray Metallic ruby red base, sanded in-between w/2000 grit and then 4 coats of Dupli-color auto areosol spray Clear Top Clear. I baked it with a heat lamp between coats. The 12" heat lamp was 6 feet above the notebook.
TIP: When you mask, use the painters "blue" masking tape. Any other masking tape will lift or damage the paint underneath it.

The "before" shots are here:
http://corvettec3.com/dellXPSm1530review.htm

Masking (take your time!)


Primer: 4 coats, one hour between, light 2000 grit sanding in-between


Base coat: 4 coats one hour in-between & light 2000 grit sanding in-between.

(Base coat was Dupli-color auto areosol spray Ruby Red Metallic)

Clear: 4 coats (every 10 minutes while still tacky) over red/black/silver to blend in.

(wait 6 weeks before using good automotive wax)

Sunlight photo


Indoor lighting


My favorite of all time: the XPS 1710


My redition of the above.

 

Cool, It looks great. Terrific job!

 

absolutely awesome!!!!

 

Nice job ! That's definitely a one of a kind M1530

 

Cool hybrid colour design!

 

WoW !! Now You Got Product Red Bro

 

WoW....dude that looks just as if it was the real (RED) product

good job

 

Yup, that looks GREAT !!!

 

Wow, when I saw the title of this thread I thought, "well lets go see how bad he screwed this one up", but I walk away thinking the complete opposite. That looks VERY well done.

 

Looks great!

 

Oo its so pretty

 

the baking with heat lamp sounds scary... weren't you woried about the lcd?

 

Very nice job man!

 

LOL, I was thinking the same thing...but obviously he knows what he's doing cause it looks freakin' awesome.

 

That's awesome, now you just have to update your profile pic!

 

such a nice work dude......awesome

 

nice done jack, now you have to make a new picture for your signature
why dont you make some design before you paint like Super man logo

 

Is that pain scratch proof, so if you were to get a key and lightly scribe it across the surface of the paint, I bet it will just scratch a line through the paint!!

You can never beat the paint they put on them as standard, you should be able to dig your finger nail in to it you hardest and still not be able to take any paint off, only then is it a result,

But the looks are great , does it have the long lasting durability coat to go with the paints finish ?

 

I thought it would have your own design otherwise looks good.

 

I'm assuming that's your warranty gone down the pan then.

 

Sweet...looks good jack What kinda paint did you end up using? Also I'm sure the pics don't do justice to that metallic ruby red.

 

looks the goods man, i like it how the dell logo is black in the middle youve got a one in a million there!

ive been looking around for tribal stickers or something to stick on the outside of the case and perhaps book contact to stick on the stainless to protect it from my wedding rings scratching the inside, but the paint looks awesome!

 

thats awesome dude good job,wait one more thing it would look amazing if ya put a Georgia Bulldogs logo instead of the dell

 

Great job jack53!!

 

Would it not have been easier to just order crimson red.. And not void your warranty at the same time.

 

Would someone explain to me how painting the outside of your lid would void your warranty? You have to do more to your laptop to upgrade the ram or hd.

BTW I think it looks great! I would like to know about the durability of the paint. The factory paint has a rubbery feel to it does your paint job just feel slick like a gloss?

 

Though I don't, personally, care for Red, it looks like you did an awesome job, and looks nicer than Dell's red.

How did you keep a perfect circle around Dell's logo?

 

Thats awesome

 

Well, I had black, but it was like flat black... kinda dull. So I wanted to do something a little different.

Masking the round Dell logo properly takes time to do it right. I cut small masking strips to go around curves better, then used a exacto knife to trim any excess.

Some have asked about the durablity of the paint. It is automotive paint and it is suppose to take abuse. BUT, I'm very finicky about my equipment so I only use soft cases to transport it.

It DOES NOT void the warranty. I just couldn't return it as a exchange, but if something goes wrong "inside" that is covered.

Some have asked paint type etc. I listed all that in the first thread.

Did I answers everybody's questions?

BTW, thanks for all the NICE compliments.

Read my REVIEW and tell me what you think of that.
http://corvettec3.com/dellXPSm1530review.htm

 

The warranty should still be covered since it's only cosmetic. Warranties are usually hardware related. The only problem is if you send in your laptop you might not get it back since they'll just might send you a replacement!

 

huh i admit i wouldnt have balls to do something like this
but it turned out awesome. this red color looks even better than the one dell puts on! terrific job.

 

I really like the black circle Dell logo against the red background. The logo matches the color of the battery and gives the top better balance. Dell would be smart to do this going forward.

 

Nice job. That looks amazing.

 

I`m sure I would have screwed it up. You did a great job, how long did it take?

 

hey that looks awesome there,

if you dont mind me asking, how did you apply the paint ? spray or a brush?

 

About 12 hours all told. One hour between each coat and one hour for masking.

Dupli-color auto areosol spray. Ruby Red Metalic

 

waoooo super cool!!!!!!!!!

 

amazing work jack53, i know for a fact i would have problems masking around the Dell logo

 

congratulations! dell should hire you to design laptops!

 

That looks awesome! I love that shade more than the original Dell ruby red, and with the black logo in the center it looks really sharp.

 

Like this below? BTW, I turned my paintjob/wallpaper into a cool AVATAR!


I was trying to imitate that photo with my custom XPS... pretty hard to do.

 

its realy good job! maybe i ll paint like this after 4-5 notebook painting

 

One of the best painting job on the forum. It's nice and clean. Good work!

 

I have been searching this website a lot lately i just purchased my very FIRST personal laptop. and I have read all the comments about your masterpiece so I already know that you know it is a very well done piece of work, however i figured with craftsmanship like this I just had to give you props myself. Congrats man the laptop looks wonderfull and ill have to tell you, you got more cahones than I do for a job like this, again looks great man!

 

Very nice paint job. Now....to see if one can laser etch a 1530. Though the white paintjob is unavailable in Australia, I figure the Black can be somehow accentuated.

 

Great job Jack
How much did it all cost by the way & would you do a custom job?
You can make a career of it

 

Great job. It's obvious this isn't your first time doing something like this. Do you paint cars? home interiors? or paint something? cuz i know for a fact that its hard to get an even layer of paint like that. And the paint you used, "car paint" that should last you longer than the factory paint cuz car paint is made to last through rough weather conditions. again nice job. You gave artists / taggers / air brush painters an idea. =)

 

All that i can say jack is, you got a awesome talent, that looks like it came stock

 

Yes, I've painted a few and learned from my mistakes. Mostly it takes lots of patience and a few tricks I've learned. Here is a matching desktop/laptop I did last year:
http://1-4u-computer-graphics.com/notebookpaint.htm

 

you make it seem so easy! i tried painting a computer case and the paint comes off too easy

if you dont mind me asking, what is the purpose of adding so many coats of primer?