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Scratch Build – In Progress Wood And Copper Computer (with NOFAN CR-95C)

Discussion in 'Project Logs' started by pekcitron, 20 Apr 2015.

  1. pekcitron

    pekcitron What's a Dremel?

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    Hi All,

    After seeing a lot of incredible mods here, I've finally decided to subscribe and this post here to share my first mod.

    Back in 2014, the first time I saw the Nofan CR-95C I laughed! Then, after some searches on the web I found this piece of copper really aesthetic. But what a shame, most (all?) of the computers I saw had the Nofan installed inside a case! This is how my project has started to grow in my head.

    After a lot of hours under Sketchup I finally got a configuration which can fit in a wood cube of 23x23x23 centimeters. Here is the final result:

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    The project is approaching the end but not yet finished. I still need to do:
    - Finish the closing mechanism
    - Do latest adjustment to the hood and glue it
    - Build and fix the feet
    - Add sheets of plywood outside the case
    - Improve the cable management
    - Add a power button
    - Add mesh

    I will share with you the main steps I've done until now.
     
  2. pekcitron

    pekcitron What's a Dremel?

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    First step was to create the big hole for the rad :


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    Then I built the hood. For that I did home made dowel because I couldn't find them in 4mm (diameter). To be sure everything will be well aligned I built smal spikes in aluminum.


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    Then I could start to align the rad in the center of the case and have a first idea of the look.


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    More pics of this nice piece of copper:


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    :)
     
  3. pekcitron

    pekcitron What's a Dremel?

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    Then I built the inside of the case and the back panel. As you might see the interior is a bit different than the Sketchup, it's because I got issues with this configuration (we will see why later).


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    Then the problems have started with first the power supply connector:


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    And the PCI riser was too long. I tried to bend it but it was still too long...


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    I solved the power supply connector by making a bigger hole which I will "close" later with aluminum


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    And the suit of the built on the interior:


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    :)
     
    Last edited: 22 Apr 2015
  4. pekcitron

    pekcitron What's a Dremel?

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    Hi all,


    Here is a view on the first setup I was planned to do:


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    I decided to not build the case like this because it will not give a lot of place for the "air duct". The other problem was the HDD mounting which was not really easy (need to remove the motherboard or the graphic card to mount/unmount the drive). Finally, I was suspecting that the noise of the HDD will not be enough damped because it will be next to the air duct. The solution is the one proposed in the Sketchup view at the beggining of this thread.




    Then, I could have a try with a new short PCI riser. But I got other problems with it. First, it was too short and I have to move back a bit the graphic card. I solved that easily with a bit of wood. But the other problem was the boot, it was randomly be able to boot, that was a nightmare! I tried to put the more shield to the riser with dedicated special tape and I tried to connect the ground everywhere (including the riser) but that was not enough to get a stable boot :(


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    Then more woodworking :


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    Next steps later :)
     
  5. Razarach

    Razarach Minimodder

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    Nice work. This cooler is monster. :D
     
  6. storm-83

    storm-83 Minimodder

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    i really like the exposed heatsink, that's something i've been wanting to do for a long while.
    are you going to iluminate it or just leave it exposed?

    great job so far, keep it up - and consider me subbed!
     
  7. Nexxo

    Nexxo * Prefab Sprout – The King of Rock 'n' Roll

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    That's a really elegant design. Are you going to cover the MDF in wood veneer? You can get real wood sheets of a few millimetres thickness; not very expensive either.

    Don't light up the copper heat sink though. Less is more.
     
  8. pekcitron

    pekcitron What's a Dremel?

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    Thanks all for your comments, it's motivates me to finish it!

    storm-83> adding light to the heat sink is not planed yet, I have one idea that I would like to try but not on the Nofan.

    Nexxo> Yes I planed to put wood veneer outside of the case. For the inside I don't know, maybe I'll let the wood like this in order to let the time do its job. Your current mod is incredible, you have your own style and I really like that! I'm glad you liked mine :)
     
    Last edited: 24 Apr 2015
  9. pekcitron

    pekcitron What's a Dremel?

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    Hello :)

    As the two PCI risers I bought were not working fine (boot issues, size, flexibility, etc.) I decided to buy the famous 100$ 3M riser. This one is really "magic", I didn't get any boot issues. It's not the most flexible cable I could see but much more than the 2 others risers I tried. Problem is the length. I requested two times 3M to purchase a smaller version but it wasn't possible (or I should buy 1000x pieces). So I had to modify the inside of the case, it's not as nice as before but I will show you later how I hid it.

    With this riser, it finally killed the centered position of the HDD. I worked on Sketchup to find a new place for the HDD (and SSD) and the result is visible on the first images of this thread.

    During this redo on Sketchup, I took the opportunity to increase the air duct and finalize the mounting of the graphic card (I used a harder wood to ensure a good mounting). Here are the results on wood:


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    And more details on the mount of HDD and SSD :


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    :)

    A bit of aluminum for the next steps!
     
    Last edited: 24 Apr 2015
  10. Impatience

    Impatience Minimodder

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    Loving the cleanliness of this build! Can't wait to see the next step
     
  11. HandMadeAndroid

    HandMadeAndroid That's handy.

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    Very nice work.
     
  12. Dr. Coin

    Dr. Coin Multimodder

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    This is a great looking case. I know a lot of people do not like the look of MDF, but for this build the plainness of the MDF might work. Especially with a shiny Nofan heat sink on top. As Nexxo said "less is more". Cannot wait to see it finished.

    Discovering and solving problems is one of the best aspects of modding. It makes the fished product more rewarding.
     
  13. pekcitron

    pekcitron What's a Dremel?

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    Thanks all for your encouragements! :)

    Dr. Coin> this is my first mod and yes I like this aspect of modding. I was also impressed that, most of the times, doing things solve faster and better the problem than trying to solve it on Sketchup or drawing.

    As promised, some home made brushed aluminum plates now!


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    Yes, I know I have a mark, couldn't find a way to solve it. It's due to a really really little bump. It will be under the motherboard and cables so that's not a big deal.. If someone knows how to improve the process of doing brushed aluminum I'll be interested.




    And... The little family with all parts ready to be assembled/glued...


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    :)
     
    Last edited: 25 Apr 2015
  14. Nexxo

    Nexxo * Prefab Sprout – The King of Rock 'n' Roll

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    Clean work on the aluminium. Liking where this is going.
     
  15. H²OC Project

    H²OC Project What's a Dremel?

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    :jawdrop: nice work and clean job :clap:
     
  16. Ocelot

    Ocelot Minimodder

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    All that nice craftsmanship and photography makes me want to work with MDF again. I also think it's about time someone built a case around that heatsink. Nice work!
     
  17. pekcitron

    pekcitron What's a Dremel?

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    Glued (except the top plate), update the screws to a better look (I like torx), create 50% of the closing mechanism, mount all components and ... boot it up! \o/

    I got 71°C on the CPU after more than 15 minutes under OCCT! This head sink is a king!

    Hard drive is a little bit noisy (it's a WD black which doesn't help) and temp is increasing slowly until 42°C. I have to try with the Be Quiet in the other side. Maybe I'll drill some holes on top of the drive too. For the HDD, I've used this interesting SATA cable from Silverstone :

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    Power supply is far the most noisy component! Fan is a really low quality, I changed it to a Noiseblocker Blacksilent Pro in 80x80x15mm. It's waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better!


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    I didn't do a lot of tests on the graphic card but it seems it stays cool.

    The main problem with the cooling is that the speed of the BeQuiet is linked to the CPU and not with the graphic card and/or drives. I tried few configurations with SpeedFan but couldn't get something working. I have to go deeper, it might be due to the PWM mode of the BeQuiet. Does anyone has some advise on this issue? Is there another software than SpeedFan?




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    And boot :


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    Next steps:
    - Finish the closing mechanism (I'm currently doing some tests)
    - Do latest adjustment to the hood and glue it
    - Build and fix the feet
    - Add sheets of plywood outside the case
    - Improve the cable management
    - Add a power button
    - Add mesh
    - Add protective tape inside for the graphic card (is it really useful???)
     
  18. Ocelot

    Ocelot Minimodder

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    I had V1.0 of that PSU which was even louder and I also switched the fan although I used a 25mm thick Noctua fan that I had to bolt to the outside of the PSU enclosure.

    I also have a WD Black and unless it is placed on foam it is ridiculously loud.

    The only ways to control the case fan based on GPU temp I can think of is to use an external fan controller. Although what might work is splicing the PWM lead of the GPU fan and connecting it to the Casefans PWM lead.
     
  19. storm-83

    storm-83 Minimodder

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    Can't wait to see some veneer on the sides of the case!
    This looks really promising!!!

    As for the fan;
    Personally i would just put a resistor cable to 5v between the mobo and the be quiet
    - it would be more than capable for your needs and your hardware configuration
    - and it would leave the fan virtually silent!
    I believe the fan came with some of the cables
     
  20. Nexxo

    Nexxo * Prefab Sprout – The King of Rock 'n' Roll

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    I wonder if you have to disable smart fan control in BIOS for Speedfan to be able to use PWM instead. However I note that the Asus H87I-PLUS also has a PWM system fan connector. Might that be of use?
     

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