Black Velvet

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ai4px
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Black Velvet

Post by ai4px »

I'm new here and have been skimming this forum whilst awaiting approval to post. I'll be asking a few questions today, please forgive if these things have been asked and I haven't found them yet.

I see that many of you spend a lot of effort painting your scanners black. I'm wondering why you don't use spray adhesive and black velvet material? At work we have a color sensor that standardizes (calibrates) itself and one of the measurements it takes is pitch black... that is shooting a flash into a velvet lined cup. It would seem that's the best stuff for absorbing stray light.
dpc
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Re: Black Velvet

Post by dpc »

I would guess that the main reason is that the flat black paint works "good enough" and is cheaper and simpler to apply.

I think most people go overboard on the black paint. There's really only a need to blacken the surfaces of the scanner that could reflect light off the glass and back into the camera lens. So on the Hackerspace scanner builds that would be the insides of the upper portion of the scanner (the "v-box"?), including the cross members that hold the cameras as well as the underside of the lighting panel. Certainly any of the outer-facing surfaces could be painted/stained any color you like.
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stevede
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Re: Black Velvet

Post by stevede »

I agree with you regarding black velvet. As I said on my build thread, it's beyond black. The problem with velvet is the cost. In Canada it goes for around 40.00 a yard. It just depends on your level of obsession.
Stychokiller
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Re: Black Velvet

Post by Stychokiller »

Not only is velvet (of any color) expensive, it's quite a bitch to clean and to KEEP clean!
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daniel_reetz
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Re: Black Velvet

Post by daniel_reetz »

hey ai4px,

interesting question. I think for the most part it's because the scanners here are made of lots of different materials and spray coating is easy. However, it's worth reconsidering that for sure. I've been looking into lots of coating processes lately, like dipping, anodizing, and even flat black stick-on vinyl. Another useful material for book scanner builders is Duvetyne or Commando cloth - sometimes called "theater blacking" - it's a flocked (velvety) cloth with minor fire-retardant properties and it's very black.
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