Case Mod Test bench mod by Ace_finland NEED HELP

[Ace_finland]

Hey guys,

So i entered the Cooler master mod competition this year and thought i would start a case mod log here.

I was thinking for ages for a case to pick and by accident i found the test bench by Cooler Master at a local computer store. I new instantly that this is the case i wanted to modify. It's different enough to other cases and i didn't find anyone else in the competition using the same case.

After countless hrs designing i think i came up with something worthwhile doing. I was gonna post earlier but after reading the rules i didn't start this thread before fabricating something. Not much to show but at least i have started

So this is the design I'm gonna stick with for now unless i change my mind for a 100th time


Its not the latest version but rendering takes too long so this will have to do. It won't be as glossy as the picture and if i have time I will make some custom gpu back plates and do something to the new Dominator platinum memory i have just gotten.

Also started fabricating the radiator boxes today.

Started with some kinda straight pieces of 1mm metal sheet. Decided on 1mm thickness to add some stability and still easy to fabricate


The machine


Bent a small test piece to figure out the radius and the measurement, also to get all the angles right.


Made four pieces so i can mess up two, easier to make extra now than going back to make two new ones


Quick test fit to see how its gonna look



Also the parts that arrived


Hope you like it and please comment, more comming soon!

Final shots!










Sponsored by:

[whyte]

whoa.. got my attention. subbed.

[jay2]

subbed too.

[bluc]

Nice start bending brake and render are awesome. Gotta get a bending brake one day. subd

[Ace_finland]

Thanks guys!

[Phame]

Looking good man, keep my eye on this!

[Ace_finland]

Thanks Phame!

Back after a lot of hrs in the garage and at the workshop at work. Not much of an update when it's full of fail but thought i would share anyways.

Plan A

Cut a template of the size i wanted


Mark the piece to be cut


Working with my best friend (angle grinder)


After a lot of filing.



After this i realised cutting the next 3 slots in the metal will make it very thin and will flex and bend a lot. And the plan is to powder coat it after i'm done with it so i can't use any filler. so over to...

Plan B

Decided to get all the cuts before bending. Don't mind the tolerances, just forgot to adjust the digits



Make a "table" for the mill at work.


Used doubble sided sticky tape between the table and the metal sheets to prevent the pieces to vibrate during milling.


Fastened the sheets with screws in as many places as possible, i did not want the sheet to move during milling.


Let the milling begin. Still a Manual mill so need to be very focused


More fasteners used as it progressed.


Almost done, still need to deburr all the edges and as you can see in the red circle i made a bit of a mess. I had just finished that slot and turned the mill off without turning off the feed. So when i turned the mill on it went like a bat out of.... Words can not describe the feeling when that happened. I had spent 6 hrs milling just to do a simple mistake. Anyways, gonna weld it back and see if i can file it down. Wouldn't be a problem if i could use filler.


More updates coming tuesday-wednesday if i get the metal bent into shape.

Ace_finland

[Editor22]

Looking good so far

[Vetalar]

interesting project here! main concern with CM benchtable (from reviews) was PCI-E card fixation (lack of it ) - interesting to see how it turns out! (and grab couple ideas to mod own bench table )

[Ace_finland]

Originally Posted by Editor22

Looking good so far

Thanks!

Originally Posted by Vetalar

interesting project here! main concern from reviews was PCI-E card fixation (lack of it ) - interesting to see how it turns out! (and grab couple ideas to mod own bench table )

i've been thinking how to solve the pci-e fixation, what i would like is something that can easily be deteached or something you can just clip onto the card cause it really needs support

[Vetalar]

in my own bench i've take 2 150mm m4 threaded rods near pci1 and pci7 and place 5mm thick PVC strip between 'em. and use self-tapping screws for card fixation...

like this, but right rod near audio connectors on MB

[bulldogjeff]

Oh yeah, I really like the look of this one

[Ace_finland]

Originally Posted by Vetalar

in my own bench i've take 2 150mm m4 threaded rods near pci1 and pci7 and place 5mm thick PVC strip between 'em. and use self-tapping screws for card fixation...

like this, but right rod near audio connectors on MB

Thanks for the idea, i was thinking something similar, it's just very hard to figure out something that goes with the design

Originally Posted by bulldogjeff

Oh yeah, I really like the look of this one

Thanks

[Ace_finland]

welded and grinded down the mess i did the other day

Got the sheets bent today but now i don't know if i should go with the circular mesh or the hexx mesh. The hexx mesh is made out of 1mm aluminum and the circular mesh is made out of steel sheet which would make the whole construction a lot more stable. What do you think?





Circular or hexx???

Thanks for dropping in!

[KoSoVaR^]

I would have gone for the mesh , looks so much better and goes with the geometric designs of the case

[Sissilisko]

Circular. tuo hunajakenno kuvio näyttää vaa nii pieneltä ja liian hennolta, ja sulla on kuitenkin sen verta pyöreitä reunoja ja muuta nii ton iha rei-itetyn pitäis näyttää aika siistiltä siinä.

[Cookie Monster]

I'd go with the circular mesh, the thickness of the material between the holes is larger than the hex mesh which matches the case better. The hex mesh just looks too thin.

Only my opinion though.

[Ripitup121]

WOW. i love the render and work done so far. circular mesh cheesecake i think too and subbed. just epic

Rip

[Williz]

Circular mesh! I'm eagerly awaiting more updates

[Ripitup121]

Originally Posted by Sissilisko

Circular. tuo hunajakenno kuvio näyttää vaa nii pieneltä ja liian hennolta, ja sulla on kuitenkin sen verta pyöreitä reunoja ja muuta nii ton iha rei-itetyn pitäis näyttää aika siistiltä siinä.

Is that Gangnam Style or just Finnish?