[NTLK] Plastdip Case?

[James Fraser]

Hello,

--- On Sun, 9/30/12, Chris C. <chrisc30 at me.com> wrote:

>Yep. It's flaking off. I'm thinking of removing the [rubberized] coating >and redoing it. 

Pardon my asking, but: did you move ahead with this?

I ask because I found myself in the awkward position of needing to bring an MP2000 to a dinner table last week*.  Before I left, I gave the MP a quick appraising glance only to discover that the clean, presentable, almost showroom-new device that I -thought- I was still carting around with me had come to more closely resemble a "beater"-type unit in appearance after a trip or two. :/

(Good thing the lights were dim.)

The chief offending bit is a worn spot in the middle of the screen lid door.  I had quite forgotten how gold leaf-thin the rubberized coating of the MessagePad really -is- until it deteriorated on this unit in what seemed (to me, at least) like no time flat.

At any rate, Plasti Dip appears to hold some promise as a possible way to "re-rubberize" Newtons.  If you have, in fact, taken the plunge, do you have any advice to offer those of us following in your footsteps? :)

While I think of it: does anyone know if Goo Gone will harm MessagePad case plastics?  Goo Gone seems to be what the Plasti Dip folks themselves use to clean up any PD that's gone astray in the factory and I expect it's what a NewtonTalker would need to use if a Plasti Dip spray job should go awry. However, a search of the list archives doesn't turn up any references to anyone using GG successfully on a MessagePad case and after reading Daniel Padilla's account of his experiences using acetone on his MP:


>The only two parts that cannot be submerged [in acetone] are the >interconnect door and the screen cover hinge.  They will melt.  You sure >know how I discovered this :-(


http://marc.info/?l=newtontalk&m=101137831903110&w=2

...I am (perhaps understandably) wary of using any "unknown" solvents on case plastics, seeing as how MessagePads seem to be far thinner on the ground today than when Daniel made his pioneering discovery a decade ago.  That being the case, I am anxious to avoid making any similar exciting discoveries if it can be helped, especially seeing as how a warped/damaged screen lid might not be able to fulfill its chief function: protecting the screen on the MessagePad when not in use.

(If you've never found yourself mincing around clutching an MP with a screen lid sporting a newly-broken hinge, believe me: you quickly develop a sudden, very profound appreciation for normal, non-fiddly screen lids that you don't have to play with in order to get them to close properly.)

Since I'm not completely clear at present on how well Plasti Dip might work to rehab a MP, perhaps this would be a good time to ask: has anyone here ever played around with Polymer Vinyl**?

http://preview.tinyurl.com/bqarn3h

(Adam Tow's Fun with Polymer Vinyl page)

It's too bad the photograph on the bottom left of the page ("bluenred_newton.jpg") didn't get archived with the rest of the page, but from what I can gather, Adam used vinyl film to create a light blue MessagePad with a red lid.  

This green vinyl film (NB: the below link is not meant as an endorsement of that specific vendor and is only being used to furnish a example):

http://preview.tinyurl.com/cay96b4

...seems to bear at least a passing resemblance to the MessagePad's original color.  However, I can't claim to be any great judge of color-related things (perhaps someone with a graphic artist-quality monitor can take a look at the color swatch and comment?).

The "simply peel it off and start again" aspect of the vinyl film holds strong, um, appeal for me (I like to be able to re-do stuff easily), but the Plasti Dip stuff appears easier to deal with in terms of the initial application (and, perhaps, offers greater long-term durability).  Of course, the vinyl film does come in a wider range of colors (search for "sign vinyl film" on eBay and you'll see what I mean).

Decisions, decisions... ^_^


Best,

James Fraser






*For the record: no, this is not something that I normally do.  As a rule, I think that "devices" at the dinner table are, generally speaking, a bad idea.  However, needs must when the devil drives, as they say.

** http://marc.info/?l=newtontalk&m=101424957002153&w=2  

Many thanks to Grant Hutchinson for posting the link to NewtonTalk way-back-when.  I never would have seen it otherwise (Adam doesn't appear to have included the page in his own site archives).