Case Mod - In Progress Project CheckMate by E.E.L. Ambiense - Completed

May 17th Update!

Well, here we are again. Another update. I'm going to take this opportunity to state that I will be doing this particular log update with a James Mason voice.

Let's get to it shall we?

These Gelid fans look nice, but let's make them fit in a bit more with the theme than they already are...

Let's peel off the stock center-cap stickers, here.



And a nice little swipe with some rubbing alcohol will get rid of the rest of the gooey sticky crap.



And presto....we have an official CheckMate case-fan!



I'm not sure you've noticed yet, but the white is actually a psuedo-carbon fiber white instead of plain white. Just wanted to 'jazz' things up a bit, is all.



Let's do something similar to the top rad fans...





I think I'm leaving these plain, since you really won't see the tops hardly at all through the radgrill and mesh. Trust me. With the light from the fans themselves running up through the openings will make the area glow a bit more, and any black in the area will probably retract from that.



I cut a custom rad gasket out of sound-deadening material like I always do to make the fans seal a bit more to the rads, cutting down on possible pressure leak as well as rattling operating noise. Doesn't have to be perfect, but enough to do the job right.



And applied to the top of the rad...



I needed to tap the fanholes with a 6-32 tap to make sure the threads are right and clear of debris.



I laid out the fans on the spots they're going to be installed at...



People have different methods for fan mounting on rads. I tend to use 3/8" length 6-32 socket-cap screws for open-cornered fans. It's just easy and I know the screws won't go into the rad's fins when I crank them down on the fan. Plus it's easy to stick the Allen wrench through the top of the fan to get at the socket-cap screw itself.

After a couple mins, the fans are all installed.



And a small test...



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Until the next update, I got nuthin'.

 

Perfection, perfection, perfection!

 

I love the fan stickers, they look great. Did you make them yourself or get them made? Got a link to that material?.

 

LOL. Thank you!

Thanks, mate! Of course I made them myself, lol! I designed and cut them out on the vinyl cutter. The material was picked up on eBay.

 

Absolutely beautiful.

 

Thanks for that E.E.L, I will keep an eye out, I have always hated fan stickers lol.

 

Oh man... very nice update! I absolutely love the attention to details. Most people that remove fan stickers, don't bother replacing them.

 

No problem, mate! Trust me, I know, lol.

Thanks, Craig! I always remove the stickers anyways; they just look a bit tacky to me for some reason, so why not swap them with something personalized. Hadn't seen ya around much man, or I may just be too dang busy/swamped to notice much of anything these days!

 

+1

 

Well, it's definitely a nice touch. I've been around, although mostly lurking, and throwing out a comment here or there. I've finally started working on my long overdue Project: Hutch, and should have an update in the next day or two. Hutch and I were back and forth on a few of the case's details, but finally have some direction, and new parts have arrived. Between that, and all the little details that take up every day life, I've not had as much time as I thought I would. With the impending arrival of summer vacation for the kids, I'll have a lot more free time on my hands. Finally!

 

Brilliant attention to detail!

 

Thanks, man!

Definitely! Summer-time's a fun time for many. I just can't handle the heat, is all. And I'm a native Floridian.

Last I saw it, Hutch was already shaping into a kick-ass build, but I wouldn't expect any less from your hands.

Thank you!

 

Can't handle the heat, huh? Lol. My wife is a native Floridian, and she can't get enough of it. The only time she's not cold up here is in July and August... I can handle it either way. We were just in Daytona Beach a little over month ago, and I was enjoying the mid 80 degree temps while it was in the 30's and 40's back home. We're headed back down in July, and I'm looking forward to it again.

 

Shineh!

 

Nope; I'm a non-Floridian Floridian. I love the (moderate) cold. LOL.

Daytona... wow. That's only an hour and a half north of me here. It's fun to visit but I'd never live there!

 

May 19th Update!

Okay....another update. Not too much here, but a necessity regardless. I shall perform this update in a Peter Lorre voice. (a little bit of funny trivia...Peter Lorre actually starred in one episode of the TV show "Checkmate" during the 60s, oddly enough!)

Let's get right to it, shall we?

Let's take care of the window cuts now. I've made my stencil using the acrylic's design to verify everything will mesh correctly. I've placed it on the side panel to figure out where the heck I want it, as well as making sure I have enough clearance to remove the panel correctly without it hitting the chassis itself with the 'pull back and lift' style panels.



That looks about right. Let's mark out the holes and cuts now.



There we are!



Everyone has their own method for cutting panels, whether it's using a jigsaw, a rotary tool, or even a scroll saw. I tend to use a rotary tool on such thin materials, especially since I love using the EZ lock reinforced discs.



And after a couple mins, I have this. Normally, I'd mask everything off with masking tape, as I've mentioned previously, to cut down on marring the panel. Here, it's not really necessary since the whole panel's getting blasted and coated anyways. I've cut probably a hundred of these things, so it's not a big deal to worry about it, but you really should develop a habit of taping things off.



And after three more cuts and hitting it with a flat-file to remove burs, I have this...



Now, let's drill out the holes as well...



And all done. Bravo.



Now, let's toss it aside and prepare for the next stuff!

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Until the next update, I got nuthin'.

 

The reinforced disks seem tobe good choice, guess unsteady hands need not apply.
Visions of wad of blue carpet on end of drill bit tho, ROFL. Block of wood might help.
Not that I would know, having never-ever done such a thing. LOL
The fans came out nice.

 

Nice clean cuts .

 

Man !! You're like a machine , those cuts are really straight!

And Your attention to details (fan stickers) is great! I'm waiting for MOTM and you will have my voice

 

^^^

What they said.