Paint without sanding?

[AMAZING LARRY]

Hey I got a laptop from the school I attend and it's basically my life now because I have to do all my programming for school on it, etc so I can't have it out of commision for more than a day really but I want to put a design on top of it. Nothing that should be intricate but how would one suggest I go about doing this? What would be the best kind of paint and how would I prepare it without having to sand, let dry for 10 years, etc. ? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Big_Mac]

step 1: get a piece of adhesive vinyl, and make a negative of what you want for your design. (holes in the vinyl where you want paint) and stick it to your laptop lid.

step 2: get a BIG garbage bag. Put the laptop in it, and cut a hole big enough to let the design show through. Attach the laptop to the bag with masking tape (that way if you spray the design, you'll either hit the vinyl, the bag, the tape or JUST the area of the lappy that you want to spray). This protects your laptop from getting paint where it doesn't belong.

step 3: clean the surface using rubbing alcohol.

step 4: spray on your paint of choice. Light coats are best, and let the paint set for a while between coats (2-3 hours). Let the paint cure overnight after the last coat.

step 5: take off the masking tape and bag, then CAREFULLY separate the vinyl from the paint. Now you have a nice design stencilled onto your lappy.

You'd probably be best off using a vinyl dye (or Krylon Fusion) paint if your laptop is plastic (and only 2-3 coats) or an enamel based paint if it's a metallic lappy. But enamel takes a LONG time to set properly. You may want to tape a sheet of paper over the paint for a week to let it set nicely (and be gentle during that time) after step 5.

Have fun.

[AMAZING LARRY]

Sweet deal... Thanks Big Mac... I'll get right to it. :D

[DRxAndy]

by all means, take it apart!
accidents = ruined internals of laptop

its worth waiting that whole day, for safety's sake

or you could just get a big vinyl sticker