Paint recommendations under a budget.

Good morning!

My girlfriend has a Dell D600 laptop that she dropped and ended up in a few different pieces (typical for her, she dropped her cell phone down an elevator shaft in front of me a few weeks back.... love her to death tho . I've been lurking in this forum for a bit quite impressed with everyone's projects, so I've decided to use this laptop as a toy to see what I can do. All she does on her personal laptop is internet and spreadsheets + itunes, so the D600 is perfectly fine for those tasks and worth repairing.

My goal is to spend no more than $150 in total between repairs and modifications. I estimate cost to repair will be in the $20 range, so that leaves me with $130 for paint and supplies.

The concept:

My ideal goal would be to:

-Cut a small pattern of a hibiscus on the top cover and allow the LCD to illuminate it.
-Paint everything with a dark (possibly metallic) purple.
-Use a color shift paint/coat (but I don't want it to look cheap)
-Use enough clear coat to make it very very smooth and glossy (which will probably result in her dropping it again but /shrug)

What I'm looking for is recommendations in paints that are the best bang for the buck. If there is a paint that is just awesome, but out of the range I've set, please mention it and I can consider the results.

Many thanks for all who contribute to this thread!

 

What parts does it need for repairs?

Have any pictures?

 

No pictures currently, not much worth seeing. Parts needing repair are the top and bottom plastics + palm rest. I can repair them using a simple putty that will harden and bond to the plastic. The only part needing replacement is the right lcd hinge, but I can get that for $5 off of ebay.

What I really need is some good recommendations on paints from people who might have used them and were pleased with the results.

 

$130 should be more than enough for paint and supplies.

I would suggest getting some 3m wetordry sandpaper (probably up to 2000 grit), good automotive primer, and some good automotive paint.

I've used duplicolor automotive with good results. (about $6 a can at your local auto parts store.) If you go to oreillys they will have an entire section filled with the stuff, lot's of good colors to choose from.

You need to spend a lot of time in the prep stage. The better you prep the better the final product will turn out. Quick tip: when spraying edges/corners make sure you spray under them as well, because if you don't you will be able to see it when the pieces go back together (for example: two halves of an lcd cover)

Also, if you want a really nice mirror finish you will need to do a crap load of sanding between coats (but it's worth it). I'm sure you can find some good tips/tutorials from others on here.

 

No offense pal, but you need to keep technology away from this woman.

 

Twitchy - Many thanks for your thoughts and tips. I'll take a look at the duplicolor paints later today on my lunch break.

datamonger128 - You have no idea my friend, she already dropped her new 3g iphone, luckily it only took some scratch marks on the back. I'm buying her a titanium case if I can find one... Humorously enough I used to work in the support side of IT (admin side now), and I met her after she fell asleep with her work laptop still on under a blanket on her bed... it was pretty much fried.. Before I made the switch she went through another two laptops.... see why I want to fix this one instead of get her a new one? =)