Scratch Build – In Progress Project Rexed - 8th August 2008 update

Hi there,

I'm a 15 year old casemodder from Germany and I decided to start my Worklog now as I'd have write very much if I started later.

This is my plan:

old plan

Current Progress:


As you see it's a pretty normal case (seems like I was not very creative xD), the only special thing are the windows and those additions on the front an the top which I can't even describe in German so I'm not going to try it in English
In the lower part of the front a fan is going to take place, another one on the window in the left and maybe one in the top. Watercooling won't be used as it's too expensive and I'm no hardcore gamer who needs über-overclocking

The name is a mix of "red" and "hex". Red is the main colour to be used - I've got a pack of 500 red LEDs from ledshoppe.com and the Windows are hexagons (inspired by another mod - Embryo Zero). If you have any ideas for a better name feel free to tell me.

My plan for front/top once was (see later for new plan) to build a frame out of wood and put fiberglass on it afterwards, the sides will be two alu-plexi-alu-sandwiches which can be lit so you get a nice red edge. Don't know how to style the front though, any Idea for a colour scheme? I want to add multiple lights which I can make blink in a cool way (maybe that knightrider thing in vertical as I once saw it somewhere?).

I don't have any special tools, but a hand drill, belt & orbital sander, dremel-clone and our brand-new jig saw will do I think. And some files, a heat gun and so on, maybe you'll see some of them in action later.


Well, enough talking about plans, I've also done some work!

On monday I've bought some wood and started by building a basic frame for the front.



I believe you all know how wood is cut and how it looks afterwards but here's a picture of the plan & product anyway^^



So basically everything I've been doing was cutting wood and glueing it together... Didn't become boring yet though


+

=


On Wednesday I made a little sample out of fiberglass to see how to use it and found out that I'm gonna need at least 2 or 3 layers.



For quite some time nothing special happened and I got here:



Seems like I became a bite bigheaded at this point, or I just didn't think enough...
I build the frame for the fan and as you may see it's very tight:



This won't work as there'll be fiberglass adding additional thickness, so I had to redo it. First I wanted to file it but that would've taken hours... So I broke it apart and did some rasping first, afterwards filing it and voilà:



Glued them together.



And let the frame fall on the ground



While reassembling it I realized that the workbench should be tidied.
before

after


Glueing on the connections using the soldering gun to ensure pressure. (I prefer the smaller soldering iron to this, but as a weidght this one's perfect )



It's starting to take shape (I believe we're at today by now... oh, today has already become yesterday, I'd better hurry up^^)



Sawing some wood (not done at that moment)



Next problem: where is that little thing used to put drill bits on the drill?

After quite some searching I found it on the floor behind my rubbish bag.



I then decided to build a whole basic frame for the pc to which I can later attach the alu/plexi sheets. First I wanted to do the connections like this:



Didn't hold though... I decided to think about that later.

Unfortunately I couldn't count anymore, did one too much:



Actually happened once more, silly thing is I had already noted before cutting, then did something else and in the end cut it, too

Here's all the cut wood waiting to be used:



Glued the dunno-how-to-call-em-thingies together:



A bit later dad came in and helped me with my connection problem



This works pretty good, I won't glue it together 'till I have the top though.





That's where I am right now. Further updates will follow once more is work done, thanks for reading and feel free to comment =)

Mr. Wonko

 

Wow, I'll be watching this project. I really like the design of the case.

Nice first post!

 

Nice window design.

 

Creative! And wood too. I'm watching this.
John

 

This sidepanel reminds me a bit Embryo Zero... but only a bit . Good Job so far Mr. Wonko, keep it up!

 

Thats the name!
I've been trying to remember what it was for ever!


Anyways, Mr. Wonko. I love the design you have planned, and the process of how you are making this case.
Can't wait to see more!

 

It's looking really good already. Normally I'm not a fan of wooden cases, but that's because most people just use boring MDF This one is better, the hex theme is nice

Edit: Embryo Zero is amazing

 

Fiberglass Work

Thanks for the nice comments - right, it's been Embryo Zero which inspired me, I was to lazy to search for the name though^^

So I'm back again and I've done some work, therefore it's time for an update!

First of all I finished the second... wood-thing:



afterwards I found out that "measure twice, cut once" should be "measure twice using the right values, cut once"...



I did them in small size although I need big ones!

Had to redo them



Glueing wasn't that fun anymore, this part kept breaking:



But in the end I got it. Afterwards I made the frame and glued it together, it will get additional fiberglass at the corners later.



It's not perfect, I'll try to fix it somehow when enhancing the corners with fibreglass as it can still be moved a bit at the moment.



Next thing was glueing the other parts onto the frame.



Then I attached fibreglass to it using a staple gun - some of the weaker connections broke during this, but the fibreglass attached to it hold it in place so it's gonna be o.k.



It turned out later that I shouldn't have used many small parts but go for big onces instead - first time using fiberglass so still some trial & error



Next thing I needed was good wheather - and today it came. So I prepared everything in the garden:



Started putting the resin onto the fiberglass...



...and haven't finished yet as I do sports on wednesday... and actually also on monday, thursday and friday, I definitely need at least 6 more hours per day


Here I tried to capture the problem with the small pieces - on the corners the fiberglass doesn't want to bend



I'll cut that off later and put another layer of fibreglass over the first. In the end I'll need some bondo... well, don't have bondo, I'm gonna use normal putty

After sports I went shopping - needed new brushes and some gloves.



And that's what the case looked like in the evening:



And here's a money shot for you, done using long time exposure:



that's it for now, see you on next update or when I answer questions - if there are any.
You know, like "nice, but where's the power switch?" (I actually haven't decided yet, but it's gonna be somewhere on the lower part of the front I think)

 

THAT's a lot of LEDS!

Damn, 15 years old, and playing with fiberglass! Nice! Just make sure you use the proper safety devices!

/Subscribed!

 

yep, pretty many, but it was only 15 bucks and shipping worldwide is free, so it was worth it I think. Though I'll probably have a hard time finding a place all those leds, but I'm young and there will hopefully be many other casemods in my life
Speaking of lighting: I've planned something special there, but that's gonna stay a secret at the moment

safety: well, as you see I worked outside because of the fumes, i also weared old clothes and when cutting the fibreglass I'll be wearing gloves and a kind of mask as visible here:

(that photo is part of a (german) worklog of my first casemod on another site - here are two pictures if you're interested in seeing the result)

I think that's enough, or isn't it?

 

Any time your working with fiberglass... or mainly the resin... PROTECT THE EYES!!! I really cant say that strongly enough! I speak from experience!

Nice though, and this came just a few days before I start my fiberglass case!

And no, edges of that woven matting wont fold over nicely. I would suggest wrapping it over the edges and trying to get your seems in less noticable spots.
I also worry abit about the finish your going to get working fiberglass like this, its going to be hard getting a nice smooth look to the exterior! Thats why FG is almost always worked in a mould.
If you need any general FG advice feel free to ask, I work with the stuff everyday and would be happy to offer advice.

 

The wood looks a little odd for a frame, but you will have a very lite case when your are finished.

 

The pics are not working, at least for me...

 

I've put some on imageshack for you - maybe you've got something like adblock plus blocking the images?
building the frame
still building
finished the frame
applying glassfiber
with resin

Well, might not be all that lite as there are going to be aluminium plates nearly everywhere (top (inside), back, sides, bottom, front (inside)) - I'll buy 2 m² and use far over 1 m² once I know where to get it cheap - e.g. the sides are going to be a sandwich of a (lit) plexi plate between two sheets of aluminium.

I have to hurry a bit, next 2 weeks I'm going to do a hands-on training at a company doing laser cuts and I'm hoping to be able to do the cutting there - though that might be a bit overkill, for such a simple task our new jigsaw would do, too.

What do you think - should I go for a more complicated design? Maybe mix "my" design with cold fusion or sth.?

okay, I'll do, just tell me why? I understand why you should do it when cutting that stuff - but when applying it to the fibreglass...? Btw. I'm done with that I think.

Well, that would've been a pretty big mold... I thought this way it would be easier. We'll see ^^
I thought about using some kind of 2-component-putty and sanding paper - but where to get smooth sanding paper? Finest I can find is 600, I read about people using 2000 grit


Until the next update - might need some time, I need putty, plexi & aluminium - none of them is cheap
Currently I'm trying my luck at soldering microprocessors, want to build a usb lcd but I can't get the in-system-programmer to work, already build two, I'm starting to believe that my microprocessors are defect

Mr. Wonko

 

you can get wet & dry sandpaper (all grits) and bondo ("putty") from Praktiker,OBI, Hagebaumarkt or from local auto parts stores like Cosmos or A.T.U.
real cheap alu is almost impossible.........
I order alu here : metallshop24

I'll be watching your progress......... *Subscribed*


Alan

 

Why protect the eyes... Cuz these are some really potent chemicals! The 3 times I've gotten a drop in the eye, I was able to take about 2 steps before the pain was so bad I couldn't see out of either eye, and even after it was thoroughly rinsed out it stil hurt for the whole day! The hardening agent is the worst! I haven't experienced that yet, but i here it can melt a contact lense to your eyeball.... Getting a drop on your skin will cause a blister after just a few minutes of exposure, and it takes a long time to heal! That I have done....

Moulds can be huge! For years I stood inside a mould the size of a Winnebego, and sprayed fiberglass around myself... Those were windmill housings, now i stand outside a mould thats 4 meters wide and 9 meters long.
What you could use for a mould for the side panels, is a sheet of window glass! perfectly smooth! Credit to derbaum for that idea, I saw him doing it on his "carbon fever" project and he got amazing results.
Keep up the good work!

 

Last update 4 months ago?!?
As you see I tend to pause working if I encounter problems... kind of.
But now I'm back on it, I've decided to redo the whole thing. As you know my first attempt didn't turn out that well and I think fixing it would take longer than a redo.

I'll therefore cut this out of aluminium as a mold:

This will be done tomorrow. I'm thinking about a little addition/change in the design:


What do you think about this?

It's a pretty big hole... I've got a 120mm fan to put in there but that hole is looking a bit weird...

Another idea:
+
Imagine the grille would be in the coloured position. I like this version more, it doesn't look that out of place and is easier to build.
Would there be enough airflow?
Do you like the look?
Any other ideas?

And the top window will probably be gone... that's not too bad imo though it was something which made the case quite unique.

I want to have the basic design done within 3 weeks as I'm hosting a small LAN (around 8 people) on 18th of July to celebrate my birthday (in 2 weeks) and the beginning of the holidays. I also want to apply for Games Convention Casemod Masters with this case, I'll have to hand in some pics at last at 27th of July. It doesn't have to be finished by then though, I have time to finish it until mid-august. If I'm selected^^

stay tuned
Mr. Wonko

 

a new beginning

Good evening,

as promised I continued working.

First I took my nice lil' alu sheet outside:


Is it to soon to post temps? I don't think so...

34°C! I must be insane to work outside! Well, the 2,5m * 1,25m sheet doesn't fit into our basement that well^^ I survived

I began to draw the layout onto the sheet, a long time not realizing it doesn't exactly fit:

but nevermind that, it's gonna work anyway I'm sure.

Once I had taken out my (er... I mean "our") new jigsaw the sawing could begin. I don't think I need to show you that... Here's one of the results:

Some of that leftover alu will be used for the side panels.

And here's the other result:


I continued to cut it out, this time I even got a picture for ya!


And this is what I came up with:


I then bent it - first I tried it on my own, merely worked, then I found this guide and it became easier

It was still pretty hard to bend though... Later my father had an Idea which I developed a little further: (test piece)

This is how it was done:

Pretty cutting disk consuming


And dangerous!
Amongst others it broke here:

But that's why we invented tape!


The weather wasn't suitable for working with fibreglass outside so I thought about how to get a mobo-tray... Ah, here's my victim: my first casemod. It was basically just kind of throwing all tutorials on the internet together

I removed the rivets:

And got this

and this


Later I started filling the mold

I'm actually using vinyl examination gloves for applying the resin, they are cheaper than brushes, I can't get the resin out of the brushes so I prefer it this way

I still want to use the old wooden frame so I "disassembled" the old case. I was surprised how easy that was, with some force I could tear the fibreglass apart.


This is what it will look like:


Lil' problem: It's not long enough! Why is that?!?


Well, we'll see what the result is going to be like


Until the following update!

Mr. Wonko

 

already triple-post... well, what choice do I have without any replies?
maybe the thread is to image-heavy... do me a favor and fill the first page with comments so the next update can be on page 2

first of all: I received a package!


My new motherboard arrived A Gigabyte EP3-DS3, has everything I need: pcie, 4x ddr2, socket 775
I can't use it yet as I got a BTX case right now, but this build is going to be ATX so this was necessary. Plus 2 of my 4 ram slots on my current mobo are defect.

Remember the image from the last update?

it seemed to short. Well, after measuring it turned out that actually the wooden frame is too long.

I have no Idea why this is the case, but I didn't really trust that frame anyway. It seems so weak.
I decided to redo it with alu and screws and nuts. Didn't want to buy L-Shape-Alu though, instead made it my self.
At first I wanted to make one piece for each side and then use 4 more pieces to join the 2 sides. Unfortunately I cut wrong

Well, now I have 2 pieces per side, that's not that bad.
The screws in the end are going to vanish behind the fibreglass, invisible for normal persons. Just on the bottom of the front 2 nuts will be visible which hold the fibreglass in place. And somehow I have to hold it at some other places, I don't know how yet...
Well, I'll worry about that once the time comes, first I bent the frame.



Somehow images are lacking now... must've forgot to take some.
Using the jigsaw I sawed the parts for the sides from alu and plexi.
I then sanded the edges (first used a band sander and for the finish my hand - up to 600 grit wet and then steel wool, I can't find sanding paper smoother than 600 no matter where I look... maybe you just don't need it and therefore it's not sold )

Afterwards I drilled some holes.


Then I tried to deteach the fibreglass from the mold - that was a lot of work. I should've put something in the mold prior to filling it, something which makes it less sticky. Butter?

and I got my first minor wound. I'm progressing

right now the frame is looking like this:


and the whole thing looks like this:


the fibreglass still has some imperfections, I'll have to fix those... maybe mixing putty with resin, I'll do a test later.


and yesterday I applied to the GCCM - Games Convention Casemod Masters with this case - by the 1st of August I'll know whether I have to finish this case until the GC or not

 

When i've made molds and casts, albeit not with fiberglass a little washing up liquid solution was used as a releasing agent. Though we have plenty of seasoned fiber glass workers who can recommend something i'm sure. I like the design, mod on