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Scratch Build – Complete ⭐ Monolith - almost passive, compact gaming PC

Discussion in 'Project Logs' started by Bennibo, 1 Feb 2017.

  1. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    yeah, i know... :rolleyes: we will see. maybe i make new ones.

    today i got the grooves done. worked good so far, except in messed up once.
    also i tapped a few holes in the fram for the buttom aluminum and acrylic panels.

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    the acrylic strips are not done yet.
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  2. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    I got a few things done since my last post. I worked on the acrylic for the feet and for the grill.
    First i worked on two rectangular pieces of 10mm polycarbonate using the jigsaw and router. After that i used handtools like a hacksaw and files to get the inside part out.
    I also worked on getting the acrylic strips for the grill straight. For that i used a belt sander to get one side plane and used the router getting the other side parallel. after that i sandblasted them.

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  3. Dr. Coin

    Dr. Coin Multimodder

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    Looking good. Plus it is great to know not everyone is using CNC or 3d printers to fabricate their parts.
     
  4. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    thanks, but i would love to have a CNC ;)

    i continued my work on foot no. 2 and used the jigsaw to cut out the openings in the side and buttom panels, so the heatsink can breath. also you can finally see the beautiful heatsink again :clap:

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  5. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    FINALLY, i got the front aluminum plate bend! :clap:
    omg, i didnt expect it to be such a hard task, but i found a way to bend a radius.
    i used a manual sheet metal bender and bend the plate just a few degrees, pulled the plate out just a bit, bend a few more degrees and so on until i had the full 90°. of course its not a perfect radius, but i guess i cant get it done any better, unless i get it done by someone with a CNC machine.

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  6. Nexxo

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

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    That looks pretty tidy, for eyeballed handiwork.
     
  7. Cheapskate

    Cheapskate Insane? or just stupid?

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    Yeah. We can't tell from the pictures that you bent it that way. :thumb:
    PS: Your cut accuracy will go up if you switch to the ultra-fine sharpies. It sounds silly, but it does wonders.
     
  8. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    Thanks Nexxo and Cheapskate

    sorry, i dont get it. what do you mean?


    i did get quiet a few things done today.
    i tapped a few threads in the frame, so the front can be screwed on to the rest of the case. Btw, all those screws will be swapped out by counted sunk ones, so they wont be that visible right away ;)
    Then i started shortening all those parts i made too long, because i didnt know how the front would be like. I began with the POM plate, leaving enough empty space for the LEDs in between the POM and the aluminum. Then went on with the acrylic bars for the grill.
    The acrylic that goes on top of the POM and the top aluminum layer are not done yet.

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  9. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    today, i did a bit of everything. Nothing is done yet, but im getting there ;)

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  10. mal

    mal What's a Dremel?

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    Won't the panel block the heat trying to escape the heatsink fins? :confused:

    Great work though. :thumb: Very beautiful in its simple lines.
     
  11. Nexxo

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

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    I think he is going for a convection effect: air warmed by the heat sink fins rises out the top (partially assisted by the slow spinning fans), drawing cool air in from the bottom.
     
  12. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    Thanks mal! :)

    Yes, the panel will be blocking the heatsink, which slightly decreases its performance when the fans are off, but its also channeling air through the heatsink, when the fans are on, sucking air from the buttom and exhausting at the top, which should about double the performance of the heatsink.

    I want the fans to stand still when in idle and the whole system uses about 30-60watts. In that case, i sacrifice some cooling performance. That huge heatsink should still be fine with 30-60watts, even when its blocked off a bit.
    When the system is under heavy load and the heatsinks needs to dissipate 250-300 watts, i have the extra cooling performance, because of the forced airflow.


    To let some air also flow through the hardware compartment and cool all the other components like VRMs, RAM and so on, i had to drill a "few" holes in the buttom.
    it should be little over 300 of them with Ø4mm each. :dremel:
    I used a perforated aluminum plate and used it as a template to drill those holes by hand.

    No. 1 and 2 are done :clap:
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    a few more to come....
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    a little while later
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  13. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    ok people, i still need a name for this thing. any suggestions?


    i didnt get anything done in almost a week, because i was sick. But now, im feeling better, so i soldered some LEDs.

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    i didnt use the adhesive on those leds yet, because i will probably have to take them off a few more times, so they are not in there perfectly.
    as you can see though, i use some leds to shine right into the acrylic strips and they just glow a very short distance. im a little disappointed in that effect. i expected them to be lid up more equally.
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    but on the rest of the acrylic, the LEDs look great!
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  14. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    today i worked on CPU- and GPU-coolers.
    first i cut 50x60mm pieces out of 8mm and 30mm thick copper, then i tapped threads in one of the pieces so i could keep them screwed together, while i drilled holes for the heat pipes through both pieces. this method worked out pretty good.
    I hope to get the other one done tomorrow.

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  15. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    mini update, no. is done also.

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  16. Dr. Coin

    Dr. Coin Multimodder

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    Big block of copper. Is that to elevate the heat pipes above the board?

    Just released I missed a couple of your previous updates, Incredible work hand drilling all those holes.
     
    Last edited: 11 Mar 2017
  17. LennyRhys

    LennyRhys Fan Fan

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    Drilling all these holes by hand... you are crazy! Much respect :thumb:
     
  18. stonedsurd

    stonedsurd Is a cackling Yuletide Belgian

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    The older I get, the more passive or near-passive air cooled builds enthuse me.

    Great stuff so far!
     
  19. Nexxo

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

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    Silent Running.

    Impressed by your work. Without a mill that stuff isn't easy to do.
     
  20. Bennibo

    Bennibo What's a Dremel?

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    thanks guys! ;)
    for the holes in the buttom i used a battery powered drill and for those in the copper blocks i used a bigger stationary one.

    @Dr. Coin: the blocks have this size so they are taller than anything on the mainboard or graphics card, because they will be sandwiched in between them and the heatsink. that way some of the heat can be transfered directly, also just in case the heatpipes dont cut it.

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    meanwhile i worked on the mounts for the LEDs in the buttom. i used L-type Aluminum profile, so that i can hide them and all the cables.

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