Hi Guys, I've finally decided to take the plunge and build my first case, and could do with a few suggestions on making this work. I'm planning on an Art Deco style Mini-ITX case for my living room so it will function as a HTPC, so massive cooling is not required, or the most powerful components. I've never used Sketchup or any other modelling program before, so quickly knocked up the below images in Visio. These are only a concept at the moment so the measurements are a bit rough and subject to change. Front Back I'm thinking of making it out of MDF, and as it is going to be fairly light and not being moved, thinking about 6-9mm think.
Deciding to switch to acrylic for this now. Got a sheet of black acrylic (3mm) I think will work for the bulk of it, but will get some thicker acrylic for the base. All the yellow parts will be gold-leafed accent pieces. The switches at the front have arrived and are brass vandel types. Can't seem to find any brass coloured LED holders, so will gold-leaf the chromed ones I have. The end towers will contain the drives: SSD in one and a slot-loaded Blu-ray drive in the other. The side panels are going to have some kind of gold-leaf pattern on it, just don't know what yet. My major issue now is: how do I make it so that I can get access to the interior without leaving too many unsitely screws visible? Any Ideas?
The last question is the easiest. Put it together like an old Corvette: With a shell that attaches to the frame underneath. You just need some extra room to clear the I/O components on the back. -Did the same with 'plank' in my signature. Also, art deco needs woodgrain.
Thanks Cheapskate. I was thinking on those lines, and I think mounting to the base will work, just need to figure out how I can mount the drives in the towers properly. The SSD mount shouldn't be too difficult, but I think I need to get creative for the blu-ray mount. Will have to dig out an old laptop CD drive and start practicing on making mounts for it. The drives need to be replacable, otherwise I could just directly attach them to the towers. The towers are also going to be exhaust vents as well, so this will also need factoring in. As for woodgrain, I'm more or a lacquer and bakelite man myself, but I see where you are coming from. My skills - and tools - are quite limited, but I had a look at the cost of veneer and it's relatively cheap, I can even get some iron-on veneer so wont need as much expertise with it. Found a supplier (Wood Veneers UK) that can supply a 100"x10" sheet of iron-on pine for under £15 that I could stain black. This will give it the colour I want and give the woodgrain. I'm also thinking of having the front switches and the rear LEDs connecting to blocks that connect together when you put the lid on and disconect when you take it off so that it I pull it apart to quick I wont rip the wires out. This will also make the wiring a bit tidier. Don't know if I can do it for the mains connector though.
I'd put the switches in the cover and run longer wires. An extra set of connectors in the line near the switches would solve your 'ripping' issue. I mounted the switch on the chassis for mine, and I have to slip a card over it to remove the lid.
Love it! I reckon the cost of shipping might be an issue but I have daily access to a pair of Multi-Cam 3000 CNC router tables and a wide range of acrylics. The amount of acrylic/polycarbonite/aluminum scrap we throw away each week would probably make a lot of people here cry. If I could be of any help let me know, I'd be more than happy to provide some parts for the cost of shipping, all I would need is a .DXF file and an address. SK
