Quite often i see the same question asked over and over around SDIY corners of the internet; how do you people make faceplates? So i decided to make a little guide on how i make them, with photos and other fancy stuff. I make my panels out of 1 to 2 mm thick textolyte (FR4 or alike, preferably without the copper layer at all) and use paper and pencil to make paperface graphics for them. The results may not be as durable as some other panels, but i live in a student dorm and have no normal way to cut, drill and paint aluminum or any other metal, so my way is probably most suitable for people without drilling presses, electrical jigsaws and actual working spaces for all of that. Actually, the only tools i use are: an electric screwdriver (should be able to hold drill bits too) and a set of drill bits (i advise 3.5/6/8 mm), a hammer and a drill punch (replacable with a nail and a heavy object), a file and/or some sandpaper, an exacto knife (had same results with usual kitchen knife - just takes more time) and scissors. Optionally: an engraver with a sharp tip grinder bit. As little of tools as this! Out of materials, you will need a textolite sheet - obviously one bigger than the panel you want to make, a sheet of paper, some tape and some white/polyvinylacryllic glue. All of this is easily obtainable in a house even a tiny bit familiar with DIY and physical work, but also there's endless possibilities to get all the tools in thrift shops: i got my electric screwdriver for $4 at local estonian Craiglist. Without any further ado, let's get started!

First, do a module layout on a piece of paper. I use standard european gridded paper with 5mm grid, which makes it very convenient to understand and position things. Also, it's easy to approximate the width of the layout to 5*[HP] millimeters, and the height to 130mm/13cm (in reality, it's 128.5mm!). This way, you can quickly sketch your layout: just don't make it too detialed. I usually just use different sized circles and writings. For people without access to gridded paper: you can try using NanoCAD and making a layout there, then printing it. All the information on Eurorack panel dimensions can be found on Doepfer's Construction Details page. Cut it out, and try cutting 1mm deeper than the line goes on top and bottom to get closer to 128mm instead of 130. Don't forget the mounting holes: look where they go on Doepfer's construction details page!

Now take your textolite sheet and cut out your blank panel out of it with scissors: good ones take 1 to 1.5mm thick texto just fine, for thicker one you probably will need heavy duty scissors for metal. Height should be 128.5mm, and width can be either looked up from the table on the Doepfer page, or approximated by 5mm * HP count (i do the latter).

Carefully align your layout drawing on the blank panel. Now tape it to the panel using pieces of tape: i prefer the paperish masking tape for paintworks. Make sure the layout paper lays as flat and correct as possible, don't be lazy to redo it in case it bulges too much. This step affects the final panel look A LOT. Now, take your hammer and drill punch each hole. I draw my layouts so that the holes go at the grid intersections, so i can do this step precisely enough. Take your time to align the punch right to the intersection and slam it with the hammer, but don't go too hard: just a solid medium hit. If you don't have these tools, use a moderately big nail and any heavy object to hit it. I was doing this job with an old rusty drill bit and a guitar pedal enclosure before i got actual tools!

You should end up with something like this. Peel the tape off and unstick the layout now.

This step is semi optional, but i always do it anyways. It helps to make your drilling more preciese. It can be done with an engraver with a sharp tip grinder bit, like i do, or with your electrical screwdriver and the smallest drill bit at your disposal. The trick is to carefully align the bit on the punched hole and pre-drill the place just a bit, without making an actual hole. This will widen up the 'crater' created by the drill punch, and bigger drill bits will wander around way, way less. Some people call it "pilot holes". You can omit this step, but then you will have to be more careful and focused with actual drilling. On this step, i also grind out the LED holes and mounting holes, because i don't have a proper drill bit for those (yet).

Here comes the fun part: actual drilling. Just plop a drill bit into your screwdriver, align it on the pre-punched hole and start drilling. Don't apply too much pressure or drill too quickly: better focus on holding the drill/screwdriver as vertically and steadily as possible to ensure precise drilling. 6mm works for 3.5mm jacks and switches, 8mm for potentiometers, 3,5mm for mounting holes, any other 3M bolts (for board standoffs, for example) and LEDs. I usually put my panel on a (same) piece of wood so i don't drill the flooring along with the panel. There will be some residual textolyte here and there: first i file the panel's surfaces with rough big file, then sandpaper the rest of it with a piece of relatively fine grain sandpaper.

Graphics time! Take a sheet of paper and cut out a stipe that fills the area of your board, by either folding it around the board like i do, or actually plotting a rectangle of needed size and cutting it out. Also cut out two small thin stipes and fold them in two, and one bigger piece. Get your glue ready, and wash your hands to not smear gunk on paper in the next steps.

Rinse the panel with some water. Wait till the panel dries by itself or use a hairdryer: don't wipe it with anything. Now put some white glue on your panel and spread it around using a bigger piece of paper you cut out in the step above. Try not to dillydally, because it dries quickly!

Сarefully apply one smaller side of the paper stripe on the panel and align it with its corners. Then take one of the folded paper srips so it acts as a 'cover' for your index finger, and slowly progress rubbing the paper cover further and further towards the other side the panel. Take the other stripe to your other hand and start rubbing the paper cover everywhere, especially if you see bubbles and uneven spaces. Triple-rub the very edges, and let dry for about 20 minutes. Cut the excess paper with the exacto knife if needed, and gently press on every single hole so they become visible and slightly popped inwards.

After it dried, grab the knife and carefully cut out the holes: only cut when the knife moves into the hole, but don't progress and just vertically move when the knife moves outwards - this way you won't unstick the paperface around the hole. It helps to do it in front of a ligh source, because the holes you need to cut get illuminated through the paper. Finally, you end up with a panel with cut holes and an applied paperface. The only thing left to do is...

...to show your creativity! Go nuts and draw a design. I prefer doing it with only a black liner, but you can use as many colours and materials as you want: just don't forget that paint, for example, needs something stronger and thicker than office paper. Also, keep in mind that knobs will cover more area around the holes they go into, so don't write their functions too close to the holes, maybe! TL:DR go crazy, but keep in mind that the thing has to actually be visible and not destroyed in the process. Voila! You made a panel for your module! This one is for the SFP17 Dual Pluck Envelope - you can see it in action on that page.