Scratch Build – Complete Project Pupp3r

So I never ended up doing a proper final project log post for this project and I've got a ton of pictures and videos so thought i'd do it. You've seen a few finished pictures but not proper ones so I'll go from where I left off, testing the PSU mounting system.

So after that was done and I knew I could continue with the project I started doing some test fits with the real motherboard and PSU with a cut down GPU.



It looks like there's plenty of room. Space for the fans at the top and bottom and room to fit in all of the PSU cables. So much that I even looked at fitting in an AIO provided by corsair.



Not so much space anymore. The bottom part under the GPU was looking real tight and there was pretty much no room to feed in the PSU cable. Also IO would be a no go. After a bit of shuffling of components it was decided I wouldn't be able to fit the watercooler in this time so I'll be saving that for a new mod.The next step was to cut out the motherboard tray. This was taken from the previous corsair I cut to pieces.



The cuts are very rough and it wasn't the perfect shape I wanted but it was good enough to do the first test fit in the case.



Now that I knew it fit in the case when on it's side it was time to mount it to the case so I could start working on the rest. i needed the motherboard in a fixed position so I could start working out where to put the PSU and the fans for the best air flow. I used the previous rivet holes to mount the motherboard tray to the IO play I'd previously cut out and it's very solid. I then marked the holes on the back of the case, drilled them and mounted the assembly.




And it worked. There's a bit of GPU sag but it looks much worse in the picture due to the perspective of the camera. This was the point that I could see the build coming together. It was finally mounted on it's own upright.

Next was cutting out the rear IO and where my lack of skill was shown. I used a dremel for all of this and a tool to do straight edges. I also bought a small work bench. Unfortunately the tool drifted a bit and ended up looking naff on the rear IO but the case needed to be done so I'll call it "adding character" to the case.






It really is a bad finish. The motherboard IO looks fine but the GPU one looks bad. I also needed to use a file to make the whole bigger or large cables would get stuck or not even go in.

 

So the rear IO is cut and the motherboard is mounted. That means it's on to the fan holes. I used the brilliant templates provided by @mnpctech and they were a massive help. I could have done with doing these closer to the edge of the case but with the previous cutting going how it went I thought it would be best to keep it central. The GPU would still get good air flow and the CPU should be fine.



A bit of sellotape, the circle cutting tool for the dremel and a pencil and it all came out pretty well.









The same procedure on the top panel and I finally had something resembling a case.



Next up I needed to work out the PSU cable. The PSU would be inside the case so I needed an extension. I crudely cut a hole out and it doesn't look great. It does the job as you'll see later but it's not perfect.



With the PSU cable hole in I could do a test fit of all the components which is what I did.



Now you're probably thinking 2 thing:

1. How on earth are all the cables going to fit in
2. that GPU looks reaaaaaallllly close.

You'd be correct. The cables are going to be tight and for the final picture of the post the GPU is super tight



Got to love when the CAD work lines up even with poor craftsmanship

 

Usually takes a couple of cuts to get the hang of how a particular tool reacts with a particular material. As cheaps said, best practice is leave a little left on the cut to finish with file& sandpaper, but all good things to learn and take to the next one

 

So now that we knew everything fit it was time to put it all together and cut out the PSU mount. First I got everything wired up so I knew there was enough room in the case and knew where I could mount the PSU so that the cables would fit.



Then marked where the PSU was along with a transparent bit of acrylic I used to trace the screw holes so I could mark those properly.



And it worked. As you can see below the tool I was using slipped at the very end leaving a larger hole on one side. This was later smoothed out with a file as it was really obvious and on the front of the case.



A few screws later and with the additions of some spray painted white feet I stole from the corsair case and it was all together.



Now for those of you paying attention you'll know I've forgot something. When building I didn't take the film off the acrylic as I didn't want to damage it. Now it's together and works I need to take it all apart, take the sheets off, put the filters in and put it back together. Some peeling porn.



And it being put together

 

So at that point it was all put together. And I had some nice shots of it working and looking nice.





Thing is. The fan LEDs aren't turned on which along with the stock AMD cooler caused a weird divide. The solution to an air cooling problem? Noctua of course. The problem of no RGB on the fans was fixed by a corsair commander we had lying around. First the cooler went in.







Then the commander pro.





Now it's not the best cable management ever but in a case this small I was lucky to get it all in. Once they were in the temps dropped significantly and it ended up looking like this.





Now onto the next mod be it a V2 or a completely different mod... oh and buying some new tools . Hope you enjoyed my first mod. All i used was a bit of free 2D CAD software, a company that supplied the right sized acrylic and a dremel. Overall I'm happy with the outcome but you can see some areas where my skill let the overall mod down. I was going to fix these but as it's my first mod I feel like getting something done and out there is more important than looking for perfection. There were some features I also didn't get to implement as I was overly ambitious. V2 or my next mod should have one of these features but you'll have to wait and see for that.

 

I won't be changing this mod anymore. I want to keep it in it's current state to remind me of where I've come from on later mods. I think it was due to me not properly pushing the guide against the work piece when doing the straight edges. It was also my first time using a dremel or decent tools for nearly a decade. Heck, I didn't even own a work bench or tape measure to begin with. Thanks for the input as always.

Not sure on this??? I did clean up a few of the cuts with a file after but didn't get to take photos of them. It looks better than the image.

I'm personally not a fan of vertical GPUs using risers. I'm not sure why but they just seem odd. It would also impact the effect of me using top to bottom air flow directly into the GPU fans.

I didn't own any files when i did this to begin with and it was my first time using a dremel. Overall I'm fine with how it turned out. I hope to pick up some more tools as I've proved I can do it and enjoy it so I can invest more into it.

The acrylic wizard himself. Any links to one or other general tips for machining out the "inside" of pieces such as the rear IO?

Not bad for a first mod. <3

 

It's a bloody nightmare to work on. The panels have to be tightened in a very specific way or they don't all fit... V2 will be from scratch but I've got another mod idea I've been discussing on the discord, I might be doing one that involves a shuttle case which should be a little easier due to already having a structure but on the other hand it's got some more complex features I want to add. I'd say for a very first mod with limited tools I couldn't have asked for much more. ultimately it performs as a small and quite PC for LAN events so it's perfect for purpose. It was also cheaper than a Dan case and there's something special about seeing a thing built from scratch when I turn it on.

Alex deliberately didn't do any work on the mod. It was my very first one. I ask him for tips every now and again but he'll never actually work on one of my mods. Other wise it's not mine, it's his.

 

I think it looks great. Yeh there are some iffy bits, but importantly they're where you wont see them. To do a scratch build as your first mod is a heck of an undertaking and the end result is a cracking little rig