Button Finishing Instructions

Here are some tips on gluing and finishing the Button Kit:

The buttons you are getting are in kit form. You will need to glue the translucent white flange (diffuser) pieces to the backs of the colored lenses, then paint the text with flat black acrylic paint.

First, glue the buttons to the white flange pieces. IMPORTANT NOTE: There are two types of translucent white diffusers (flange pieces), and the AMBER buttons have a slightly darker white diffuser. Make sure you keep the correct white diffusers with the right buttons. This evens out the brightness of the buttons because the amber is much lighter than the green or red.

 

I recommend using a thin (watery) fast curing acrylic solvent to glue the flanges to the buttons, however E6000 can be used as well. E6000 is equivalent to Goop, and available at craft stores. If you use acrylic solvent, do it in a well ventilated area!

Start with the red and green buttons, and glue the amber buttons last. Lightly sand the surfaces to be bonded with 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper on a flat surface to get the best bond. Keep the piece flat and apply even pressure while sanding so you don't round the surface, then make sure to clean all the sanding dust off. Put enough glue on the button so that when you squeeze them together, the entire surfaces have glue between them. I recommend putting the acrylic solvent or E6000 in an "X" pattern on the button to insure the glue gets all the way into the corners when squeezing them together. Excess acrylic solvent will evaporate, however you will need to clean off the excess E6000 within a few minutes after gluing. You can use the corners of small pieces of cardboard, your finger nail and a paper towel to clean off the excess. Make sure the button and flange pieces stay centered, then use a spring clamp like the one in the picture to hold the two pieces together until the solvent or glue is fully cured (about a day).

To paint the text, use a small brush and flat black acrylic paint (available at a craft store).

Paint the text with a generous amount of paint making sure to get it in all the nooks and crannies of the letters. Wrap a paper towel around a small piece of acrylic (about 1" x 1" or the back of another button), wet it very lightly with water then wipe away the excess paint. Move to a clean part of the paper towel and repeat the process until all the excess paint is removed.

To achieve a matte finish to the buttons, you can also lightly sand the face with 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper after painting the letters. This also makes it a bit easier to paint and has the effect of cleaning off any excess paint. This also helps hide any imperfections in the glue between the button and the white flange backer.

Take your time, do it carefully and your buttons should turn out beautifully!

Craig