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I'm refurbishing an old Kenwood amplifier--- removing the old faceplate and adding a board with a microcontroller, multiplexer IC, digital pot for volume control, IR receiver, etc.

I'm also considering adding a small display of some kind, either a seven-seg, or graphical. I know there are various ways of cutting a square hole in metal or plastic, but it seems like most of the displays (example) expect to be mounted behind a cleanly-cut hole, unlike most switches and buttons and other penetrators, which are inserted from the outside and have an overlapping flange that covers any problems with the hole.

So my question is, how could one make such a flange for an arbitrary LCD? Can they be bought? Are there hobby-ready LCDs out there which include it?

What about alternatives, such as mounting dark-tinted plexiglass over the entire front-face of the device? Can anyone comment on their experience with such an approach?

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I would go for the acrylic over the entire front. This way you don't have to worry about where the LCD's edges connect with the front plate. Cover the front with self-adhesive aluminium foil, with a cut-out for the display. Since the foil is conductive I guess you can't laser-print symbols and indications on it, but there exist etching tools to give it a professional look.

Alternatively you can use an, also aluminium, front-plate to place before the acrylic LCD window. This service (no affiliation) will let you download a design tool to allow you to design your front plate.

Another technique I used a few times also gives a professional looks despite the low tech materials used. Place a double-sided self-adhesive film on your front panel (flush with the LCD's acrylic window). Print your font panel's layout on a piece of paper and place that on the self-adhesive film. Cover the paper with an also adhesive sheet of textured 0.5mm Lexan film.

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Yes, I think this is probably the easiest and most flexible. Thanks! – mikepurvis Apr 12 '12 at 16:15
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What you are looking for is called a Bezel. They can be bought from some suppliers like Farnell.

LCD Bezel

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