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So I've been trying to think of ways to make sure my Electronics don't get fried by contact with metallic surfaces or any other freak circumstances..

Then it came to me.. Plasti-dip. So I did a couple Google searches on whether or not this had been done...

I found RC and real Car forums have been doing this for years. Mainly to waterproof their ECU's, Servos, all the little electronic bits.
In the Car forums I've mainly seen it used on rims, trim, and other cosmetic features.

The reason I bring up the cosmetic aspects is because this proves that it can stand up to the test of time..
I mean if it stays on a car your driving around in the elements..well you see what I mean.

So I figured, "What the hell, I'll give it a shot"

I started with my Gun Kit. (Easier and cheaper to replace)

It was a great success!


Items Needed:
-A couple small cheap paintbrushes
-Some popsicle sticks
-Plasti-Dip
-Pack Electronics.(obviously)

DANGER! Plasti-Dip in liquid form is extremely flammable. The vapors from it are also flammable and harmful.

Make sure you are in a well ventilated area while working with this stuff.

A respirator and some gloves are your friends

First stir up your Plasti-dip with a popsicle stick



Get your paint brush out and put a even layer over most of the chip. You want to avoid the LEDs, and power terminals for obvious reasons. Some kits have a poteniometer on them to speed or slow things down.. Avoid that as well.



Wait 30 Mins in between layers and put 3-4 layers on there.



Now wait 8 hours and let it dry. The can says 4 hours so I doubled that time... just in case.









That's it. Simple yet effective. You could probably use liquid electric tape and achieve the same results.

Could you also do this to the entire inside of the gun prior to putting electronics in if you didn't want to touch the electronics? Just wondering if that would be an alternative as well?

Good Idea! I don't see why not.

You could even go so far as to do that, and the edges of the inside surface on the bottom plate and create a semi-seal there.

The nice thing about it is; if you get a little too much in one spot, it pulls away fairly easily in the early drying stages.

I love Plasti-Dip!!!

Recently I had some folks purchase some Motherboard to ALICE Frame hardware setups from me.

For the top spacer I include a hemisphere door stop; as some of you know this thing is a !&#%@ to paint.

Now, this obviously isn't an electronics "application" but it would seem the rattle can version of Plasti-Dip works well for this piece.

I used some 100 grit sandpaper and then some rubbing alcohol to prep the door stops, and then one nice thick layer:


Couple hours later and they are dry and can still flex without cracking and chipping.

Vincenzo330 also came up with a solution to maintain the hemisphere shape.. fill it with plumbers putty.

Figured I'd post this super easy and cheap DIY method for those of you that prefer this style of spacer to the half-moon.

Also reminds me of that one droid in the Jawas' sale at the moisture farm.



Wish I'd had this recipe back in the day, when you had to customize droids for dioramas. Before Hasbro actually started producing every conceivable character.

But back to topic, the plasti-dip doesn't hurt the electronics? Like when you peel it off, it doesn't break solder or anything?

Alex

Poor little guy... I remember it getting stuck in the sand and the Jawa just started giving him the boots.


I digress, It appears to pull away eaisly and is a clean pull.

Haven't had a reason to pull it off the chip but; when I finally get around to adding the extra LED I'll test an "easy fix" spot.

Great idea.

I did the same thing to the back of my Belt Gizmo to stop the solder points from pulling at my uniform's fabric.

You can also use Neutral Cure (Non-Acetic Acid) silicones to do this kind of stuff with, especially reinforcing blocks of wire. GE Silicone II is everywhere (Home Despot, etc) and comes to mind off the top of my head. I use it to waterproof RC electronics.

Plastidip isn't strong enough to protect the sharp ends of the soldered leads, and will rub through easily and short out if placed against a metal surface. I'd say cut a small piece of insulating material the size of the board, and glue them together.
Ideally you would use stick on insulation on the surface the board is located.

Plasti-Dip is awesome stuff, but I wouldn't trust it to coat my electronics. I would get shrink-tubes in the size needed to fit over the electronics and then just heat it up and shrink it over the electronics. This is what the shrink-tubes are designed for, to protect and keep electronics from shorting out. This is also used for wires to keep them from shorting and not needing to use electrical tape, which I have found can rub and chafe and cause a short. I use to work as a power supply manufacturer and did QC and had to fix things on the boards from time to time before they were potted. We would use shrink-tubes for everything.

If anyone is wondering what the pros use for this, it's called a "Synthetic Rubber Conformal Coating". They can be made of many different things (silicone, acrylic, etc). Many companies make them (3M's Novec brand has a bunch of extremely expensive versions)

A can of a clear version, M.G. Chemicals Acrylic Conformal Coating, can be found at DigiKey for $20 here:

https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/MG ... yNMQ%3D%3D