Popcorn Machine Facelift

This tutorial tells you how to give your popcorn machine a makeover. Recently Paragon released a number of Star Wars Special Edition popcorn machines. I liked the idea but the increased cost of the machine was crazy, so I tried giving my own machine a facelift and now you can too!

I custom made all the decals used in this project. If you would like decals for you own machine email me and tell me what brand of machine and the model along with what imagery you are looking for and I'll help you out. The cost of the decals will vary depending on materials and such, but I do this as a hobby so my prices are very reasonable!

This tutorial uses a Paragon Theater Pop 6. It was purchased from Stargate Cinema. You should give them a call if you're looking for a machine.

This is the original TP6 machine. The words "Popcorn" are printer in black on yellow vinyl lettering. We'll need to remove these first.

This is called a "Lil' Chizler". It's made to remove stickers from surfaces without scratching the paint. Think of it as a plastic razor blade.

It also works well on Plexiglas as well as regular glass surfaces.

Use the chizler to get under the edge and lift a small bit of the vinyl lettering. You can then pull the lettering up by hand.

Heating up the decals makes them easier to remove. Try using a hairdryer or heat gun.

I'm not sure where you can buy the chizler retail but I do sell them for $2 + Shipping. If you buy a decal kit from me, one will be included with the kit. Email me for more info.

This is what the machine looks like once the decals have been removed. There may still be some residual adhesive on the machine which we will remove in the next step.

These products may be hard to find in your area but they seem to work the best so it's worth tracking them down.

The bottle on the left is rapid remover. Pour some on a paper towel and daub the adhesive. Let it soak for about 90 seconds then wipe off the adhesive with the same damp towel.

Now spray some Rapid Tac on a new paper towel and clean the area thoroughly.

These products are made by RapidTac. Visit their web site to find alocal distributor.

Although I have not tried it, you might be able to you Goo Off and Windex as substitutes. Although, keep in mind that Windex and like products should never be used on Plexiglas because they can cloud the plexi.

I decided to go with a Fifth Element theme.

I know it seems like I skipped a few step and that because I did. I'll work on getting some new images but for now I'll just describe the application of the decals.

On glass you should first make sure you clean the glass at least twice. This is to thoroughly remove any films that may be on the glass. I used Rapid Tac but you can use Windex.

While I used Rapid Tac as a cleaning agent in the previouse step, it's primary purpose is to help you in positioning your decals. For this step, if you don't have Rapid Tac available, mix a small bowl of water and 1 drop of household dish soap. Now remove the backing of the decal and apply this solution to the adhesive side of the decal. This will allow you to position the decal without worrying about it sticking to the glass. Once in position, use a squeegee to squeege out any air bubbles. Let this sit for about a half hour. Now apply some solution to the back of the transfer tape. This will loosen the tapes hold and allow you to remove the transfer tape without too many problems.

If using Rapid Tac, the steps are the same. Just substitute the soap and water solution for the Rapid Tac. Since Rapid Tac dries quickly, you only need to wait about 2 minutes for the decal to adhere properly vs. the 30 minutes using soap and water.

This is the front of the machine. This is good location to put your home theaters name

The decal on the sides and the lower front might look gray but it is actually a etched glass effect. Vinyl is available in a large number of colors as well as specialty materials liked etched glass and chrome.

The possibilities are only limited by you imagination.

Here's an image of the side with a white vinyl logo on the top.

Finally, here are the Plexiglas doors. Since I had room on the white vinyl sheet I added 2 Floston Paradise icons to these doors. Applying the decals to plexi is the same as glass except during the first step, you should use a plexiglas safe cleaner instead of Windex.