Keyboard mod idea

[RocketHat]

Hey guys,
So I was thinking about modding a keyboard by painting it and was wondering if you guys thought it looked cool or if I could use a different approach, such as vinyl. I've made a shoddy design plan in publisher (link here: http://postimg.org/image/ux1yvn62b/). It's based on the Razer Blackwidow Tournament Edition (http://drh1.img.digitalriver.com/DRHM/Storefront/Company/razerusa/images/product/gallery/razer-blackwidow-te-gallery5.jpg). Some of you may question my decision in going Razer but it's the only tenkeyless with MX blues than I could find in the UK for under £90, otherwise I would have went with the QFR.

As the Razer BW's key caps can't be replaced, do you think I could get the blank keys through dying the keys black with some RIT dye? What are other ways I could go about achieving the blank look as well as a glossy white on the Razer BW's otherwise matte finish, would some ordinary rustoleum spray work?
Thanks!

[Jamesbeat]

Painting plastic is often disappointing, especially in areas that your hand rubs against a lot. It will wear through pretty quick.
You can mitigate this for a while by using many layers and a topcoat, but it will wear through eventually.
I guess you could give it another couple of coats of topcoat every couple of months as a preventative measure.
You can buy specific paints for plastics. Krylon does one here in the US, but I don't know of any UK brands despite the fact that I am from England and only moved here to the States three years ago!

Dyeing with Rit dye (or Dylon in the UK) works better than paint, BUT:
It still wears through as the plastic wears away from the keycaps.
It works well on PBT plastic keycaps, but if your keycaps are ABS, you might be out of luck, as you need to have the dye near boiling and that will melt ABS.

If you have PBT keycaps, pure acetone won't touch them, but acetone will dissolve ABS, so you can test an inconspicuous area to find out which type of plastic you have.

[Tym]

With regards to paint, everyone sings Krylon's praise, but it is hard to obtain in the UK you can by certain flavours from eBay, but what they sell in Homebase (if you have one near too you) is generally quite good!

[funkymeeba]

For a new paint job on the case (not the caps), you might try Duplicolor Vinyl & Fabric. Works quite well on plastics (such as ABS and polycarbonate). I'm not sure of its availability in the UK, though.

[Jamesbeat]

Another point I should add is curing time.
This is VERY important.
This type of paint 'dries' in two ways: first it 'flashes off' (which means drying), then it cures (which is not the same thing as drying as most people understand it to mean).

Spray paint is a resin in a solvent carrier. When you first spray it, it is wet because of the solvent.
The solvent evaporates (flashes off) leaving behind a solid, dry layer of paint.
The important thing to know is that even though the paint is DRY, it is not yet CURED.
The layer of paint polymerizes after drying to form a hard plastic film.
While this layer of paint will feel perfectly dry to the touch, it is still very soft and will scratch extremely easily.

Unfortunately, the only solution to this is to apply heat or wait.
Obviously, you can't bake a plastic keyboard casing in the oven, so you have to wait at least a week after the last coat is applied, preferably longer, before using the keyboard.