Make a Thinkpad Laptop Look Brand New With Plasti Dip

Today I am going to see if I can use Plasti Dip to restore the lid on my Lenovo Thinkpad T430.
My little experiment turned out to be a success. After a quick session of trial and error I was able to successfully apply several coats of Plasti Dip to my laptop to make it look brand new. I found that 5 light coats of dip works best with a drying time of ~ 15-20 mins between each coat.
Plasti dip: amzn.to/2whSg0n
Respirator: amzn.to/2gUmODF
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[@AAComputersandTechnology]

The 3 month update video can be found here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/j4KUeXaJjbN7jpo Quick correction. I think I said the T430 lid was made out of metal during the video. According to lenovo it is actually a "Carbon-fiber / Glass-fiber hybrid" material.

[@grantspade2405]

AA Computers and Technology This is poetic because this is literally my college grant computer. Still helping me after all these years kappa

[@AAComputersandTechnology]

The T430 is not a bad laptop. I could picture using mine for a couple more years if needed (though mine has a lot of upgrades). I find it odd that your university is still issuing students these though in 2017, with all of that money they are getting one would think they would issue you the latest and greatest :p

[@kelvinchiam440]

AA Computers and Technology Hey Thank Man thank to fix it my old laptop just like this...

[@Supergamer-tx9qf]

AA Computers and Technology hey, could I please get one of those optiplex computers behind you in the video for free, I really need a computer for school, thanks

[@lost244]

Supergamer 1 Lol using the oldest trick in the book, TBH you are more likely to get a free computer from a school you can just E-Mail them and give them you're reason for why you need one. They will probably give you a older computer but its something at least,

[@Muscleduck]

The light coats really look great, and it's an amazing idea! The soft touch of those Lenovo laptops is really comfortable. Using Plasti Dip this way opens us to new ideas. Great work.

[@caioronnau5226]

Could I make a suggestion? do a follow up video on this in about 3 months to show how well the plastidip holds up with time...

[@AAComputersandTechnology]

I think that's a good idea!

[@isame0085]

Yeah

[@heckyes]

Yes, please do the follow up video. Does Plastidip come in any other colours?

[@AAComputersandTechnology]

yes: plastidip.com/our-products/plasti-dip/

[@heckyes]

Nice, may I make a suggestion for a video. Do some kind of custom AA logo in different colour and then paint it black. I've always wanted to do a custom logo on my lappy. I think I have the same notebook. Is it an x220?

[@TechnoAlex]

This turned out amazing! I personally like the rough textured look the Plasti-Dip gave off. :)

[@herrfaust2020]

Thanks for this tip! Regarding the ThinkPad sticker, what I did was use Q-Tips and isopropanol to wipe the Plasti Dip off the sticker(s) when it is still wet. Make sure you roll the Q-Tip to absorb the Plasti Dip. If you use it like a mop, pushing the Plasti Dip around, you'll end up bunching it, making wrinkles around the stickers.

[@eddieoconnor4466]

Dude? I think it looks even BETTER with the logos covered up!.....gives it a "Noir" edge!.....I also have T-420's and T-430's and I'm DEFINITELY gonna Plasti-Dip 'em to be "blacked out"!....Thanks for the info and the suggestion!!

[@loic7867]

I put this video in a playlist thinking I would need ot for my newly arrived refurbished T530... BUT IT LOOKS ALMOST BRAND NEW! I am so happy!

[@TimArdan]

You could also pick up a new set of stickers from eBay to replace the Lenovo and ThinkPad logos if they're scratched. I plan to get a new Lenovo logo as the letters were sliding around when I was cleaning it yesterday.

[@imribiy]

Great content! I'm thinking about buying an old school Thinkpad but this rubber panel was making me nervous then I saw your video. Thanks a lot.

[@rich3821]

I've been a lenovo guy for years. Currently restoring / upgrading an x200 to use for Linux. This tutorial will help make the exterior brand spanking new again. Thanks for sharing.

[@OverlandOne]

Awesome job! Looks great. I have a Thinkpad T60 that came back looking good with some car polish, otherwise, I would do this method for sure.

[@PCUser1024]

Love your channel! The contents are really useful / practical and interesting!

[@KingASE88]

When ever you post o get so happy!

[@namesalvaje]

This is so Awesome! You make my day! I have many Lenovo's and a couple of them needed this.

[@mihdifahmi9239]

It's good idea I have A Thinkpad T400S and still Amazing today

[@stevethea5250]

Now I have a strange desire to hold my laptop close and dance dreamily around the room.

[@HardwareHackers]

That turned our really well! have used it on car wheels before with good results, its amazing how well it is to work with! We were looking at doing our Thinkpad with Vinyl Wrap but tbh that looks a better solution

[@kevinbatts2804]

Excellent idea I never thought to use plastidip to redo my Thinkpad.

[@chetana9802]

video style is very good loved this customization may be even try it on some weekend

[@theleo07896]

I have a T420 and it looks like your thinkpad, great idea for my thinkpad thumbs up, great channel!! (from chile)

[@jacobhernandez1305]

Thinkpads are the best!

[@davidca96]

Jacob Hernandez I found a refurb one for $600 less than new and it turned out to be in fantastic shape and works great.

[@kepler666]

they are not meant for gaming

[@MrLele3000]

yes , and they're not made for cooking..

[@carloantonioj]

@Baby McGee thinkpads are for working, I am software developer and these laptops are great.

[@popespalace823]

Twinkpads are shit, they break if you even look at them wrong. Buy a toughbook.

[@soulife8383]

Tl;Dr - Video starts at: 3:29, Just in case anyone else out there came here to see a laptop get Plasti-Dip This guy must have been great at writing essays in school.. I swear he just turned "the laptop is worn and is getting Platti-Dipped" into 2min and 43sec of video in the beginning.. I zoned out while reading an article and when i finished and started listening to the video again he was still saying the same thing lol. Bravo to you sir, I'm bad at "fluff".

[@RavenVargas27]

Dude looks like it was factory made you did an amazing job I love and prefer the rough texture it gave one of my computers has that texture

[@namluu8296]

Damn, you make me buy a thinkpad by watch your videos! Thanks bro!

[@Fl0yt]

That looks fantastic. I'm certainly gonna do it, but with deep blue color

[@ItsJustMirko]

did this to my Sony Vaio and it looks absolutely nice!

[@lalapapa9357]

That came out solid!

[@EXITMUSIC2011]

You did a good job in the end.

[@OhItsLynx]

So stoked on starting my own thinkpad project. Want to dual boot mac os and windows on an x220 simply because of its portability and ruggedness

[@scarpaz]

Great idea! Thanks for making this video!

[@Martin-ot7xj]

Hi there, it was very useful and interesting video tutorial. Thnx. Keep it up

[@adamfletcher4262]

Fair play that looks mint

[@justinc8157]

I did this to a T410 back in 2013 except I used red. I was very proud of how snazzy it looked.

[@freddybgbg]

Hey man, the end result looked great. I just had a few concerns before I try it myself. Did you experience any wireless signal reduction after applying the coating? I don't know if the wireless card is 2.4 or 5, but water dense materials usually cause some trouble. The antenna is behind the screen on this model, no? You wouldn't happen to have speed tests from before/after, would you?

[@rafaelmora8219]

Cool idea, you should use and X-acto pencil knife to uncover Lenovo Thinkpad logos, it will be easier. Thanks for sharing!

[@kangjakachannel498]

Thanks for your video tutorials, its amazing ,,

[@kalijasin]

That's how you refurbish a laptop. Good job.

[@michael_christian9461]

My inspiration 1525 has a ruber coating on rhe top too and it hasn't held up to well so i think I'll try this out

[@jerrych0w880]

nice job bro. ThinkPad W530 | Black (Factory New)

[@mac11380]

Looks like it would have better grip also, neat idea.

[@super-etendard]

thank you, it is great !

[@WhiteDeVil3]

That indeed looks amazing, great job bro.

[@kattan2006]

Great job .. well done

[@spencerhulme1203]

Good job Buddy! 💯

[@ShaneWims]

Looks great!

[@shanejohns7901]

You should be able to do touch ups after the fact with something like a toothpick dipped in some of the PlastiDip material. The can clearly has some kind of solvent in it, and it should make those jagged spots where you cut it blend right in. Assuming, of course, that you have a very steady hand.

[@zeljkobekcic9656]

The sound of the intro shocked me. Now I am fully awake.

[@LDdrums20]

Great job!

[@NotHenshinHero]

Nice restauration man

[@allradkarre2193]

looks super good.but im goning with a vinyl wrap for my acer beacause its cheaper and easier. i have a acer aspire zg5

[@eniggma9353]

you are such a good boy man.

[@2EXTREME2008]

im tempted to do this with my inspiron 15 7000

[@birumutiara2169]

great idea..thanks

[@mbk1251]

There me trying it in truck bedliner ,because local Halford here in the uk ran out of the plastic dip also did over my boblbe hard case cloth covered rugsack too came good

[@blairlohnes8103]

Why not just take the lid off? Tape it up over the badges and you'd be gold.

[@jaxw2628]

Why not just get a new lid if your’e gonna take the lid off xD

[@KylesDigitalLab]

Taking the lid off a ThinkPad is a massive pain in the ass though.

[@KJ7JHN]

Have you made a follow up video to this? I'd like to see the longevity /durability.

[@stevethea5250]

is the dip safe for health?

[@folksurvival]

Yoh should try a camo spray paint job like Dade from the movie Hackers.

[@escapetherace1943]

Nice, cans are way cheaper at Lowes or Home Depot, I checked If you're going to be fully disassembling then you can probably do the bottom too, just put paper on the inside.

[@Epiclyspeaking]

Car guys: "Ah I see you're a man of culture as well"

[@zahlenfolge1233]

Wow, this looks awesome! That's exactly what I need for my T420, it doesn't look too bad tho but some refreshment would be nice. Do you think this would work out for the trackpad too? The rubber coating of mine is pretty much worn out.

[@Montisaquadeis]

The trackpads have a sticker on them and plastidip is non conductive so covering the touchpad is a bad idea as it won't work afterwards

[@zahlenfolge1233]

Montisaquadeis Well, no Plasti Dip for the trackpad then. Thanks for your reply.

[@MrMega200]

Yeah you can buy a set of trackpad stickers on amazon for around $10. You just need a sharp knife and patience to do it.

[@Montisaquadeis]

For example www.amazon.com/Trackpad-Touchpad-Sticker-Thinkpad-T400ST410S/dp/B074K1YKRG/

[@zahlenfolge1233]

Nick Schafer A trackpad sticker schould work fine. Never thought about that but I think it's the easiest solution. Thanks.

[@MrPlayboy28]

Little tip: you have tp remove the tape while the last coat is still wet.

[@dennis-br6vr]

otherwise you would rip the plastidip off.

[@dawn1berlitz]

this vid might help me restore a yoga 260 that once belonged to a school but was abandoned its scratched up badly because of the student who had it was careless

[@abdurrahmansahin3920]

great job guy

[@jorgevillacis8127]

Really Nice !

[@stephenroberts2526]

When you use tape masks with Plastidip, pull up the tape while the coat is still wet. Otherwise, you are ripping the rubbery compounds that cause it to be jagged.

[@BigDrewski1000]

Huh. I'll give this a try. I just ordered a T-430 off E-Bay, so I'm sure it'll need something like this.

[@tanoso9]

Looks good. Easy. Do you think Plasti Dip will work fine on a motorcycle helmet?

[@MrData2013]

Hey!!! Tell me about the best cpu to upgrade!!! Thanks!!!

[@fabior.araujo9131]

looks good

[@trionic5]

I use a HP Envy DV6-7213nr, I was wondering if I should carbon wrap the lid, I don't want the metal getting scratched but IDK if it could hurt the laptop.

[@GreighThunda]

Want a better solution? Mr. Clean Magic Eraser activate it with 91% alcohol evenly clean the top. Found out the top of my T430 has pearls in it lol

[@dianasousa201]

Hi! this is a great idea! I have a sony vaio that is at least 9 years old and it is white, but the part around the keyboard have become more yellow than white at this point (the lid is still glossy white) and I've been thinking on how to change that yellow color back to white and maybe this is a good option! How do you suggest I protect the keyboard for applying the layers of plasti dip so I can remove it later without removing the painting as well?

[@adrien3967]

diana sousa Maybe try doing a process called Retr0bright. It might help. You can find a lot of tutorials of it on KZbin.

[@dianasousa201]

Thanks! I'll check it up!

[@no_4259]

Why does almost everything that looks cringe on cars actually seem to work nicely on computers XD Might do this with a Dell Optiplex desktop just to give it back its black color

[@CorndogCameron]

It's the finish. Plastidip is rough and bumpy. You don't want that on a car, you want smooth and shiny.

[@hagbard72]

Just saw a video on how to restore the cover of a Thinkpad using, first, magic eraser then finishing with Nvidia cream. Tried it and it worked.

[@hagbard72]

@Raymond Which model? Newer ones don't have the same surface.

[@hagbard72]

@Raymond Think that uses a different surface.

[@hagbard72]

@Raymond Nice blaming others for your mistake.

[@hagbard72]

@Raymond I don't have any, that's because I did it on a T430 as discussed in the video and not an X Carbon. Did you even look for the video I mentioned before you went ahead with your "repair"?

[@microdesigns2000]

6:44 Ok then, it's been 3+ years now like you said in your video. It's time to update us on how your plastidip coating fared through your college years. Did you graduate? Did you get a job? Did the plastidip hold up?

[@karlsolitario8013]

you can get rid of the texture by spraying heavier coats(evenly) but I like how yours turned out :D Anyway if you read this, I'm planning to get a thinkpad to do web development and for daily use but I don't have a lot to spend. I only have about $100 to spend for a thinkpad. Which thinkpad would you recommend?

[@AAComputersandTechnology]

You could easily get a T410 for under $100 bucks.

[@Yeshuaschosen]

AA Computers and Technology Wow! It looks brand new! Wonder if the plastic coating will cover someones name scratched on the lid or should I use a filler first and sand it?

[@MF175mp]

I didn't know that the Lenovo era Thinpads had rubberized lid as well.

[@daturainoxia7783]

great video bro

[@damianabunga]

i love lenovo thinkpad ❤️

[@heckyes]

Awesome!

[@christianallen3264]

I spiced things up with my thinkpad and made it all black and purple with paint over the red

[@Vynncent]

How well do you think this would work on my T60?

[@EricVanBuggenhaut]

Inside the laptop also ? What about trying to refresh your keyboard ? Or the LCD panel !

[@wazbat1]

Little feedback on the recording. Watch your lighting next time. I'd record with the light in front of the laptop at the end of the video instead of behind it, as you can't see the sides of the lid due to the shadow

[@nukekiller101]

Great video

[@inspectorlunge3887]

I might use this to protect my collectible 1996 IBM thinkpad

[@leondu]

Just bought a sliver version thinkpad, much harder to get dirty during daily use

[@OldManFrank]

*You could also vinyl wrap the laptop.*

[@rchetype7029]

This is okay but can we use flexseal

[@DemeDemetre]

does it rub off in normal use, putting it in a bag and so on

[@vermilion5559]

NICE!

[@user-ij7er2uu1e]

Hi. Tell me, please, how much time ago did you cover (because the video could be uploaded later than the cover) and how does it look NOW? Get like.)

[@car4sale556]

On the T420 what is that slot on the right side below the extra memory slot? Still have not figured out what its for

[@ov3rkill]

So, how's the plasti dip holding up after a year?

[@CommissionerJoe]

lovin it

[@DelchelTech]

What do you think of chuwi lapbook 12.3?

[@rookie3528]

would plastidip work on laptop surfaces where their rubber coating is getting sticky?

[@elsholz2365]

There even is a transparent version of it

[@pattibrooks1907]

Cool idea ! Ilike !

[@aggourinzavon5440]

Great!