[Rick-TJR]

I see that there are white Q10's with gold frets and white keyboards you can order, but what is the deal of not having it for black is beyond me. So I decided to figure out a way to do it myself.
So here is a couple of samples I have done to sport my Q10 around and it gets people asking about my phone.

If you guys and gals are interested, I will describe in detail what I've done. But I didn't want to type up a big thing for no reason if nobody cares.

Enjoy the pictures and I'm glad I can finally get them up for you all to see.

[jaydee5799]

That is very very cool!
I'm sure someone with a Q will be asking for details!

[anon7902371]

I like it, how did you do that?

Posted via CB10

[stardomains]

Is that the light coming through or did you paint it blue? How/What did you do? I've always wanted pure black frets on mine. Tell tell.

[Jakob Greve]

Very stylish indeed I'd buy a Q10 just to have that.

[Prem WatsApp]

Blue permanent marker?

I might give it a go... :-)

? BlackBerry? I premdict the future's gonna be chenomenal! ?

[KR2013]

Cool! Curious, what kind of case is that on the phone? It's pretty nice and simple. If it is a soft (gel type) case, I would like to get one.

Posted via Z10

[Rick-TJR]

Ok. It looks like a few people are interested, so I will try my best to describe in detail what I did. The first picture is the Q10 with the gold frets and the second is the blue with a texture/pattern look. You can basically put any color you want, depending if you can find the right material with that color you want (so you gals can put pink or red etc). The material I used that seems to work well and hold up fairly well is Auto pin striping trim material from your local auto dealer and I used Monokote trim from your local RC (radio control) store or look online for this. Please don’t use Bare Metal foil, as I have tried and it looks nice but will not hold up well and starts to peel off in the first week or two and I’m very careful with my stuff. If you buy auto trim, please get one that is as wide as possible as you will be trimming it to get the exact width, as the thinnest one they sell isn’t thin enough. The auto trim I bought had a sample material to display the color in the front, which was a sheet about a 2 and half inch in length and 1 inch wide, which was perfect. Whatever material you use, please cut the material to the exact length of the frets first as this will make life much easier; trust me. I used a dial caliper measuring from edge to edge to get the exact length (this means the edge of the frets that you see tapering down on the side of the Q10). A ruler will work also to get a close approximate measure. You might want to do just the top if you don’t use a case, as sliding the Q10 in and out of the pocket might allow the material to grab on to something and start to tear it off at the edge. This also depends on the material thickness. Too thick will cause it to expose itself easily and too thin will wear out fast, which is what I found out with Bare Metal. Once you cut the exact length of the frets, it is now time to cut it to the width of the frets. This may take a few practice cut, but you will get better at this. I used an Exacto knife and a metal straight edge ruler. Put something that is firm underneath and flat, not only to protect whatever might get cut underneath in the process, but also the firmness help prevent wobbling of the material so that the edge you are cutting is straight and clean. Although you only need 4 stripes, it might be a good idea to cut 7 or 8 for extras in case you mess up trying to apply the material or you will notice that some of the strip might be wider or thinner than others, so pick out 4 that are the closest to the width of the frets and matching each other. But practice applying one or two spares pieces to get the hang of it and not ruin your best set. To apply them, once peeled off about � of an inch, place it at either edge and slow start laying it down, trying to keep it as straight as you can as you go across. Also, try not to touch the adhesive side and put oils from you finger on it, as this will ruin the stickiness (washing hands before hand might not be a bad idea either). Once it looks good down, get a Q-tip and start pressing it down from one side to the other. Next, get a round tooth pick with a sharp tip to start pressing any edges down to produce a cleaner look. Don't use metal or anything sharp to do this as you will might cut up your keyboard or screen. Holding the tooth pick at a 45 degree angle when sliding it across makes it easier and works better. These are tricks I learned from my modeling days using Bare-Metal foil. I’m sure that there are Youtube videos on using Bare metal if you have any questions about these techniques. And that is basically it.
For the one person asking about making it Black. That will be easy as Black pin striping trim at the auto dealer is easy to find, so you can have your Q10 looking hot the way you like it. I never thought of using Black, but I think I will try that in a few months, as I always switch colors from time to time. I think your right in that it will looks real awesome.
The case is an Incipio Frequency case. It is the best case I used on the Q10. I spent a lot of money trying out different case, but once I found this one, I was done. I like it because it wraps slightly around the front edge of the phone but not too much to protect it as well. The OEM hard case by Blackberry does not. I dropped my phone a few times and this case has saved me. Still no scuffs/dents on my phone and it look brand new. The other benefit of using this case is it wraps around the front edge of the phone which protects the material that is on the sides from anything grabbing it and ripping it off. The only down side of this case is the buttons are slightly hard to press since the material if firm, but you get used to this very quickly. I also have the Tech-Pro tempered glass screen protector, which is the best protector I’ve ever used.
I hope this helps. Good luck and post your colored frets when you are done, as I would love to see them.
Take care and God Bless.

[KR2013]

The case is an Incipio Frequency case. It is the best case I used on the Q10. I spent a lot of money trying out different case, but once I found this one, I was done. I like it because it wraps slightly around the front edge of the phone but not too much to protect it as well. The OEM hard case by Blackberry does not. I dropped my phone a few times and this case has saved me. Still no scuffs/dents on my phone and it look brand new. The other benefit of using this case is it wraps around the front edge of the phone which protects the material that is on the sides from anything grabbing it and ripping it off. The only down side of this case is the buttons are slightly hard to press since the material if firm, but you get used to this very quickly. I also have the Tech-Pro tempered glass screen protector, which is the best protector I�ve ever used.
Take care and God Bless.

Thanks for the info. Appreciate it.

Posted via Z10

[stardomains]

Maybe I can get a better picture later, but you inspired me to make my frets black this holiday. I went down to Hobby Lobby and got some Testors flat black enamel paint for less than two bucks and some microbrushes for $2. Keyboard is working fine. I was as careful and zen as I could be. So little to paint, so long to take. It's not a masterpiece but it's looking like what I wanted. 9780 had dark frets, right? Loved that phone. This brings it back for me. I did the back fret too.

[Rick-TJR]

Hey, that looks pretty good. Thanks for sharing your work. I thought of painting mine, but I like the flexibility of being able to change colors, in case I get tired of the existing one or need a special color for a special event to match. That really gets people asking about your phone. Thanks again for sharing and enjoy your new look to the Q10.

[dream100cc]

Very nice!
I want my frets in green.

Posted via CB10 on my Cute 10

[rambo47]

The black looks great, but the blue is freakin' awesome, especially with the blue wallpaper.

[Amy wineBerry]

This is super dope! Thanks for sharing, OP!

Posted via CB10

[Rick-TJR]

Hey Stardomians, thanks for the idea of using Black. I always felt that there are too many frets on the Q10 and that because of it, it's looks a bit too much. But you gave me the idea to use black to cover up the top fret. I'm not sure what the rest of you think, but I like it even more this way. I had a flatter black sticker on it initially and it looked even better, but it didn't stick well. The pin striping material from the auto store works the best. Oh, I saw something there that may be of interest to you all. I was at the auto store yesterday for something else, but went to by the pin striping section and they had carbon fiber version of the material. That will look real hot too. When I get tired of the scheme, I will put that on. Thanks again.

[Rick-TJR]

Let's try that again as the picture didn't come out right. Hopefully, this works

[IFCArea51]

You can also use Decal Vinyl. I was thinking of measuring the frets and adding some in green for my Q.

Once I get to it i'll post up some previews. Good job though.

Posted via CB10