I’ll see if I can find one that doesn’t actually contact the back of the phone, but the trial and error to find one of those may end up destroying the autograph.

I dunno anything about the American Spirit culture wars, but it is a much more dense cigarette and does taste a little more “natural”.

TBH, anyone that smokes them thinking they are any safer because they are supposedly more “natural” needs to learn how marketing works. Less “chemicals” doesn’t matter much in the context of doing something that stilly anyway. (ie: if you decide to jump off a cliff, it doesn’t matter how much you weigh because the end result at the bottom is exactly the same.)

There probably isn’t a way around removing the battery, after more thought.

Eventually, unless the battery is properly managed, gas buildup may eventually win and turn it into a forbidden pillow. Controlled battery destruction/ventilation sounds like a fun, but lengthy science project for this problem, IMHO. Gasses need to escape the battery, but phone shouldn’t go boom in the process. Deep discharge + adding vent holes after may work in some way.

Lithium batteries mainly explode and cause fires mostly because of any stored energy and gas buildup that deformes the battery causing a short circuit and thus, fire, to my knowledge. The lithium isn’t as reactive with water because it isn’t pure lithium? My knowledge is extremely limited on keeping lithium from exploding. (I think I remember videos of lithium batteries being unrolled that still explode in water, charge or not.)

It’s a sharpie, and I speculate it may have been specially for fabric (if there is such a thing), further adding to the preservation conundrum.

But anything alcohol based (or is a substance that has molecules around the same size) would melt a sharpie really quick.

You got me thinking about this differently now, specifically about different solvents that would have been in your spray primer. Acetone is common in epoxies and primers, and it will aggressively remove sharpies as well. (Water is also a solvent, and smaller than acetone or isopropyl, but something something polar/non-polar, or something. Sharpie ink is naturally hydrophobic anyway, but not completely.) Other, equally effective solvents exist to remove sharpie and also, well, act as a solvent for other uses.

So, point being, you just eliminated what is likely to be a fairly large range of possible coating options to choose from, which is a good thing. (I completely forgot solvents are a huge thing to consider, as did a few others here.)

It’s on the phone itself, unfortunately. The case is off in this pic.

That’s tight. I would keep that around for a while, for sure.

That was a combination of words I wouldn’t have ever thought could be in a single sentence, but yet, here we are.

While not my preferred cup of tea, death metal shows and crowds are super wholesome, usually. My daughter is a big fan, so I got the honor of taking her around Dever to various dive bars so she could learn the ropes of these kinds of events. We both got to see Party Cannon in a super small venue, so that was fucking awesome! (I have since released her to find her own demise and she has only lost one fingernail and had to nurse one or two fairly serious bruises since. Neat.)

I get it, and y’all are generally my kind of people. ;)

The autograph is on the phone itself, and I have a durable Spiegan case for it. I head out to the art supply store tomorrow and see what options they have as far as spray fixatives go, for sure. (Thanks! Knowing the name of things is usually half the battle and “spray fixative” was not part of my regular vocabulary.)

The first idea is to seal it somehow, and then have the case protect it from daily wear. (When I get sad or something, I can just always have it with me to cheer me up in a pinch.)

But yes, I am also considering the option of this being a permanent display piece or simply even a moment I can simply keep etched in my memory.

Red Rocks is a wonderful venue, too! Awww! Sorry for your loss. :(

I only go there for artists that absolutely respect what that place has to give. It’s a “sacred” venue for me, TBH.

We were at Cervantes Ballroom tonight, and TBH, it’s a bit cramped and can be a little rough for some, but the sound is absolutely peak quality. Don’t turn down tickets for that place either, is my point. (I am friends with a local death metal singer that knows the owner and he said quite a bit of money was spent on that sound system.)

(I responded to your other comment already, but just inserting a disclaimer for the broader populus that encasing a lithium battery in resin, while possibly briefly entertaining, is no bueno and potentially extremely damaging to any squishy bits you hold dear on your body. Just covering all the bases, friend!)

And that is exactly what I have resigned myself into, my friend.

If all other options fail, this exact picture is perfect.

I’ll still remember looking at this completely starstruck while me and my wife (of 25 years this month; hence the TCM+Okenfold concert being the perfect marriage, in itself, of our musical taste.) were sitting on the street tripping our balls off in the wonderful Denver atmosphere of weed smoke and piss smell, all while trying to enjoy the fresh air with a few drags from an American Spirit cigarette. (Incidentally, I was wearing the same cargo pants she bought me for one of our first parties over a quarter century ago.)

In the most literal sense, a picture is worth a thousand words in this case. It’ll be an instant flashback, at anytime.

Encasing the phone would be a “solid” option if it weren’t for the lithium bomb that the phone contains. (I could probably just fully discharge it somehow, but bypassing the charge controller to make that happen would be problematic. Deep discharging bad too.)

A super thin coat of resin is still a good option and the heat may be manageable in that case. The phone body is designed to sink quite a bit of heat already, so likely not a serious issue.

Quite a bit to think on! Thanks! :)

Edit: Oh shit. I just realized that encasing the phone in resin and then having the lithium battery decide to off itself in a dramatic way could be 10x more catastrophic than I originally thought, making it absolutely not ideal for air travel. Lol!

I was thinking airbrush/clear coat, but pouring a coating on may be ideal and faster, provided I can source the materials fast enough.

Could that be done in a “white glove” way? Cracking the original shell on a phone requires quite a bit of heat and leverage, both of which seem super risky.

I would have one shot to try. The ink is proving to be super fragile already, so it wouldn’t survive a second go at it.

Lulz! I mean, maybe though? It really depends on how you choose to enjoy your club nights, I suppose. ;)

Here is a random example of what we are working with, however:

In the interest of risk management, buying a new phone is likely the better option. Also, this is a brand new phone and haven’t even had time to properly leave a scratch on the glass yet.

That is an option though and one that’s going to be considered.

He is kinda my heartthrob as I have seen dozens of his shows over the last 20+ years. It’s invaluable to me, and that is the important bit. :)

That is a sick idea, and not actually out-of-scope.

I’ll need to think on that as the “pristine” nature of it in its current state would literally get etched away. Alas, it is slowly fading now anyway, so the memory still could be preserved for a lifetime.

As they say: Think, but think fast.

Likely a good option! The ink is proving to be super fragile, so a brush is out. I do have an airbrush, so I’ll experiment with that as well.

Probably not without damaging it further, but that is worth some additional research, for sure.