In desigining my side window, I've decided that the hole for the Antec door latch is way too annoying to design around, and plan to cut the whole damn thing out. But this leaves me with the problem of filling in the resulting jagged hole around the perimeter. I can't exactly pick up a welder, so how can I patch the window edge to keep it smooth on both sides? My first instinct was body filler, but I'm not sure if it would be strong enough when sanded down to the same width as the panel. Edit: Come to think of it, the same question applies to the fan holes at the back of the case, which I might not end up using. Can I just cut out a matching piece from scrap metal and attach it with body filler? Will it be strong enough?
I have same problem with the side panel. I recently changed my case and decided to something for the now-empty Antec case. What I would suggest is to cut an square hole around the latch hole then cut matching piece of sheet metal (same thickness as the original metal) and affix it to the door. Now, there are lots of different ways of fixing metal to metal, welding being the best option. Maybe you could take the door to car-repair shop and have them to weld the bugger together? Of course you won't be getting exact match for the new piece and some bondo must be applied, but at least that would leave you with door which holds together even when something hits the once-latch-hole.
I think you should be able to use epoxy to stick somehting to the back of the hole (steel aluminium or whatever) to give it some strength. Then put bondo in the gap thats left (as if you were plastering a wall) and sand it flat. A large flat block of wood covered in sandpaper should get it pretty flat. Then paint over the top. Time consuming to get the bondo flat, but it should look good if you take your time.
