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Scratch Build – In Progress [Intel NUC] The microprocessor [Completed - Final pics page2]

Discussion in 'Project Logs' started by Ace_finland, 11 Sep 2013.

  1. Ace_finland

    Ace_finland Minimodder

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    Hey guys,

    For a long time i've been wanting to make a small pc for the tv so when i saw the announcement of the Intel NUC/Bit-tech competition i thought i would send in a design and see how it goes. Sadly I didn't get picked for the competition but in the true spirit of modding i bought all the parts instead so i can still make a case.

    Background:
    When i first saw the Intel NUC and its small size i knew it would be perfect for my needs. When thinking of a design for the competition i started looking at Intel's old microprocessors and what they meant for the general public back in the days. These nuc motherboards are a bit of the same in my mind seeing they are quite powerful for their very small form factor. Anyways, enough of that :)

    This is the design i sent in for the competition. It has changed quite a bit but i don't have any better ones.
    [​IMG]

    Decided on a different version (still an i3) but with an wired network and no thunderbolt as i have no need for thunderbolt as of now and it was a bit cheaper
    [​IMG]

    Nuc, 8GB of vengence 1600 ram and a wireless & BT card from Intel
    [​IMG]

    120GB Kingston SSD
    [​IMG]

    Now that that is over lets start with the build pictures
    200x200x20mm piece of aluminum cut with a circular saw, worked a lot better than i thought it would.
    [​IMG]

    As i recently finished upgrading my homebuilt CNC mill/router i thought i would put it to the test during this build

    The Mill
    [​IMG]
    Took me a while with the electronics since im no electrician and don't have a lot of skills with it, luckily no smoke
    [​IMG]

    A bit of roughing with a 6mm endmill
    [​IMG]

    More pictures tomorrow or friday as i have gotten a bit further than this.

    Hope you like it and please drop a comment :)
     
    Last edited: 3 Oct 2013
  2. Cheapskate

    Cheapskate Insane? or just stupid?

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    'ERRYbody's getting a mill.:lol: They are a lot of fun, aren't they? Are you going for a passive cooler on the NUC?
    You will want to remove the aluminum glazing from your circular saw blade. If you used an abrasive bit, be careful. the aluminum gets in the surface and causes them to explode. -If it's metal, you need to check that it's not warped.
     
  3. Ace_finland

    Ace_finland Minimodder

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    They sure are fun, made it a while ago but haven't used it much before upgrading to the new spindle/VFD combo :) It was a HSS blade so everything went fine :)
     
  4. Burnout21

    Burnout21 Mmmm biscuits

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    love it!!
     
  5. shinji2k

    shinji2k Minimodder

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    Looks great!

    For future reference they make blades specifically for cutting aluminum that have a negative rake to prevent it grabbing. I use one on my table saw and compound miter saw with a bit of wax for lube and it works well.
     
  6. Ace_finland

    Ace_finland Minimodder

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    Thx for the comment guys!

    shinji2k: thx for the info, I will have a look for one of them.

    Forgot to post this in the first post but this is from where i got the inspiration, its not to scale since that would have meant making it very long
    [​IMG]

    Started with milling som slots for the air intake
    [​IMG]

    The air intake is done, and lowerd the tabs for where the nuc will be seated
    [​IMG]

    Bottom side, as you can see i left a few tabs so the piece wouldn't move while milling through the sheet. Just cleaned of the tabs with a file as they were only around 2mm thick
    [​IMG]

    For some reason i'm missing a lot of photos from milling the slots and the holes for the legs. But here are the slots :)
    [​IMG]

    Had to mill out a bit for some of the slots because they all connectors are not on the same line
    [​IMG]

    As usual something is bound to go wrong and while milling the slots for the connectors i forgot to zero the mill bit so all connectors are 1mm off to one side. That's why up in the right corner i had to make an extension bit for the motherboard
    [​IMG]

    Test fit of the powerhouse :) As u might have noticed the air intake is on the bottom side, i didn't want to have an air intake in the lid and making it this way i can get airflow through all components before leaving the case.
    [​IMG]

    Sneak preview of next update
    [​IMG]
    more updates coming soon :)
     
  7. Cheapskate

    Cheapskate Insane? or just stupid?

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    Not going fully passive.:waah:

    What's the mysterious hole next to the fan vent for?
     
  8. Ace_finland

    Ace_finland Minimodder

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    I was thinking of water cooling it with all the water cooling parts in a microprocessor socket which the processor would be plugged into, after thinking a bit more i decided it would take too much time and money to see it through. The passive would have been nice but never thought about it :eeek:

    The mystery hole is for a on/off button :)
     
  9. Dr. Coin

    Dr. Coin Multimodder

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    I love the case.
    I cannot help but think it would be cool to build several of these cases and a matching circuit board to plug each case into. It would be the coolest looking computer farm.
     
  10. Ace_finland

    Ace_finland Minimodder

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    Thx Dr. Coin, that would be pretty cool :)

    Seem to get less and less time with modding every week but got a lot done during the weekend :)


    The acrylic, Not much about it yet but i still need to get the film of the die on it, but that will be in a later update. Not the greatest finish on it but needs to be as "frosty" as possible to spread the light evenly.
    [​IMG]

    The lid itself is just hollowed out on the inside, did a quick test fit to see if everything lines up. The lexan is slightly bigger than the aluminum. This might be because i removed the inner part first and then milled the outer profile, just give it a good sanding and it will be alright
    [​IMG]

    The second mystery hole is for a fan controller to adjust the brightness of the leds (so u know cheapskate :) )
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Time to give the case some legs :), decided to go with m3 socket head screws so milled some 2,5mm holes
    [​IMG]

    Milling a few legs at a time, didn't wanna mill all in one go in the event none of them would fit.
    [​IMG]

    After finishing the leg cut outs i was thinking a while how i could chamfer the other side without using a file. So i milled out a pocket of the lexan where the legs fitted perfectly and then just jammed them in there with a plastic hammer and started chamfering. Worked a lot better than i thought it would
    [​IMG]

    The three stages of the legs and the final color i picked. Did not expect the gold color looking so good. usually u need to try all brands before finding a good one.
    [​IMG]

    All 12 legs milled and chamfered. Threading was a pain but eventually i got them all done. Had to use a normal one to get the start and made a custom flat end one to get it all the way to the bottom
    [​IMG]

    quick test fit to see how it looks.
    [​IMG]

    Next update coming tomorrow!
    The color i chose, same as the test bench i made last year. It's called fine black, a very light texture which makes it look very "oem". Def my favorite black. Looks very bumpy but it's due to the ridiculous cropping i did to not show the hole thing :)
    [​IMG]
     
  11. Idioteque

    Idioteque Telephasic Mongoose

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    I love it! Can't wait to see the finished product.
     
  12. HybridCore

    HybridCore What's a Dremel?

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    Photos are dead for me. DAMN YOU PHOTOBUCKET!
     
  13. Ace_finland

    Ace_finland Minimodder

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    Thx idioteque! Should be fixed now hybridcore! Exceeded the free 10gb bandwith but have paid for service now so should be up again :)
     
  14. jrs77

    jrs77 Modder

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    You could load them pictures into your bit-tech photoalbum. No need for paying photobucket.

    Anyways... näyttää todella upeaa :rock:
     
  15. The_Crapman

    The_Crapman World's worst stuntman. Lover of bit-tech

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    Or Flickr. They don't have a limit anymore. Love the build. Genius idea.
     
  16. quizz_kid

    quizz_kid Squid

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    Great design followed by great execution... I like i very much! Don't understand why your design didn't make the cut, competition wise :confused: Can't wait to see the illumination. Looks AMAZING!
     
    Last edited: 24 Sep 2013
  17. quizz_kid

    quizz_kid Squid

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    double post
     
  18. CarlT2001

    CarlT2001 What's a Dremel?

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    Love it. I would happily part with money to have one.
    If you did a 555 timer version, I would part with even more money!
     
  19. dream1

    dream1 What's a Dremel?

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    Biggest chip i ever seen!!! Looks like it is based on new 1cm architecture :)
    Hay that looks cool.
     
  20. Ace_finland

    Ace_finland Minimodder

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    I could but posting in several forums so it seems easier to have it online somewhere :) Kiitti!

    I looked at flickr but then i would have to redo all the links, seemed easier to just pau :)

    Thx quizz_kid! Well i like all the designs that are competing and i bet they had a hard time choosing the competitors.

    Thx!

    lol, moving backwards...
     

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