Case Mod - In Progress Popcorn HTPC - Finished - 8-29

Excellent work on the double bending +rep I've a feeling doing that is hit & miss but you got a hit which is a really good thing since you need to have it ready by next Wednesday I'm not experienced enough to do deadlines yet .

 

I really wish I had another week but I think I'll make it. Back to modding.....

 

Fantastic work, Bob. I didn't even know that was possible to bend both at once. Of course, we're all glad it is not only possible but it worked perfectly for you!

 

It's about time I got serious about finishing this thing. Especially since I only have 3 days left!

I had to shorten all the psu cables so that they are only about 6" long. Chop Chop. I still have to sleeve them all but they are the right length for now. I also cut off anything that I didn't need like extra molex and sata.





The inside of the case will be all white so I also sprayed the psu case white.




I found some plastic primer I've never used so I'm going to try it out. I sprayed several of the panels with it.



After masking off the window, I primed the main section and put some spot putty on the edges where the window wasn't exactly perfect. This will get 2 more primer coats with wet sanding in between and more spot putty.





While that was drying I jumped back to the wiring. I had to daisy chain 2 fans together so that they will plug right into the mobo. The wires will be hidden along the lower front edge. These are huge fans aren't they? The psu also pulls air so it will help the flow.




I found some cool rubber things with threaded inserts that will work great as feet for this thing.




As if I don't have enough to do already I decided to make a nice shield that fits in the psu opening. I still have to cut the holes for the cord and power switch but it's going to be a nice touch. I think? I used some perforated aluminum and cut it, then started to bend the edges in so it will fit snug in the opening. The real reason I am doing this is because I screwed up on a cut.





I have these metal blocks I use for hammering the edges square.




And there it is -




It will get painted white too.


I am working at a crazy pace and I can see my quality slipping away. It really bothers me but I can't buy more time. So it will have to be good enough. I've already had a couple near disasters. A broken tap inside the main piece that I was very lucky to get out, a tiny chip in the clear walls of the popcorn maker itself that is luckily hidden, and a mis-cut on the rear panel. Argh.

But that's part of modding.


I'm not doing a very good job on the work log itself either because I really have no spare time right now. But you'll see the finished project soon enough so hang around.

 

This is such a cool idea

Can't wait to see how it turns out

 

Sometimes, you think to yourself will this be a good idea.

And today Bobdbone you got it right.

 

I feel for ya brother! I thought you were posting these logs after already completing this project. If it makes you feel any better I'm on the same time line!

 

I do not like deadlines!

 

I don't mind deadlines... gives me a goal, I just don't like being held to said deadlines

 

To quote Douglas Adams:

"I love deadlines. In particular, I love the whooshing noise they make as they fly by"

 

LOL - nice!


Started gluing all the pieces together. I'll have a little paint touch up but it's going ok so far. I clamped it in place and will leave it until tomorrow to make sure it's a super strong bond.







I am almost done with the psu wires too. I ran outta shrink tube (again)!

The good news is that I have all the parts I need, and everything has already been bench tested and the OS installed/updated so I just have to plug it all in when I'm done and it should be ready to go.

Time is ticking.

 

Getting closer. . . . .

I made a lot more progress today.

The adhesive set up overnight so now I have a complete box. I decided to scuff the whole thing down and throw another coat of paint on it since it was all together. It came out pretty good. I kind of like the all-white look. The cables and connectors will all be white too.

The psu is....done. And it still works.





The power switch was shortened a LOT. This is a white ring switch.




I'm cutting a piece of white acrylic with a 30 degree angle on it to put around the bottom. It will dress it up a little and will hang down below the rest of the box. This will hide the feet and keep the box up in the air so I can get air through the bottom.




Then it needed bent around the front so out comes my heat gun. This is a little risky but I'm in a hurry.




Success!!! Except for the part where I got it too hot and the clamp left an impression a little.









I mounted the SSD with some spacers and screws so it looks really clean.






The exterior will look like stainless steel. I picked up a roll of polished stainless film. It looks really amazing but I discovered it scratches really easy and is a big pain in the arse to get perfect. It gets a few small air bubbles that are stubborn mostly. It's for doing appliances but for me..it's for modding.

I wrapped the exterior and then trimmed off the excess.



I had to heat the outside corners to get it to relax a little.




I glued the lower white piece on and it will sit overnight in clamps. Then I can finish installing hardware, wire it up, and make some popcorn.

 

I hope you will seal it somehow later, wouldn't want any fat inside of the computer-area! Cleaned out a computer from a kitchen once, a few kilos of fat inside... :/

 

*bleh* I think I just tasted this comment in my mouth. *vomits a little*

 

There won't be anything that comes in contact with the computer area. The popcorn section is all contained in it's own compartment.

I can't imagine trying to get a pc clean after something like that.

 

Whenever I see this I just want a popcorn making media pc epic idea & coming along very very nicely .

 

Thx bud.



The lower white piece set up overnight and looks great!






I bought this ram because it matches the SSD and I left their name on it because they sponsored the mod contest.






Hardware is in and it turned on again so that was a huge relief. I always seem surprised when things work when you hit the button.









I installed the LED light strip -




and......... lights on
















You can see the power button in this shot...







More pics of lights -







Ok enough with the lights.


I installed a white piece of acrylic to the top of the popcorn maker to help match the colors. I originally wanted to build the whole thing in red acrylic but there isn't a red color that matches close enough to the red plastic housing of the popcorn machine. So I had to come up with an alternate plan. That's when I went with the stainless and white.





I decided to join the 2 pieces together and I quickly realized I should have done it sooner. The top looks way too big for the bottom section. It looks top heavy. And I need to bring the color scheme together a little better.



ARGH!!

So I grabbed some thick black acrylic and made a piece that will trim out the bottom so that it looks a little bigger at the base. This should help a lot and will also compliment the tinted window.


Here I have cut and polished a piece and am getting ready to bend it around the base with my heat gun.




It is now bent and glued into place. I've got it clamped down for a little while to set up. I also cut a square black piece that will be glued to the top of the machine where I put the white acrylic. I made the black one a little smaller so it will sit on the white one and have a stepped effect. Doing these 2 things should make the base look bigger and the top slimmed down a little.

Crossing my fingers


I have to deliver it tomorrow so I am really out of time. I'm writing this update while the glue sets up and then back out to the shop I go.

 

I did it.









Done.

 

Will it make it better if I say it was a big restaurant kitchen in an hotel?

Ah! I see what you did there now! Should be fine then Looks schweet next to the TV!

 

Thx.

It may not be 100% done yet. I might try a few things but I will have to do it after PAX.