Going commercial
- Thread starter Rahz
- Start date
hillbill
Well-Known Member
Is it mandatory?
ttystikk
Well-Known Member
Only if you're trying to sell people something.
littlejacob
Well-Known Member
Bonjour
You should propose a case customization...idk how much it cost you to paint your casing but it could be a good idea...the color you want!...
And of course the 1000th panel will be gold plated...!...lol!
CU
You should propose a case customization...idk how much it cost you to paint your casing but it could be a good idea...the color you want!...
And of course the 1000th panel will be gold plated...!...lol!
CU
Rahz
Well-Known Member
It is a good idea, but people who want custom colors are usually particular about it, like not red but RAL 2001 with a clear coat or something else very specific. There are a ton of different colors. Purchasing a small amount of a specific color and paying shipping on it, waiting a couple weeks just to get something specific, and then for only a lamp or two to coat them and then break the gun down and clean it and the spray booth, it's a lot. If I did custom colors it would be a flat fee and then a small amount for each additional lamp. People pay 60-80 dollars just to coat a small part for their car or bike or whatever. I don't really see most people being okay with that kind of fee for some lamps, but I would be open to doing it just not advertising it.
I do like the idea of a special coat on lamp 1000
There was a opalescent clear coat my friend was using, very difficult to get out of the gun completely. I loaded up the black I use and started getting a black coat with red blue and purple sparkles. It was not much, just enough to notice and had an outerspace look to it. We were talking and thought that a teaspoon of the opalescent added to the black would look pretty cool. I ended up cleaning the gun really well before coating the lamps but I almost tried it.
Hydrographics are pretty neat too but also time consuming.
I do like the idea of a special coat on lamp 1000
There was a opalescent clear coat my friend was using, very difficult to get out of the gun completely. I loaded up the black I use and started getting a black coat with red blue and purple sparkles. It was not much, just enough to notice and had an outerspace look to it. We were talking and thought that a teaspoon of the opalescent added to the black would look pretty cool. I ended up cleaning the gun really well before coating the lamps but I almost tried it.
Hydrographics are pretty neat too but also time consuming.
robincnn
Well-Known Member
you mean Cool Vinyl stickers on lamp?
I have been thinking of trying these
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rust-Oleum-Specialty-11-oz-Metallic-Silver-Spray-Paint-1915830/100189098
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rust-Oleum-Universal-11-oz-All-Surface-Metallic-Titanium-Silver-Spray-Paint-and-Primer-in-One-261400/202895261
I have been thinking of trying these
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rust-Oleum-Specialty-11-oz-Metallic-Silver-Spray-Paint-1915830/100189098
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rust-Oleum-Universal-11-oz-All-Surface-Metallic-Titanium-Silver-Spray-Paint-and-Primer-in-One-261400/202895261
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I like your T1750, it's very similar to what I have, 4x CXB3590 at 1750mA w/ lenses on a 90cm bar, although my light is DIY.
MINOR annoying issue with my DIY light: There are holes in the heatsink, like for wires and for mounting fans. The holes are tiny, but it seems that over time small particles/dust etc. get in and then fall down into the lens. (In the meantime I propped up the driver and installed a fourth fan, it bugged me that the first LED got warm)
littlejacob
Well-Known Member
Bonjour
Is it the kind of paint I would need if I want to paint my casing?
Is it for aluminium?
What should i do first? Sand the alu sheet...then 2 or 3 layer of paint and I am ok?
Then I will ask a friend to draw some mj leaves on it...lol!
CU
robincnn
Well-Known Member
Bonjour. I am not sure about paint.
https://www.saf.com/how-to-specify/how-to-decide-between-anodizing-painting-and-powder-coating/
https://www.saf.com/how-to-specify/how-to-decide-between-anodizing-painting-and-powder-coating/
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Fastslappy
Well-Known Member
if yer selling ya paint black with decals + chrome trim that combo sells trucks it will sell lights , powder coating is Really nice but extra processes mean higher costs
IF i was buying a light assy ?
paint job or powder coat
just want my money's worth so as long as it looked nice & not cheezy
IF i was buying a light assy ?
paint job or powder coat
just want my money's worth so as long as it looked nice & not cheezy
Rahz
Well-Known Member
I think anodizing looks really nice, but difficult to justify on a small scale. No only do you deal with tubs of acid, but the metal has to be finished prior to anodizing. If you can find some place locally that anodizes and can get a good price on whatever your volume is that would be a good solution.
I haven't researched specialty paints so can't say much about it, but an advantage over powder coating is no need to cook the paint. I'm not sure if a regular paint gun can be used with urethane paint, but in either case I suspect the equipment is much cheaper as powder coating guns are expensive. You can buy a book and DIY a mid size powder coating oven for $1500-2000 with scrap metal but the gun and electrical equipment is 5-10 grand for a nice one.
The advantage of powder coating is no fumes (as your link mentions) but also, if you screw something up prior to placing it in the oven you can just blow the powder off and re-coat. It's also pretty easy to get a nice even coat with a little practice.
I haven't researched specialty paints so can't say much about it, but an advantage over powder coating is no need to cook the paint. I'm not sure if a regular paint gun can be used with urethane paint, but in either case I suspect the equipment is much cheaper as powder coating guns are expensive. You can buy a book and DIY a mid size powder coating oven for $1500-2000 with scrap metal but the gun and electrical equipment is 5-10 grand for a nice one.
The advantage of powder coating is no fumes (as your link mentions) but also, if you screw something up prior to placing it in the oven you can just blow the powder off and re-coat. It's also pretty easy to get a nice even coat with a little practice.
Rahz
Well-Known Member
I haven't updated this thread in a while. Some of this stuff won't interest most but in keeping with the theme I though I would mention a few things.
16 gauge power cords will come standard with lamps now. The AC wiring in the lamps and the connector cords will still be 14 gauge. This will keep options open for people wanting to push closer to 15 amps while also being able to provide 120v power cords for the majority of applications.
The manufacturing process is about to get an upgrade. I've ditched the HVAC supply house as my metal supplier. They gave me the wrong alloy several times so I started looking around. I found a place that will get exactly what I want and will cut it to my specifications. It's a level of precision I wasn't able to achieve on my own, so now I will be able to stack 10 or more sheets together and do what was 10 hours of drill work in 1 hour. No more chopping sheets up either. It wasn't a time consuming process but still a bonus.
I'm also using a thicker gauge aluminum in the next production cycle. The upgrade was only $15 a sheet, or about $2 per lamp. My damage rate with UPS has been under 5% which is not bad but I hope to get it closer to zero. Part of it was packaging which I've solved at this point but a thicker gauge enclosure will also help and pay for itself.
I'm trying to keep stock at 6 lamps or less while waiting on the CX upgrade, also itching to learn more about the new Vero lineup which will may end up being a few months behind the CX upgrade. Being a small company I'm versatile in this regard and can re-tool in a matter of days if I want to.
The 300w T4-2100 will be showing up in the next month or so. Having a full line in the 2100 series I'll start thinking seriously about dropping the 1750 and 1400 series and possibly introducing a new model to take over the higher efficiency offering.
Anyway, I want to thank all the people who have purchased Tasty lamps. I'm teetering on the edge of quitting my day job which I've already reduced to part time. I have an employee learning the craft and sales are good.
16 gauge power cords will come standard with lamps now. The AC wiring in the lamps and the connector cords will still be 14 gauge. This will keep options open for people wanting to push closer to 15 amps while also being able to provide 120v power cords for the majority of applications.
The manufacturing process is about to get an upgrade. I've ditched the HVAC supply house as my metal supplier. They gave me the wrong alloy several times so I started looking around. I found a place that will get exactly what I want and will cut it to my specifications. It's a level of precision I wasn't able to achieve on my own, so now I will be able to stack 10 or more sheets together and do what was 10 hours of drill work in 1 hour. No more chopping sheets up either. It wasn't a time consuming process but still a bonus.
I'm also using a thicker gauge aluminum in the next production cycle. The upgrade was only $15 a sheet, or about $2 per lamp. My damage rate with UPS has been under 5% which is not bad but I hope to get it closer to zero. Part of it was packaging which I've solved at this point but a thicker gauge enclosure will also help and pay for itself.
I'm trying to keep stock at 6 lamps or less while waiting on the CX upgrade, also itching to learn more about the new Vero lineup which will may end up being a few months behind the CX upgrade. Being a small company I'm versatile in this regard and can re-tool in a matter of days if I want to.
The 300w T4-2100 will be showing up in the next month or so. Having a full line in the 2100 series I'll start thinking seriously about dropping the 1750 and 1400 series and possibly introducing a new model to take over the higher efficiency offering.
Anyway, I want to thank all the people who have purchased Tasty lamps. I'm teetering on the edge of quitting my day job which I've already reduced to part time. I have an employee learning the craft and sales are good.
Airwalker16
Well-Known Member
For the t4 2100 would you use an hlg320h-c2100b?
Rahz
Well-Known Member
Yes exactly. I have one I've been playing around with and a small shipment coming. What the availability will be after that I don't know.