Case Mod - In Progress Project Av-8A

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I like the first option better with the twin turbines. It looks more imaginative than the second one but it's also harder to make.
How are you planning to make the tail fins? 3D or just plain sheet metal?

PS. This should go to mods as you haven't really started yet. Read the project logs rules.

 

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You should also give Google Sketchup a go. It makes the whole design process so much easier. And it's free!

 

mhh to model intakes i would suggest foam and fibreglas. there are several worklogs here explaining how to do that (f.e.: ssrs enzo trib.).
suggestion 2 on the intakes ( allways refering to pic1) is to make them bigger. instead of 2 fans ( thats what it looks like for me) you maybe use a bigger single on. like the original av8 you wouldnt even see the fan when lookin right from the front.

 

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Until you have actual work in progress pics posted this should be in the mods section.

The first design looks cooler. Would certainly entail a fair amount of composite work but wouldn't be too hard to pull off (just be sure to do a vacuum bag on your composite layups; feel free to PM me if you need advice on composites). I wouldn't use 1 big fan for 2 intakes; for that design I'd be inclined to trim the "ears" off the fans to make them basically round so they can be easily inserted into the jet intakes. I'd say the best way of making those intakes would be to shape them out of hard Styrofoam then cover it with a fiberglass composite (maybe 4 plies (layers));then hollow out the inner "tube" to allow the fan to be inserted with ease (from the rear, but leaving the hole to the front a bit smaller; next, put another few plies over the whole thing (inside and outside; without the fan in there of course); once all this is cured you can sand it smooth and paint it as you desire; might also want to add a cone to the fan hub to make it look more like a fan-jet intake.

Edit: if you have the fronts of the jets angled with respect to the front bezel you can easily jet the airflow into the case; you might even want to have the jets protruding out from the front of the case a bit.

 

i like the idea. and you can prolly pick up some actual gauges off the net and use them for watercooling with a bit of modding (wouldnt know srry :/) good luck

 

mhh normal fan sizes are 120 , maybe 140mm. mabe ill post a drawing tonight. on your sketch, the fans would be next to the hdds ?

 

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Going with a scoop design would work; but I think it'd look more impressive with the fans at the front, and wouldn't really be any more/less work.

I know I've seen fan controllers in the past that had gauges similar to those used in aircraft; but can't seem to be able to readily find them. You might want to look into getting some old gauges/instruments off ebay and trying to make them work for you. Or use needle-type voltage indicators and wire up your own controller.

For the bezel material it really depends on what kind of a look you're going for; but certainly aluminum would be easier to work with than acrylic.

 

If you want circular fans to fit into the 2 intakes on the top picture, try your local model shop that specialises in model aircraft. There are some round turbine fans that may fit in there.

 

R/C turbines like that would be very expensive, way overpowered, and too loud for PC applications.

 

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For what you're doing that's the best bet anyways. Like I said making the shroud isn't too complicated; just takes a bit of patience and care. Just thought you could even paint the fan blades in charcoal (satin finish) and the cone in gray w/ the black spiral

 

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If you wanted to go with one big fan at the front you can get up to 250mm fans pretty cheap.

Here's one I found from Thermaltake: http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=327&products_id=22204

There are also others around the 200-250mm size.

Good luck