PROJECT LOG Project R Unit

[hokiealumnus]

Great work Navig!

+1 re: MDF - it looks like just really (really) thick metal. Very well done on that paint job.

 

[Navig]

Yes, and the feel of it is almost mysterious. Like hard molded plastic.






Installed these pass thru windows.















Installed some feet:

 

[ssjwizard]

Man I love custom fabrication. I do alot of my own building(furnature, speakers, cooling parts, props, ect) and all I have to say is good job. Beyond just the quality of the workmanship and the fact that you improvised bending techniques, you designed this yourself and that is a completely different level of skills. I would recommend that if you do end up making more of these, the front forms should be done using 1" strips of osb across every 2" recessed 1/8" with a sheet of 3 ply 3mm glued down and shot in with brads. C clamps with 1x2 strips for compression. Dennis was also correct in recomending that you anneal the plastic. The best way is to place the entire form into an oven just at the temperature that the plastic softens at to relive strain and eliminate fracture points in the material. Once there you want to let it cool as slow as possible. Reducing the oven to half temperature for about 10 mins then just let it sit in the oven until it almost reaches close to room temperature.

Again though props up to you. Designed and built a very interesting case/piece of art.

 

[I.M.O.G.]

Looking great Navig, really impressive work.

 

[Navig]

Next step in the final assembly:



After assembling this switch unit which holds the buttons for power, reset, lighting, and front USB/firewire/audio, I installed it into the main frame.























Then I put in the lower bracket to hold the 5.25 drive units:



















Put the fascia plastic on and the front is starting to look like something!




















Next I tackled a pretty difficult task. You may remember my hard drive rack idea last seen in mock-up here:













Never actually been tested with real hard drives! But I put my faith in traditional woodworking techniques (dowel pins and glue).













In order to keep the mounting bars aligned (so they don't look like crooked teeth) and clamped until the glue sets, I put together a jig. Then it was glue and clamp.














And the result, wicked!





















And holds drives great:

 

[Navig]

Thanks for the comments.

I do think there was just way too much custom work for me to ever start reproducing this as a custom case.

I would definitely pursue better techniques for bending plastic, as I was not 100% satisfied with my current outcome. It might even be worth it to have the mold CnC'd. But sticking to DIY, I think my next attempt would involve fiberglass.

I definitely learned a lot from this project, and have plenty of ideas for my next build.

 

[Navig]

Next I assembled all the backside brackets and components:












I also installed the lovely black and yellow PCI bracket, and now most of structure of the mod is reassembled:















So next I moved on to lighting:

Unfortunately, the first thing that happened was a loud pop, and my CCFL inverter burst a cap:











I rummaged around and found another, then mounted up my 3 light bars and ran their lines.





Lights off:














Lights on:













Lights off:












Lights on:













Here are some pics showing the underside of the case, where all the wiring for all these lights reside:










On the left are all the connections for the fan controller (5 fans), and on the right is the distributor for all my lights, switched and unswitched. Plus I've got my on/reset switches, power/HDD activity LEDs, and my USB/firewire/audio cables in this box.












Its a bit messy, so I threw together a cover box:



















Then installed the DVD burner:













And the lid, and that's the last you'll see of that!

 

[I.M.O.G.]

Really coming together now, looking great.

 

[Ronbert]

This thread gets bigger every time I visit the forum Loving the entire build.

 

[Dooms101]

I like the attention to detail, how did you make those acrylic box covers?

 

[Navig]

I like the attention to detail, how did you make those acrylic box covers?

The one on the right I made way back when I put together that light controller. It's just a flat piece of plastic the screws on top of the power distributer:













The one on the left is a little more fancy, here's a pic:






It's still just 2 pieces of plastic (one rectangular, one with a slot cut out) glued on end together, with a pair of feet made from angle aluminum.

Gluing plastic is a useful skill. This example is a butt joint. After prepping the appropriate edge (smooth, without ridges, but not polished) I simply used some 90 degree clamps to hold the two pieces together at the butt joint. Then I use liquid IPS#3 in a needle bottle and carefully drip some glue along the seam. Capillary action takes over, sucking it into the joint. Simply let dry.







.

 

[Navig]

Sorry on the slow updates again. I’m on a vacation roadtrip but I did upload some pics before I left.











Time to work on all the messy fan cables.

Going with clean and simple.









Trim my fans and extend the wire lengths.













Add back the pins and black housings









Sleeve it straight black weave:











And here you go:





Multiply by 5.






.

 

[Navig]

Hardware list:

i7 26K
Asus Sabertooth P67
Corsair Vengeance 4x2gb DDR3-1600
OCZ Vertex 3 240gb
WD Caviar Black 2TB
HIS 6950 2gb
Light-on Blue Ray reader/DVD burner
Corsair AX 750W
Thermalright Venemous X



However, this is going to change. For aesthetic reasons I show later, I decided I needed a downfiring heatsink, so I’m going with the Thermalright AXP 140RT.

 

[Dooms101]

Hardware list:

i7 26K
Asus Sabertooth P67
Corsair Vengeance 4x2gb DDR3-1600
OCZ Vertex 3 240gb
WD Caviar Black 2TB
HIS 6950 2gb
Light-on Blue Ray reader/DVD burner
Corsair AX 750W
Thermalright Venemous X



However, this is going to change. For aesthetic reasons I show later, I decided I needed a downfiring heatsink, so I’m going with the Thermalright AXP 140RT.

Stop teasing us with your nice hardware show us the money shots!

 

[Navig]

Sorry for the teasers! There are several barriers to my completing this project.

1) I am currently in Portland, OR and will be slowly working my way down the coast back to my Norcal home.

2) I wanted to finish this project before I left, but I discovered several things.

3) This case is hella difficult to photograph well. Blank white paint, glossy reflections, curved plastic.

4) I found my Venemous X heatsink was so large it blocked all the internal lighting I so meticulously set up. So I've ordered a Thermalright downblowing heatsink.



But fear not, if you look at my past projects, I always finish with a set of money shots, a complete thread unto itself. It will come! After I get back maybe Saturday I've got several days devoted completely to finishing this project.

 

[hokiealumnus]

Tip you probably already know - photograph it outside during the day. Plenty of light for great photos and no awkward reflections.

 

[Navig]

Definitely will try that....except it was raining the week before I left!






Update:

So put rough fit my motherboard and video card just to make sure things were aligned.











And I realized that the video card was just going to throw off my whole color scheme with that bright red striping.

Can’t have that.













Let’s take it apart:












Fit some 3/8” aluminum bar.













Paint the bars, a corner cover, and the pci bracket.















Reassemble and that’s more like it!








And that my friends is all I got until I get back to my shop.

 

[wagex]

 

[Navig]

Thanks!

Also, good thing is I don't think I've actually violated the warranty on this card--nothing is irreversibly modded.

 

[pwnmachine]

OMG that card looks amazing, why doesn't ATI switch to yellow...