Painting Motherboard Heatsinks/IO Shroud - Paint Suggestions?

[Gmr_Chick]

So...long story short, I want to make my current Strix Z490-G board look like a shrunk down version of the Strix Z490-A. I want to paint the heatsinks silver, and the IO shroud silver, red and keep hints of the black. I did a quick and filthy mock up in GIMP just now:

Kind of like this ^ What kind of paint should I use? Does anyone know if the heatsinks are actually black aluminum, or simply painted black with the bare silver aluminum underneath? Thanks y'all

 

[Caring1]

They are probably powder coated black to last longer.
Use heat proof paint in rattle cans from an auto store, it's used to paint engines etc.
You may have to prime first on bare metal.

 

[biffzinker]

anyone know if the heatsinks are actually black aluminum, or simply painted black with the bare silver aluminum underneath? Thanks y'all

The heatsinks could be black from the anodizing process.

https://www.anodizing.org/page/what-is-anodizing

 

[Gmr_Chick]

They are probably powder coated black to last longer.
Use heat proof paint in rattle cans from an auto store, it's used to paint engines etc.
You may have to prime first on bare metal.

How would I go about doing that? Use thinner or steel wool, maybe?

Crap. My dad was the one who handled this kind of stuff for me. Most of my painting knowledge is more on the model-building side of things.

 

[Caring1]

How would I go about doing that? Use thinner or steel wool, maybe?

Crap. My dad was the one who handled this kind of stuff for me. Most of my painting knowledge is more on the model-building side of things.

Remove the heatsinks from the board and rough them up lightly with sandpaper so the paint has something to stick to, then prime bare areas and paint after that has dried.

 

[Gmr_Chick]

Sandpaper, eh? I build model kits, so I got plenty of that. Any particular grit? The lowest I have is in the 100's I think... The highest I have is 1000, but I don't use it much.

 

[PLAfiller]

100 is fine, may be 120. I'd wet it with water. I don't think you have to remove that much. Just to scuff it up a bit. Primer is good, but in this case I am not sure if you really need that, or just go straight for the heat resistant paint. As this part will get hot and I don't know if primer is meant for that. Most modern spray cans are already 3 in 1 containing some form of primer and rust sealing chemicals. Your temps might get a degree or so up, after the painting, but nothing drastic I think.

 

[DeathtoGnomes]

Piant does retain some heat, priming an object increases this retention slightly. So the thinnest of coats is desired.

Enamel paints are thicker when applied
Lacquer is thinner.

 

[Gmr_Chick]

Enamel, at least when it comes to model paint, also takes the longest to dry, whereas lacquer and acrylic don't take nearly as long. Acrylic isn't as "strong" as enamel or lacquer though, but it's also not as smelly as enamel and lacquer, either, so there's that, lol.

That being said, lacquer seems like the way to go, sans primer. Light coats. I'll see if I can get my brother-in-law to help me with the painting, as he used to be an auto body painter (and was rather good with it, to boot!)

Did some searching and found this stuff by Dupli-Color, but it doesn't say it's specifically suited for high temps (though they also make engine enamel paint. Closest that series comes to my needs is their aluminum color choice) -- https://www.duplicolor.com/product/automotive-metallic-paint/

Also by Dupli-Color, I found this caliper paint that's rated to withstand temps of 500 degrees Fahrenheit. It's enamel though -- https://www.duplicolor.com/product/caliper-paint/

 

[bmacsys]

Don't use sandpaper use scotchbrite.