Candy Apple Red controller

Well, the closest you can get to candy in a spray paint.

1. Tear down.
2. Sand.
3. Three base coats of silver metallic.
4. Three red coats.
5. One coat of clear.

The most important thing is to practice on something first. The paint spray pattern is different for each can.
It's not assembled because it is still drying, but I couldn't wait to post.

Candy Red controller album

EDIT Added detailed instructions.

Silver base coat - Dupli-Color Metalcast metal ground coat MC100 UPC 026916006370 - Found at AutoZone

Red cover coat - Dupli-Color Metalcast color paint MC200 Red Anodized UPC 026916006380 - Found at AutoZone

Cleaning wipes are also found at AutoZone.

Clearcoat - Rust-Oleum 2X Ultracover Gloss CLEAR - UPC 020066187712 - Found at Home Depot

600 Grit Sandpaper found in the paint section at Home Depot.

The screws in the controller are security Torx screws (post in the middle of screw head.) I got mine out with a regular screwdriver, but I do not recommend this at all. I stripped one and needed to use a different screw for that location.

Step by step:

1. Find teardown video on youtube and follow directions. Take metal battery contact off or cover with tape.

2. Lightly sand parts to be painted. Sand hard enough to knock the shine off of the plastic. Do not sand deep into the plastic - it will show through.

3. Clean with wipes and let dry.

4. Set up parts in paint area. I suggest propping up parts so that you can get to the edges. EDIT After putting mine back together, I really suggest propping up everything. The back piece of my controller was on the ground. After putting it back together, I can see where I didn't get good red coverage on the area that made contact with the ground.

5. Practice first! Find old black electronics to paint. I used an old printer paper tray and old power supply. All three cans spray differently, so get used to each before you paint the controller.

6. Spray in smooth sweeping motions. Start the spray away from the piece, move over the piece, and stop after you pass the edge. Do not start your spray directly at the piece. Do not worry about coating completely on your first coat (that's why you have three coats.)

7. The cans say re-coat around 30 minutes, I re-coated at 10.

8. Apply the three coats of silver metallic. If you don't get everything on the first coat, don't panic. Get it on coat 2 or 3.

9. Three coats of red. Same as the silver - you can get full coverage on coats 2 or 3. If you missed a spot, do not aim at piece and quick squirt a little paint - you will mess up. Cover that spot with a sweeping motion.

10. Check coverage from all angles. Just because it looks red from one angle, doesn't mean it will from another.

11. I did one coat of clear. You can do as many as you want.

12. Let dry.

13. Seriously, don't touch it. Let it dry overnight. I messed with mine a few hours later and put a fingerprint in it. Let it dry overnight.

14. Reassemble.

During assembly, I found that my "A" button was sticking. I lightly sanded around the button holes and thumbstick holes to get a smoother travel. I don't know if the thickness of the paint made it feel weird, but the "A" button sunk too low when pressed. I sanded down the screw post on the back side of the controller cover (1mm or so) and screwed the screws tight (not too tight - don't strip the plastic screw hole.)

Make sure your paint area is clean and dust free. Mine was not and I have a few specks of dirt in the paint.