Enclosure Covering
Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=83512
Printed Date: May 06, 2024 at 10:39 PM
Topic: Enclosure Covering
Posted By: cloak559
Subject: Enclosure Covering
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 5:35 PM
Other than fabric (i.e. Carpet, Suede, Vinyl)...What are some ways to finish off a box. Ive heard of using spray on bedliner, but dont know the cost or looks of this...Basically what Im asking is what would be a decent looking cost effective way to cover my new box?...Its going to be a pretty big enclosure and I dont want to go through the hassles of vinyl, yet I hate the look of carpet...
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'89 Mercedes-Benz 300E
Pioneer DEH-5900UB
(2)RE Audio SX 10"s
(1)US Amps MD3D
3ft^3 @ 37Hz
Blowing up in a car accident doesnt worry me, as long as I'm putting out some major dB's when I die...
Replies:
Posted By: stevdart
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 6:07 PM
Try Rustoleum textured black spray paint. It's $6 and some change per can and you'll need at least 4 coats, but it makes an easy, good-looking finish. I painted my home speakers with it. And on MDF, especially edges, you'll need to first apply a few coats of primer. Sanding between finishes is not required with this paint. If you used PVC for ports and they're still white on the inside, try this: place the nozzle of your shop vac near one end of the port tube and spray flat black paint 12" from the other end. The spray will flow through the tube and paint it black without drips. ------------- Build the box so that it performs well in the worst case scenario and, in return, it will reward you at all times.
Posted By: Flakman
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 6:18 PM
Oooohhh...I like that suggestion for the port. That would be good if you want the fluted ports to be a different color other than black.
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The Flakman
I feel strange. I have deja vu and amnesia at the same time.
John | Manteca, CA
Posted By: cloak559
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 6:22 PM
Yeah thats a pretty ingenious idea. I'd use it if I wasn't doing a slot port. I do really like the idea of textured paint though. Should be fairly simple to do and wont cost much at all...Thanks for the help Stevdart...
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'89 Mercedes-Benz 300E
Pioneer DEH-5900UB
(2)RE Audio SX 10"s
(1)US Amps MD3D
3ft^3 @ 37Hz
Blowing up in a car accident doesnt worry me, as long as I'm putting out some major dB's when I die...
Posted By: stevdart
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 7:49 PM
Glad to help. I'm sure you'll like using it, and it can be found in any hardware store. Remember to prime the edges of the MDF over and over, because if you don't seal them they'll show up through the paint.
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Build the box so that it performs well in the worst case scenario and, in return, it will reward you at all times.
Posted By: stevdart
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 8:56 PM
A lot of times guys forget about painting the slot port before assembling and glueing the box. Then they're stuck with having to do something about that bare wood showing through a 2" slot. You can paint the inside of a slot port the same way when the box is already assembled. Put the vac hose through the speaker cutout. But also mask off the front face baffle because it will get all the wet messy paint.
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Build the box so that it performs well in the worst case scenario and, in return, it will reward you at all times.
Posted By: jettagli03
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 9:33 PM
You emphasized priming the edges of the MDF...
"over and over, because if you don't seal them they'll show up through the paint."
I may sound stupid but I do want to understand what exactly you mean by this.. if you could somehow expand/describe what you mean by this  -------------
Posted By: cloak559
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 10:02 PM
I believe hes talking about your lines, where two pieces meet. If theres a line when you prime it, there will be a line when you cover it...Thats what I got from it, but I could be wrong...
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'89 Mercedes-Benz 300E
Pioneer DEH-5900UB
(2)RE Audio SX 10"s
(1)US Amps MD3D
3ft^3 @ 37Hz
Blowing up in a car accident doesnt worry me, as long as I'm putting out some major dB's when I die...
Posted By: stevdart
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 10:15 PM
Okay, this is from experience. The MDF has two types of surfaces: the ultra-smooth flat side and the edge. The edge of a 3/4" sheet of MDF is the 3/4" part of it. It is porous, and soaks up paint. If this edge is not sealed to the degree that the flat surfaces are sealed, the difference will show when paint is applied. Instead of a blemish-free result, you would see the unfinished edges of the MDF through the paint. 
Look at the left side. You can see the edge of the MDF because I didn't get it sealed well enough. It's tough to see with a cheap camera and a few kilobytes, but you should still be able to discern a line running down along the left side. That shows how the paint "took" differently on the edge compared to the finished side. Some of that is also glue that was sanded down. The point, though, is that any irregular surface (MDF edge or glue residue) has to be treated with a sealer, or primed more, than the majority of the enclosure. ------------- Build the box so that it performs well in the worst case scenario and, in return, it will reward you at all times.
Posted By: cloak559
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 10:23 PM
Okay thats what I thought you meant at first, but then I thought you would have said "End" and not "Edge"...but I got yah now...good stuff...
Hey Stev, would rounding the corners on a 1" Thick MDF box have any negative effects? Specifically when it comes to overall strength of the box...
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'89 Mercedes-Benz 300E
Pioneer DEH-5900UB
(2)RE Audio SX 10"s
(1)US Amps MD3D
3ft^3 @ 37Hz
Blowing up in a car accident doesnt worry me, as long as I'm putting out some major dB's when I die...
Posted By: stevdart
Date Posted: September 29, 2006 at 11:20 PM
It seems to me that you end up with exactly the same surface glue area, but I have also read of this being a potential problem ( https://www.partsexpress.com/projectshowcase/magna/assembly.html). In that, the author spoke of using cleats along the seam to maximize glueing area. The cleat is just a strip of MDF. As far as any other factors relating to weakness other than glueing surface, no, I don't believe rounding corners presents a problem. The corner is the strongest part of the enclosure, so tapering it won't affect rigidity. ------------- Build the box so that it performs well in the worst case scenario and, in return, it will reward you at all times.
Posted By: jettagli03
Date Posted: September 30, 2006 at 12:06 AM
I get ya now. I have seen that LOTS of times when people spray paint their boxes themselves, now I know how to atleast try and fix it.
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Posted By: jonathancullen
Date Posted: September 30, 2006 at 7:51 AM
is the paint textured? can you take a closer pic of it? nice project 2 btw
Posted By: cloak559
Date Posted: September 30, 2006 at 3:49 PM
jonathancullen wrote:
is the paint textured? can you take a closer pic of it? nice project 2 btw
This is Steve Meades box...He used a black textured stone... ------------- '89 Mercedes-Benz 300E
Pioneer DEH-5900UB
(2)RE Audio SX 10"s
(1)US Amps MD3D
3ft^3 @ 37Hz
Blowing up in a car accident doesnt worry me, as long as I'm putting out some major dB's when I die...
Posted By: jonathancullen
Date Posted: October 01, 2006 at 9:52 AM
looks good, better then carpet
Posted By: stevdart
Date Posted: October 01, 2006 at 10:20 AM
Those fleck-type finishes (like above) require a few coats of sealer. I think durability could be an issue if it's in a car trunk environment because of shifting loads banging against it, etc. The paint I mentioned doesn't have flakes, but a sand-like finish. It doesn't need the extra sealer application. https://www.rustoleum.com/product.asp?frm_product_id=20&SBL=1 ------------- Build the box so that it performs well in the worst case scenario and, in return, it will reward you at all times.
Posted By: cloak559
Date Posted: October 01, 2006 at 3:40 PM
Well, my box is going to be hard mounted where the back seats used to be, so I wont really have the problem of sliding. But ill still use the one you suggested because I think I can be a little more sloppy with it and it wont show as bad...
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'89 Mercedes-Benz 300E
Pioneer DEH-5900UB
(2)RE Audio SX 10"s
(1)US Amps MD3D
3ft^3 @ 37Hz
Blowing up in a car accident doesnt worry me, as long as I'm putting out some major dB's when I die...
Posted By: jonathancullen
Date Posted: October 01, 2006 at 4:29 PM
so it chips is what your saying? i mount my box to the floor and there isnt anything else but an amp which is also mounted.
Posted By: cloak559
Date Posted: October 01, 2006 at 5:47 PM
jonathancullen wrote:
so it chips is what your saying? i mount my box to the floor and there isnt anything else but an amp which is also mounted.
You should be fine then. If your box is not hard mounted, It has the potential of hitting something if it slides. If you chip it, the project is ruined...
And hey stevdart, would the texture be coarse enough to conflict with sub mounting? Like it wouldnt seal well enough...Maybe some rope caulk woud do the trick? ------------- '89 Mercedes-Benz 300E
Pioneer DEH-5900UB
(2)RE Audio SX 10"s
(1)US Amps MD3D
3ft^3 @ 37Hz
Blowing up in a car accident doesnt worry me, as long as I'm putting out some major dB's when I die...
Posted By: stevdart
Date Posted: October 01, 2006 at 6:00 PM
It's fine to use the flake paint, it just makes the project a little more difficult because of the extra steps in using the sealer. You would have a little more time involved for drying time. The sealer is like the stuff they use to spray dried flowers and stuff like that. Give it enough drying time and it will be durable. You will add to cost as well as time if you want to use a stone finish because of the added coats. But the difficulty is just because of time and material, not application. It's actually easier to get a nice finish with the stone because of the large flakes. It's the finer finishes that show problems in coverage. ------------- Build the box so that it performs well in the worst case scenario and, in return, it will reward you at all times.
Posted By: jonathancullen
Date Posted: October 01, 2006 at 9:16 PM
but should you use rope caulk to seal it?
Posted By: cloak559
Date Posted: October 01, 2006 at 10:42 PM
jonathancullen wrote:
but should you use rope caulk to seal it?
Its good practice to use non-hardening rope caulk when installing any woofer, it acts as a gasket...As far as the textured paint goes, since there is a smooth sealer for the top coat, it should be a pretty flush mount...if not the caulk should fix that...Personally, I'm just going to tape off the area where the sub overhang will be... ------------- '89 Mercedes-Benz 300E
Pioneer DEH-5900UB
(2)RE Audio SX 10"s
(1)US Amps MD3D
3ft^3 @ 37Hz
Blowing up in a car accident doesnt worry me, as long as I'm putting out some major dB's when I die...
Posted By: jonathancullen
Date Posted: October 03, 2006 at 7:52 PM
alright cool, imma try this on my next project. what the worst that can happen????? i mess it up and carpet the box anyway. xD
Posted By: cloak559
Date Posted: October 03, 2006 at 8:30 PM
nouseforaname wrote:
don't know if i'm on topic, but it's been a long day and all the posts are running together.
heheh, I feel yah man.....
I was actually thinking of this too. I have a paint booth that I can use at my liesure. I was thinking of spraying a few thick layers of primer down and then just using normal automotive paint and a few coats of clear. I wanted to match it to my cars exterior and then just airbrush the RE Audio logo on top. You think that would work on the MDF? ------------- '89 Mercedes-Benz 300E
Pioneer DEH-5900UB
(2)RE Audio SX 10"s
(1)US Amps MD3D
3ft^3 @ 37Hz
Blowing up in a car accident doesnt worry me, as long as I'm putting out some major dB's when I die...
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