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Post by thetechnobear on Jul 30, 2019 10:55:17 GMT
any thoughts on what to use for custom front panel?
ive been using spare 'blank' modules, but running out of them,
also id like something thats a bit easier to work with, as i find them a little 'fragile' when I'm trying to cut them etc. (they are absolutely find 'in use' , its just when making them)
I tried finding thin ply or balsa wood, but still seems a bit thick. plastic might work, but its quite hard to drill/cut. metal sheets ok, for drilling, but again cutting is pretty difficult.
if i had a 3d printer, or a 3d printing/laser cutting service locally, that would be an option!
thoughts?
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Post by moruial on Jul 30, 2019 11:17:02 GMT
Plywood or PVC were my first thoughts. Balsa would be too much fragile in my opinion
Maybe plexiglas? I know it's transparent, but you can sand it and spray paint? With the right paint you might enven match the colour of the AEM. Still solid enough for front panel and easy to cut with a thin saw (metal saw or wire saw)
Aluminum sheet, but that may be expensive quickly.
Metal sheet is also a good choice. If you find a place where they only sell metal bars and sheet, they might be able to cut the directly for you at the size you want. You can also look at metal work school, they can do such thing quiet cheap.
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bahm
Full Member
Posts: 154
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Post by bahm on Jul 30, 2019 11:26:12 GMT
I have seen a diy modular with old pcbs as front panels. Looks good.
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Post by Gaëtan on Jul 30, 2019 11:26:37 GMT
I was also thinking acrylic or PVC. It shouldn't be too difficult to find acrylic plates thin enough in a hobby or model shop. It's actually not that hard to drill, you mostly need to go slow, use sharp bits and a piece of wood behind.
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Post by robertlanger on Jul 30, 2019 12:09:23 GMT
I think for DIY without machinery acrylic should work fine; it's available also in 1,5mm like the original AE frontpanels. Other plastic materials like PVC, Styrene etc. are too weak IMO. In a very early phase of AE I was thinking about acrylics as an advanced frontpanels option, my idea was to use a "milky", semitransparent one and place LEDs on the PCB to light them in different colors... 😲
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