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Painting my Nexus One ((in progress))

Well I got seriously bored of the Battery cover and bottom piece. I was just never a fan of the bronze like tint to it.
I initially started with the Ol Touch Pro battery cover method using Rit Dye.
The results were great but it started running leaving my hands tinted =-(.
I placed an order for paint which arrived but was the wrong finish so Im awaiting the return shipment.
In the meantime I went ahead and started on the Battery Cover/Bottom panel with some left over paint I already had.
Im using Krylon Fusion but I may regret not switching to Duplicolor as there bonding is to plastics may be better. Im worried that the teflon coating of the pieces may mess up the finish.
Removing the bottom panel is a PAIN unless you have a pry tool. I highly suggest going to Ifixit.com and order a few of there tools if you make a habit of pryin open phones/electronics. They help out a bunch.
http://www.ifixit.com/Tools/Plastic-Opening-Tools/IF145-000
This is what I used for bottom panel.
Second problem was the little metal contacts. Fortunately I have no intention of getting a dock. They are too small to duct tape and was worried about removing them. If they are removable I may just do it after as scraping the paint off copper shouldnt be a big deal.
Masking the camera is a pain as the metal circle doesnt give one an indent to xacto blade smoothly. It was a bit of trial and error but definitely doable.
Anyways pics of coat one below. I wont continue until I get the right sandpaper and paint finish. Still tossed up between gloss and matte.
This was my original goal.
http://www.colorwarepc.com/p-216-nexus-one.aspx?2907=54726&2908=54787&2909=54877&2910=54955
I really like the black covers and the way it now matches the front paneling. I may not rip the rest apart to paint it white just yet.

Much prefer stock compared to that to be honest.
I know you're not done but the finish doesn't look to great.

Yeah the finish is nowhere near done. But the contrast the black creates is just alot better.
Already had someone ask me what phone I'm using ... in 11 months that's only happened twice.
Hopefully it'll look the way I intend it to.

wet sand, wet sand, wet sand
also make sure to use super high grit paper.
dont be afraid to wet sand the clear coat either...its necessary to keep it glossy with out any orange peel

ewwwwwwwwww

Here's to destroying the resale value of the your phone I do appreciate the idea though and DIY mentality.

irishrally said:
Here's to destroying the resale value of the your phone I do appreciate the idea though and DIY mentality.
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lol Same thing was said about my G1.
After I changed it to all white I sold it for 50$ more than I paid.
I was REALLY bored. With Gingerbread not around yet I figured why not.

seeking said:
wet sand, wet sand, wet sand
also make sure to use super high grit paper.
dont be afraid to wet sand the clear coat either...its necessary to keep it glossy with out any orange peel
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Thanks for tip about the clear coat.
Already ran into some trouble as the paint doesnt seem to adhere as good as I thought. I went at it without adhesion promoter..may have to hit the do over if it doesnt settle well.

xManMythLegend said:
Thanks for tip about the clear coat.
Already ran into some trouble as the paint doesnt seem to adhere as good as I thought. I went at it without adhesion promoter..may have to hit the do over if it doesnt settle well.
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Did you sand the pieces before painting?
Your paint is going to fall off if you didn't.
It's the entire idea behind teflon coatings.

A little painters trick. Next time don't try to tape off the contacts (or any small area) just get a toothpick and some Vaseline. Put the Vaseline on the contacts then paint. After you are done just wipe clean.
Also watch your flash time between coats. Believe it to not wet paint doesn't bond to dry paint that well. You first coat should still be a little tacky when applying your second coat.

JCopernicus said:
Did you sand the pieces before painting?
Your paint is going to fall off if you didn't.
It's the entire idea behind teflon coatings.
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Only a light sanding. I did the same with the G1 and had zero issues (I did use adhesion promoter with that one though). Nexus one must have super super teflon.
[IO]ERROR said:
A little painters trick. Next time don't try to tape off the contacts (or any small area) just get a toothpick and some Vaseline. Put the Vaseline on the contacts then paint. After you are done just wipe clean.
Also watch your flash time between coats. Believe it to not wet paint doesn't bond to dry paint that well. You first coat should still be a little tacky when applying your second coat.
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Great tip.
I actually tried that with Elmers but vaseline would be MUCH easier for the tiny spots.
I may have let it dry too long. I normally have only painted in warm weather months so I can let it sit longer. With the cold weather it seems I have to reduce time between coats.

BTW
How many coats of clear coat is recommended ?
I only had my G1 a few months after painting when I sold it. If I plan to keep the N1 for longer ((no trackball or leds on Nexus S *sigh* Im looking for more durability.))
I recall reading on another forum where someone skipped clear coat altogether and put a zagg/BSE ever on top and it looked great after over a year of usage.

I would prefer spending $15 on full back black available on ebay rather than painting, it doesnt look smooth and highly finished.

charnsingh_online said:
I would prefer spending $15 on full back black available on ebay rather than painting, it doesnt look smooth and highly finished.
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You mean a case ?
Cant stand the extra bulk.
Anyways..
Had to go back and sand everything off to get all the teflon removed.
What a pain.
I did the bottom piece over much improved. Battery cover will have to wait till after turkey day.

xManMythLegend said:
You mean a case ?
Cant stand the extra bulk.
Anyways..
Had to go back and sand everything off to get all the teflon removed.
What a pain.
I did the bottom piece over much improved. Battery cover will have to wait till after turkey day.
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There's a couple of people selling black battery covers/antenna bottoms on ebay. With htc/google logo and all.

heres some pics of my painted nexus.. decided to paint it while waiting for replacement digitizer and lcd came in.. one coat primer -> lite sanding -> 2 coats rustoleum flat white -> lite wet sand (just to knock off some of the orange peel) -> 2 coat clear matte rustoleum (not a fan of glossy finishes) -> wet sand.. was going to do the battery/bottom, but am not sold on paint holding up well to that rubber.. will probably end up buying the black ones of ebay later on..

famandeggs, your Nexus looks amazing. Excellent job.
Expecting more pictures once you collected the black Nexus covers and complete your project.

Kelvino9 said:
famandeggs, your Nexus looks amazing. Excellent job.
Expecting more pictures once you collected the black Nexus covers and complete your project.
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thanks man, will do.. it was a frustrating process lol.. i first tried a gloss enamel gloss paint, but the cure times where a pain (48 hours), and im all thumbs (dropped it a couple times while it was still drying, or wet sanded it to far down exposing the aluminum, forcing me to start over).. eventually just went w/a normal paint, im hoping w/the clear it'll hold up

famandeggs said:
thanks man, will do.. it was a frustrating process lol.. i first tried a gloss enamel gloss paint, but the cure times where a pain (48 hours), and im all thumbs (dropped it a couple times while it was still drying, or wet sanded it to far down exposing the aluminum, forcing me to start over).. eventually just went w/a normal paint, im hoping w/the clear it'll hold up
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I can only imagine all your efforts you put in. Judging the pictures the paint job looks amazingly smooth.

Kelvino9 said:
I can only imagine all your efforts you put in. Judging the pictures the paint job looks amazingly smooth.
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looks very nice indeed. but you got dust on your camera lens

Rubberized Battery Cover Mod

Like most of us that keep no cover on our phone, my battery plate was all scratched to heck. I saw the other "mirror polish" mod and it looked great, but also looked like a lot of work and would get scratched again. I bought a can of rubberized spray (see pic) and wound up with a great result (see pic.) The only color Home Depot had was black, and I think a gray might have looked better, but I still like the results and the phone is less slippery now than with the metal cover. This took 3 coats (30 minutes drying time between coats) then I let it dry for 18 hours before using it. Turned out pretty good, but long-term results are TBD...

I like did u just spray the back part? Any trouble with fitting it afterwards as it must add a layer of bulk?
Desire Z Glite 2.0.1

Shambolicuk said:
I like did u just spray the back part? Any trouble with fitting it afterwards as it must add a layer of bulk?
Desire Z Glite 2.0.1
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It added less bulk than I thought it would, it's really not much at all and it fits just fine afterwards. Actually, before, it would slide like a little when locked in place (just enough to notice - probably like .1 mm or so.) Now it is snug and has no jiggle at all.

I forgot to mention the hard part (prepping it...) Removing the original clear plastic coating was the hardest part - a combination of a dremel with the little wire wheel tool and my fingernail took about an hour, then I just hit it with some 220 grit sandpaper and cleaned it with mineral spirits.

I use the same stuff on my car (mid level 2009 Lancer but use the Plasti-dip to black out the front to make it look like an Evo [car guys will understand =p]) Very durable though I have not used it on my DZ yet. You beat me to the punch! I want to do the HTC part in red and the rest in black, will post when I have the time to do it.
Looks sharp though, contrast is nice

Doh! After only 1 day, I caught something on the curved edge and it started lifting the plastic coating... not very durable for this use - I might try again later though and see if I can come up with a better method.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App

I like it! A little bit rougher texture, but you might try Duplicolor spray on bedliner.

I thought about taking my phone apart and using some white plastidip to change it white...
Durability is alright...on thinkpad forums, a couple of people mixed it with some black enamel paint which made it much more durable.

mralexsays said:
It added less bulk than I thought it would, it's really not much at all and it fits just fine afterwards. Actually, before, it would slide like a little when locked in place (just enough to notice - probably like .1 mm or so.) Now it is snug and has no jiggle at all.
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I thought I was the only one who noticed the battery door wiggle room! No one ever mentions it. I really hope you find some way of preventing it from peeling. I'm practically drooling over those pictures you took. It looks extremely professional compared to most mods I've seen. You could easily set up a service where people send you their doors, some cash, and a self address envelope if you wanted to make some extra bucks.

kierren said:
I thought I was the only one who noticed the battery door wiggle room! No one ever mentions it. I really hope you find some way of preventing it from peeling. I'm practically drooling over those pictures you took. It looks extremely professional compared to most mods I've seen. You could easily set up a service where people send you their doors, some cash, and a self address envelope if you wanted to make some extra bucks.
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I've been meaning to update this. I tried again - this time I sanded with 220 grit, used a "self-etching primer" on the cover, then the rubberized paint. This time it lasted 3 days before starting to peel off... I'm also able to scratch off the primer with my fingernails, so the primer didn't really help. I'm not sure what else to try to make this coating stick at this point.

mralexsays said:
I've been meaning to update this. I tried again - this time I sanded with 220 grit, used a "self-etching primer" on the cover, then the rubberized paint. This time it lasted 3 days before starting to peel off... I'm also able to scratch off the primer with my fingernails, so the primer didn't really help. I'm not sure what else to try to make this coating stick at this point.
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I suggest powdercoating the back cover.

primeral said:
I suggest powdercoating the back cover.
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Powder coating would be nice, but I don't have the equipment for that (and don't want to invest in it just for this.) Also, this cover has plastic tabs that I'd be worried about melting or detaching from the battery cover during the curing process.

Instead of polishing the battery door....

Wouldn't it be easier to buy a white battery door (which has polished aluminum,) and swap the plastic pieces from a black one? Has anyone tried this, or is this something that isn't doable/more trouble than it's worth?

It's not polished like the back of an iPod for example, its brushed, like the back of an iPod after you've had it for a week
Sent from outer space 3000 years in the future (with my now extremely outdated, but still freaking awesome, HTC Sensation Z710e)

Sensation-al! said:
It's not polished like the back of an iPod for example, its brushed, like the back of an iPod after you've had it for a week
Sent from outer space 3000 years in the future (with my now extremely outdated, but still freaking awesome, HTC Sensation Z710e)
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This is true, but it would be much easier to polish the brushed aluminum than to sand/strip through the anodize grey on the black battery door. Personally, I would rather a brushed/matte finish more than mirror polished, as the latter would scratch much easier.

No it's not polishable imo. In fact it looks a bit cheap compared to the black beats one but better than the standard sensation door.

gilla409 said:
This is true, but it would be much easier to polish the brushed aluminum than to sand/strip through the anodize grey on the black battery door. Personally, I would rather a brushed/matte finish more than mirror polished, as the latter would scratch much easier.
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you dont really need to sand the grey off the frame. just put the frame into oven cleaner for 10-15 min and its all off.

c19932 said:
you dont really need to sand the grey off the frame. just put the frame into oven cleaner for 10-15 min and its all off.
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oven cleaner? how? you drown it?

digitalsunshine said:
oven cleaner? how? you drown it?
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I've used oven cleaner to remove anodization from aluminum bike parts before, and it works great!
For the battery cover, you would simply disassemble it as you would to sand it, removing all plastic and small parts. Then, spray the anodized aluminum with oven cleaner, let it sit a couple of minutes, and wipe away the grey anodize coating. You will end up with a raw aluminum finish, which can then be polished or brushed as desired. Just don't leave the oven cleaner on too long, otherwise it will cause pitting on the aluminum surface... it's that strong.
A word of warning, oven cleaner is VERY caustic stuff. Make sure not to inhale the fumes, and wear rubber or vinyl gloves to protect your hands. If you get any on your skin, wash it off immediately with soap and water to avoid a chemical burn. It won't dissolve your skin or anything, but it surely doesn't feel good.

Scratches and dents

As with basically all my other cellphones I convinced myself that I would not drop my Desire S on the road or other killer surfaces, so now that this has happened like 3 times at least, I am left with a few pretty nasty scratches on the aluminium body at the back. Besides dents and scratches not looking all too nice on their own, in this phone's case it looks even worse because it reveals the silver aluminium colour under the paint.
So does anybody know of a way to somehow kinda cover up these aluminium rends ?

meteish said:
As with basically all my other cellphones I convinced myself that I would not drop my Desire S on the road or other killer surfaces, so now that this has happened like 3 times at least, I am left with a few pretty nasty scratches on the aluminium body at the back. Besides dents and scratches not looking all too nice on their own, in this phone's case it looks even worse because it reveals the silver aluminium colour under the paint.
So does anybody know of a way to somehow kinda cover up these aluminium rends ?
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put in a case, hide it in your pocket or go for the other extreme and scratch all the remaining paint off!

black edding. it works

TatoValverde said:
black edding. it works
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Do you mean the Edding paint marker?
I have a grey Desire S which I dropped on a tile floor (ouch), left side first. Now it has two 1mm white dots where the metal paint chipped off, so I was looking for a silver permanent marker to maybe cover the white dots.
Have you tried the Edding marker? Does it wear off by taking the phone in and out of the pocket all the time?
If you've used this marker I'm looking forward to your feedback.
Thanks!

I have some lovely scratches and dents on mine. Somehow managed to take off a 1cm patch on the back under the logo; it's not too pretty. Even one of the dents is painful to touch as it is so sharp.
I'm afraid permanent marker will only make worse the current situation of my handset! In the case it goes and stays until it's needed!

Just put it in a case and convince yourself it never happened

Inginerul said:
Do you mean the Edding paint marker?
I have a grey Desire S which I dropped on a tile floor (ouch), left side first. Now it has two 1mm white dots where the metal paint chipped off, so I was looking for a silver permanent marker to maybe cover the white dots.
Have you tried the Edding marker? Does it wear off by taking the phone in and out of the pocket all the time?
If you've used this marker I'm looking forward to your feedback.
Thanks!
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Sorry, I have a Black Desire S, and yeah, Edding marker works. Just try to find the smallest you can, since the marker on top of the original paint will be noticeable under sunlight. try to stick to the white dots, and good luck!

lol whats the chances of finding this thread, i've always kept mine in a rubber case to try an prevent chips etc, but i removed it the other day to flash another rom and noticed the dust/dirt that had got into the case had made a right mess on the back, so i htought what could i do to fix it,, i chose to just put it back in the case an forget about it but im defo gonna try the black paint pen,, thanks man

meteish said:
As with basically all my other cellphones I convinced myself that I would not drop my Desire S on the road or other killer surfaces, so now that this has happened like 3 times at least, I am left with a few pretty nasty scratches on the aluminium body at the back. Besides dents and scratches not looking all too nice on their own, in this phone's case it looks even worse because it reveals the silver aluminium colour under the paint.
So does anybody know of a way to somehow kinda cover up these aluminium rends ?
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Perhaps an oil based enamel paint... you may be able to get a small tin from a hobby shop.

Metal paint
Guys, please allow me to brag about how I fixed the two tiny paint chips on my Desire S. :laugh:
As suggested by TatoValverde, at first I wanted to buy a paint marker, but since I have the gray Desire S this became a bit complicated. It turns out paint markers are not really easy to find (in Romania at least), much less if they're silver/gray and it becomes almost impossible to find a gray paint marker with a 0,8 mm tip.
After searching for 2 weeks I gave up the paint marker idea, went to the closest DIY store and bought a 750ml paint can + one thin brush. DIY stores are great because you can find a lot of colors and different shades. And by the way, a paint can costs about as much as a thin paint marker.
Although I tried to pick the closest shade of gray, even the smallest paint dot is noticeable on the phone so I had to put just a tiny amount, let it dry for some minutes, then very gently wipe off some of the excess paint. Then apply again a tiny bit of paint and wipe the whole area, over and over again until I couldn't really notice with the naked eye where the initial chips were.
The good thing is this paint seems to be pretty durable (as I've noticed when trying to clean some stains.. ) and it's water and UV resistant.

Custom Paint Job on the Battery Cover - 8/10

was getting bored and tried a custom paint job the battery cover, Have already done one a GSM Galaxy Nexus.
This one did not come out as perfect. Did not sand properly and forgot to put masking tape on the inside.
Personally am a sucker for black red

Nice. Would like to see something more elaborate.

Nice!!! Have any shots of it on the phone...would like to see what it's like all together.

will try to get pictures on the phone once I get home, I did a custom paint job my gnex and that looked sick.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1820875
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1890515
In this case I screwed up as I forgot to tape the insides and also did not sand properly. will see if I have time to redo over the weekend as it takes around 4-5 hours for the whole effort.
Glad you guys like it.

The Black and Red GNex is wicked...I was thinking of painting my case (I drop my phone a lot, a case is a must)...I'll look into to doing this.

show us what you come up with bro ...

Will do

Nice work
Sent from my MB865 using xda app-developers app

did you use car paint sparay?

qwerfv said:
did you use car paint sparay?
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used duplicolor vinyl and fabric paint ...

devilhunter47 said:
Nice work
Sent from my MB865 using xda app-developers app
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Thanks bud ...

Hey munchy_cool,
Im gonna try spraying the white plastic outer shell of the otterbox commuter to black.
Just wanted to know a few things before i get into it..
1. Will a 400 grit sandpaper do ? Couldn't find the 800 one.
2. Also i got this quick drying lacquer spray ( acrylic epoxy) for automobiles, by Bosny, will it be fine.. ?
Couldnt find any adhesion promoter either.. Is it necessary for a lacquer spray ?
3. I found the duplicolor vinyl and fabric and adhesion promoter on ebay, but its way overpriced.. Around 30$ for each can, is it worth buying at that price ? Or will this bosny spray will do.. ?

anikadam said:
Hey munchy_cool,
Im gonna try spraying the white plastic outer shell of the otterbox commuter to black.
Just wanted to know a few things before i get into it..
1. Will a 400 grit sandpaper do ? Couldn't find the 800 one.
2. Also i got this quick drying lacquer spray ( acrylic epoxy) for automobiles, by Bosny, will it be fine.. ?
Couldnt find any adhesion promoter either.. Is it necessary for a lacquer spray ?
3. I found the duplicolor vinyl and fabric and adhesion promoter on ebay, but its way overpriced.. Around 30$ for each can, is it worth buying at that price ? Or will this bosny spray will do.. ?
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hey dude, considering you are in India just go to a paint ship in there and they'll do it for less than what it costs you .
Also, a 400 grit should do , just remove the previous layer of paint if any on the otterbox.
I read that the Bosny epoxy is a primer, do you have the color also in the bosny..if that be the case then you do not need Duplicolor.
Just try on a small piece of plastic first to see how it looks, coz it's one way traffic, if you screw up the otterbox will have to repainted.

munchy_cool said:
hey dude, considering you are in India just go to a paint ship in there and they'll do it for less than what it costs you .
Also, a 400 grit should do , just remove the previous layer of paint if any on the otterbox.
I read that the Bosny epoxy is a primer, do you have the color also in the bosny..if that be the case then you do not need Duplicolor.
Just try on a small piece of plastic first to see how it looks, coz it's one way traffic, if you screw up the otterbox will have to repainted.
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Otterbox doesnt seem to have any layer, just white molded plastic I guess.
Yup i got the flat black color. Didn't want anything glossy, was gonna try it on an old cover first.. Cause I just recently got this case, don't wanna spoil it.
So the steps are
-Wet sanding
-one layer of the paint
-Let it dry for 10mins
-how many layers should I add ?
Also should I sand the surface after the final layer has dried or is it just for cars ?
Will get on with it by the end of this week and let you know.. Thanks

anikadam said:
Otterbox doesnt seem to have any layer, just white molded plastic I guess.
Yup i got the flat black color. Didn't want anything glossy, was gonna try it on an old cover first.. Cause I just recently got this case, don't wanna spoil it.
So the steps are
-Wet sanding
-one layer of the paint
-Let it dry for 10mins
-how many layers should I add ?
Also should I sand the surface after the final layer has dried or is it just for cars ?
Will get on with it by the end of this week and let you know.. Thanks
Click to expand...
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after wet sanding wash it with water and then let it dry in the sun.
clean with a nylon cloth so as to remove any dust particles etc just before the first layer.
2-3 layers should be good.
do not sand after the last layer, in case after each layer you see that you have paint bubbles at any place just sand that area so as to remove the bubbles ...
all the best and lemme know in case you need any more help

Ok, just tried the paint on a good quality plastic after wet sanding it, 2 layers.. it came out really good.. nice even matt black finish.. even experimented a bit by sanding it again.. still the color didnt go.. so all in all it was a successful expt..
The only thing stopping me from spraying it on my phone cover is that it has this strong chemical smell to it. The can says it is Lead free but i cant imagine using my phone with the cover smelling so pungent. Dropping the plan to paint the cover for now.. lets see if the smell goes away in the coming days..
Thanks for guiding munchy_cool, much appreciated :thumbup:

pictures or it did not happen

haha.. uploading photos now.. btw.. the smell has gone down drastically.. hardly any there actually.. so maybe by tonight or tommorow it'll go away completely
This is the original color, it was just a trial, so didnt really click pics for before and after..
This is after 2 layers and some sanding again on the sprayed paint

nice work there dude ...

how did you make your phone square shaped ?