Case Mod - In Progress Water & Wood - 99% finished - photo shoot (8 Oct)

Well, I'm back from my vacation and back on day shift at work. Both factor in better to progress on this build

As I mentioned earlier...the kind folks over at Team ColdZero sent me some other special pieces....some beautifully crafted GTX 580 backplates. These things are gorgeous! Only one issue, two of the 6 screws they included were not long enough to get into the EK water block on the front. So I had to improvise.





Since these will never really be seen anyway, I was not too concerned with the aesthetics. So this should work fine, Although I could always take my sharpie to them later.




I also gave serial one more go, but these Bitspower QDC fittings are not long enough and they started leaking pretty quickly.





So I put the EK bridge back on and ditched the X-Fi for now....I'm in the market for a low profile PCIe card, any suggestions?

Moving on. I got another piece of wood to give the door another try.





I mentioned before that this is the first thing I've ever used a router on. This is the backside of the door and I created this groove to set the window into.



Then I had to trim the window to fit. I used my Jigsaw at a very low speed with a fine metal blade.



Almost there.



Next I had to figure out how I would position the LEDs for edge lighting.



Then I tried to route the front side of the window opening and my noobiness with wood-working started showing through again



So, I decided to push ahead and see what it would look like with this messed up door, I'll have to try a 3rd time later.





Next I had to figure out a way to hold the LEDs in position.



This seemed to be OK, so I tacked down the wiring.



But, on the first time fitting, the door would not shut due to the bulk of the LED brackets. So I trimmed them down a bit.



So, here is the first successful fitting......errrr......ummmm....maybe not. Dang it, put the plexi in backwards. LOL



Alright, all fixed up and lighting wired in Enjoy the photos below, this is it for today!

 

Sorry about the door again, but the overall result looks awesome! And the light doesn't seem too bright in the pictures to be distracting. excellent job and +rep!

 

stinks about the door. Routers can be finicky things to work with sometimes, and they take some getting used to. It will look great once you get it fixed.

 

It'd really help if I had a proper table to work off....or a wood shop next door LOL

Oh well, in this case....the bit was set just a hair too deep, so I cannot blame anything but me.

 

Hmmmm....

Call me crazy but I actually like the notch, it gives the door character. To the unknowing it would seem as though you designed it that way...

Kudos though on the excellent build

 

Great work,love the combination between desk and chassis. Nice cooling system on your rig.

 

very cool project, and very cool back plates powered by coldzero (portugal 4 the win )


check out my project it´s made of wood too http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?t=215392

 

Thanks guys

 

nice work, shame about the damage, but could you cut a piece of scrap to fit, and carpenter glue it in place

 

I like the design / layout of the room. A traditional Japanese style with power hidden inside.

 

you could the acrylic window to strength the door by making the sheet the size of the door.

 

I thought about that, but I'd never be happy with a patch up job, I'll just try again this week

Thanks man, this house has been wonderful. My family and I were stuffed inside a tiny apartment for the first two years we lived in this area, but we moved into this house in April, and it has been wonderful

I did consider this, but I cannot get an acrilic sheet big enough in the local HW stores. But I might redo the window one more time since I cracked it when I cut it out (see the bottom right edge in the last pic). It's not enough to bother me, but I'd like it to be crack-free

 

A couple of updates to report. First off. Based on the QDC failures I've run into, I removed them from my loop and I'm getting them all RMA'd from Koolance. But I don't think I'll be putting them back into the loop due to my theory on their failures.

Secondly, I've upgraded the PSU to a Corsair AX1200 and I'm planning to mod some BitFenix single sleeved extensions for it. I'll mod them from extensions into the actual modular plugs for the AX1200. I'll probably also cut them to custom length.

 

OK, I finally got a chance to work in a real wood shop with some proper equipment. This is the wood shop on Misawa AFB which is a two hour drive from my home.







This was the inside of the 2nd door....just to see where I left off.


I started by marking up the new plexi sheet. I wanted to redo the window because of the cracks I made sawing the first one with my jigsaw.


Then I cut it down to size with a band saw.


Then I cut the new door with a scroll saw.




Next I used the table router with a rabbit bit to create a channel to inset the plexi on the back side of the door.


A pretty decent fit.


Next I used a straight bit on the table router to create two channels flanking the window to inset the LEDs.


Then I used a roundover bit on the front side of the door around the window.


Then I very slowly and steadily used the straight bit to carve out the holes for the hinges.




Then I used some slim pieces to cover up the LEDs on the back and assist with securing the plexi.


I missed a picture here after routing the outside of the door front with an old school bit for some character. I also missed a picture of the new front panel I made for the fan control knob and the power buttons. Then I hand sanded all the pieces. The angle cut pieces are for a facade I'm building for the fans...but that will be in a future update when I finished building it.


First coat of lacquer.




Fitting the LEDs






Put the hinges on.


wire up and sleeve the LED wiring.


Wire up the new front panel.


Install everything....you'll notice two small holes above and below the fan control knob...ooops


The new window is slightly smaller because I wanted to give the door a little more strength. Still looks good IMO






What do you think?

 

perfect! I am speechless!

 

Beautiful job - Excellent wood skills.

Are you likely to pint the desk, or are you leaving it pine coloured?

 

Hey guys, I got nominated for MOTM! (thanks bit-tech!)

If you like my rig, vote for me please

 

Voted! Go OCF!

 

The door is amazing. I simply cant get enough of properly edge lit perspex/acrylic. I'll be watching that video you posted at least 100 times to make sure I can achieve something half as awesome as you got.

PS - I might just have to steal those GPU backplates for my build as well

 

Thanks Archer