so....anyone ever tried automotive clearcoat on an mdf control panel?

[NoMoUserNames]

Putting in woodwork as any roadblocks to this idea are likely to be on the material side of the equation.

I was looking at something unrelated the other idea and started wondering if this stuff would be a good choice for a hard clear finish on a control panel top.

https://www.spraymax.com/en-us/products/product/clear-coats-and-spot-blender/2k-clear-glamour/

It is solvent based and uses an isocyanate hardener for activation. Its VERY scratch resistant and durable, which is nice. I'd be priming and painting first and maybe putting some printed vinyl on the panel top. Car guys say it goes over vinyl decals just fine, but I can't find anything about how it might work with mdf and/ornon-automative paints.

Thoughts?

[Ond]

I only use solvent based automotive paints on my arcade cabinet builds. These are mostly built using MDF, some times combined with marine ply. On MDF keep it consistent i.e. auto primer/filler, quality acrylic auto paint and if needed, automotive clear coat over that. See my projects for examples of how that combo turns out.

[NoMoUserNames]

Any suggestions on automotive primer/filler/paint? It's not a space I've dabbled in, so I'm not really sure what to look for.

I don't have a paint air sprayer so it would have to be something applicable by hand, or in a spray can.

[Ond]

Any suggestions on automotive primer/filler/paint? It's not a space I've dabbled in, so I'm not really sure what to look for.

I don't have a paint air sprayer so it would have to be something applicable by hand, or in a spray can.

The problem with this question is it depends where in the world you live. In the US brands like Dupli-color (Acrylic Lacquer) are available in spray cans. I'm in Australia so I prefer the locally made Concept Paints brand over the imports. These days I use a spray gun and compressor but I used spray cans for years with good results.

Don't paint cabs by hand with a brush, especially not if you're looking to clear coat over it.

[NoMoUserNames]

Thanks. I am US based, which is a good point (I am unfortunately not immune to good ol' US-defaultism).

My ORIGINAL plan was to use rollers to apply paint on the cabinet, but cover the control panel in plexi. but if I am being honest...I don't love the idea of plexi, so I am researching other options. The sides of the cabinet will be MOSTLY covered by glued on artwork, so I am not too stressed there. The other exposed surfaces shouldn't be too noticeable. So, I was thinking I could still use rollers on most of the cab, but use a spray can for the paint/clearcoat on the control panel surface itself since it would be more visible and more "high contact". That got me down the road of whether I could paint over cut vinyl "stickers" (like the output from a cricut machine). That lead me to reading about automotive coats since painting over vinyl decals is apparently somewhat common in that space.

I may just buy one of those electric (AKA "airless") HVLP sprayers. Seems like the knock-offs have come down in price a LOT. I am still suspicious of the quality, but for like $30-40, I'm willing to risk it. Hell, a few spray cans and decent rollers would cost close to that much on their own. I would prefer air tools, but paint sprayers seem to be HUNGRY for air from what I've read so I'd have to buy a rather high CFM model, which aren't in the budget right now.

So, thinking this approach through, I'm getting a little more excited about the idea. I was originally going with a flat black for the cabinet body, but now I might just lean in on this kind of paint system and do the whole thing with a gloss coat. Maybe even something with color or metallic...

edit: You mentioned using this kind of product on your old cabs, but it looks like most of the pics are gone. Do you have any good examples showing the finish?

[Ond]

There are various projects of mine on the forum with plenty of pics but here's a few to give you an idea:

All of these projects are MDF based. In short MDF loves bondo / loves auto primer / loves solvent based acrylic lacquer.  See my thread on painting for step-by-step guide.