Custom Painted and Real Carbon Fiber Xbox Controllers/Cases

CEO.InfernO

Rookie
Joined
May 1, 2008
Messages
46
I've been following various mods and the paint works of Brad Galvin at http://www.dirtdesignsgraphic.com for some time now, and finally decided to begin learning myself. We have been experimenting for the past few months, and have come out with a couple thing I'll be showing you here. There are a few other customs we did for various customers, which they currently have, and I didn't get any pictures of them at the time, but will work to get some pictures of those as well.

Everything we do uses automotive-quality paints, and professional quality clear coats for maximum color, durability, and a gorgeous gloss finish.

Here is an "MLG" controller I did for a buddy of mine:
Pictures don't do the Pearlized Blue color proper justice




Here is an "Evil Skull" controller we just finished a couple days ago. As you can probably tell from the name on the controller, this little guy is mine :)




This one is one of my pride-and-joy projects, about as close to one-of-a-kind as you can get it seems. This was very tricky but well worth it for the end result.
After the protective clear coat was applied to upper half









Here are few other little things I played around with while working on other carbon fiber items

Yes, those are light switches :)


A little mouse mod, will paint the rest to match better at a later date




Coaster


M4 Mods





We are developing new designs and looking into offering customization services to people for relatively inexpensive prices. Since we do this as a hobby, and not a job, we don't need enormous profits to make it worth our while. We just want to be able to afford to keep "playing" with our paint and carbon fiber, and find new and fun ways to modify our stuff. If you have any ideas for us, we'd love to hear it, and if you are at all interested in getting some custom work done, feel free to chat with me and I'd be more than happy to entertain them!

We will be doing a full carbon fiber Xbox 360 case, and have already completed the faceplate, and will post that as soon as it's ready! A few other things "coming down the pipe" are custom painted computer cases, some custom painted guitars, amongst a few other projects, so let me know if you'd like periodic updates on those as they progress!

Posted from Tech-Kings
 
Last edited:
0.0 if only you could make me one where the paint doesnt rub off and instead of a 360 controller its a PS3 controller. That would be nice. I would definitely try and get one if you could do a really nice PS3 one for me. But Im not too sure how it would turn out seeing as how Ps3 controllers are black instead of white.
 
Amazon.com. and or ebay.com has plenty of those I got the PS3 and XBOX ones.
 
0.0 if only you could make me one where the paint doesnt rub off and instead of a 360 controller its a PS3 controller. That would be nice. I would definitely try and get one if you could do a really nice PS3 one for me. But Im not too sure how it would turn out seeing as how Ps3 controllers are black instead of white.

All it takes is a white base coat :) We actually painted the Xbox controller with a white base coat before we did this anyway, since the white color of the xbox controller isn't really THAT white in comparison.

Also, being that we are using automotive-quality paints and auto clear coat, the paint will rub off as easily as it would on a car. Sure, it may chip or scratch if you drop it, but it shouldn't ever "rub" off.

We will be doing some PS3 controllers soon, and i"ll post them when they are done!
 
Love the MLG style ones! :D

Thanks, and even though it's simpler, one of my favorites as well! The blue looks incredible in person, I may try taking a picture in some different lighting conditions and the deeper hue of blue may come out. It is lightly pearlized which means it has a slight glittery sparkle, but it's subtle, and looks great.
 
I'll be sure to post the Carbon Fiber Xbox case when it's finished (2 weeks I should have time to start it), and also looking into lighting mods amongst other things. It's a fun hobby, and ads an aspect of personality which is also kinda fun :)

We will be starting some PC case mods soon as well!

Thanks again for all the kind comments!
 
Hey guys,

I've been "toying" with a few of these things for a little while, and looking to see what people think about them! I enjoy doing things that are "outside of the box" and am currently looking into a variety of new mods and designs to do as well, and if you have some ideas you'd like me to try, please let me know! Here are a few things that I've already done:
http://tech-kings.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=56


Here is a worklog for my Real Carbon Fiber Xbox 360 Shell which is my current/next project. Just wish time wasn't such a sparse thing these days! So many ideas and projects, and so little time!
http://tech-kings.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=58

Like I mentioned earlier, I'm looking to see what people think, and also looking for inspiration. Various forums have provided me with many great ideas, and hoping I can find some more!

I'll also update this thread when I have updates, especially for the 360 case, which I will hopefully have time for making some major progress this coming weekend.

I look forward to seeing what you have to say and hope you enjoy these!
Inferno
 
/pm sent


that's pretty interesting

Thanks ;)

I ordered some Silver "carbon fiber" (really aluminum-treated fiberglass) today and will be experimenting with that as soon as I have some time to do so! Should look awesome!

Also, I've developed a new technique for these smaller fab jobs to create a more uniform and professional resin finish with minimal work, and I'm excited to get the ball rolling on that, hope the UPS man can hurry up to get me my supplies :)
 
Got a chance to get some more done this weekend! Let's see what we have here!

First thing, I was able to get a clear layer on the carbon fiber Xbox shell, but doesn't look as though I'll be able to completely finish it this weekend. More work shown in the Worklog: CFX (Carbon Fiber Xbox 360).




The project I have planned is for someone who wants a silver "carbon fiber" Xbox Shell, and it should look great, and will be a cheaper alternative to real carbon fiber!




I have also had a few requests for carbon fiber controllers, and got started on one of them this weekend. It is already turning out to be much better than the first trial-run, and is coming along awesome! It doesn't look like I'll get this completely finished this weekend either, but it will be very close to it.

A full worklog for doing an Xbox 360 controller in carbon fiber is at Worklog: Carbon Fiber Xbox 360 Controller.



We will also be working on some Playstation 3 controller paint designs which should also turn out to be great, so keep an eye out for that!

Hope you like it and thanks for looking!
Inferno
 
Finally got some time to work on things some more the past day!

Both projects received their second layer of resin after knocking down the first layer, and smoothing out any high spots and build a smooth base for subsequent layers.

Next, the second layer will be sanded down and smoothed for the final, third layer, which will be multigrain sanded to a polish and given a final finish of automotive clearcoat to protect the finish!

Here's how the controllers are coming out, you can see that a smooth and glossy shine is beginning to be very prevalent. This picture was taken of cured resin, so it's really coming together quickly. The third layer will be a fairly thin layer, with a final knockdown/smooth/polish and it will be ready for some intense gaming!


Xbox Controller Worklog

The same process is used for the Xbox Case as well

Carbon Fiber Xbox 360 Worklog

Thanks for looking!
Inferno
 
After meticulous sanding with 200, 400, 600, 800, and 1000 grit sandpaper until we have a very smooth surface, I then began removing the masking, and trimming any excess and ensuring a tight and even fit between the halves, and also ensuring that the buttons moved freely.

Testing the fit of the halves




As you can see, the surface is now very even and smooth, and the pieces mesh very well!

Once everything was thoroughly tested to ensure fit and finish, it's time for the automotive clear coat! This is where all the hard work really comes to life!

I'm just going to let the images do the talking, and I'll caption one here and there

The pieces ready for their clear coat finish!





I used an airbrush since it's such a small piece, so I can get into all the smaller nooks and crannies


After the initial clear coat layer, which we allow ample dry time before applying the second layer of clear












Now, after 3 coats, it's looking BEAUTIFUL!















I'll be letting the clear cure for about a week before I assemble it, and will post pictures when it's all together!

Thanks!
Inferno

Xbox Controller Worklog
 

Similar threads

Latest posts

Back
Top