Project: 6ig-83457 *¡*TONS of Pictures*!* -=Updated 12-11-05=-

Update 7-15-05

Well its Friday, a week later than I thought but its Friday none the less. Anyway it is time for another,
Update 7-15-05
Well I finished up modding that funny little box that I found. Now here is what the back of the drives will look like:

I am thinking of modding a fan in to the back of this thing so there will be some airflow over my HDDs.

I decided to test out my skills on a scrap of plexi before I started on the real thing.


Then things got a bit carried away....


So...after a week of 5 min work intervals and working all day on Saturday and July 4th, I managed to finish al of the hard work.


After tons of this....


I was finally ready for this....


And this...


Time for this!!!


After I made sure that both of those fit I cut off what didn't need to stay...


Sanded the edges down and cleaned it up:


Made sure that they fit in place just right:


And boom! It’s done!!

Ill gets the lighting together in a few so stick around....

Then I found this one day when I was at CompUSA for my work....

the guy that I was with bought it because he wanted one for his home and so after I purchased what I needed to for my work he checked out and the receipt printer printed out 3 REBATES!! 30+40+10=$80 off of a 127.00 drive (after tax). When we got in the car I sat there for a bit then ran right back in to the store and got one for myself

Since I had to rotate the PSU to make the lumin panels fit I had to make a new backplane and vent for the thing so it didn't look retarded:


I had to dust all of the plastic and metal from my soldering iron for this job:


Then I fitted the PSU with one of these:

It is for controlling the UPS, secondary PSU, secondary PSU power, power from the main PSU back in for the fans and power from the UPS to the outlets on the top of the case for the monitor.

I thought this was kind of funny, before:


After:


Well its time for me to get back to work...more in a few....

 

nice

this looks really promising

love those lumin panels!

nice hdd!

 

OK i know it has been a while since i have done anything with this mod and honestly i wish i could work on it every day. here is the low down on some things that are holding me back. 1 i am now working 50-60 hour weeks because my supervisor quit and now i have twice the work load. it has been about 90 degrees Fahrenheit and honestly i just don't have the energy. not to worry though i do work on it here and there when i can get the energy to do so. also i want to have a LAN party soon just because i need to fill that frag void in my life . sorry for the bum news but this thing will be finished soon!!

 

the side panel looks awesome.

Subscribed

 

what the! it looks good! how many hours/days did you work for your side panel? lol.

 

the hardest part was the design. i drew that out using a permanent marker which took about 4-5 hours and the dremel work took about 7 hours to complete which includes peeling off all the protective film. i would highly recommend to anyone doing that much dremel work to get yourself a nice pair of studio headphones and a source of music because that makes the job go a lot faster and your ears ring a lot less . BTW it looks like i might actually get to work on my case today. i will try to have an update later tonight, until then MOD ON!!

[EDIT]i just cant spell today[/EDIT]

 

looks all OK. Actually quite much the same as my NAAC-project Paint stripped off and old server..

I'm just a bit jealous since paint left your case so easily mine had fugly layer of something under it, which needed to be sanded away.

And err what else could I say.. U have nice cat

 

well friends it has been a while since i have posted any progress on this case. while my spare time is limited and my energies even more so these updates will come none the less. even if it means a little more time in-between.

Update 8-13-05
well this update is one step closer to that goal of mine...to be able to finally use my new gaming computer. here is what went down while you were out.

aside from the local electronics store begging me for a job, which by the way i might take them up on, i managed to purchase only the essentials; well not really. anyhow i did manage to buy some cool stuff while i was there.

while i was at the store i had a realization why the heck don't i include in this case a cool security system like i did in my 4mm0-83457? so after two seconds of a bitter internal struggle i caved and started to gather up the necesary parts:


CDROM Switches


Dual-Color LED


Proto-Boards


Relay


Lock Switch


Closed


Open(check out the crazy cut on this key, i have never seen anything like that)


and one of the coolest momentary switches i have ever seen...definately a powerswitch.

basically this will operate in the same manner as the 4mm0-83457 except more efficiant and with some new features. with the computer off and the switch in the off position the switches are useless. with the computer off and the key in the on position the buttons are enabled. with the computer on and the keysin the off position a set of USB plugs will be disabled as well as the buttons. why you ask? because i can...

i also decided to try something new with this computer that i have never done before....all sata drives. now i know that this might not be something new to you all but this is something that is new to me and i am needless to say excited.


although with the good news there is some bad....when i opened my case this afternoon to start work the corner weld broke so i had to ever so carefully close the case and re-weld it back together. with all the work i put in to that corner this afternoon i would be suprised to see any cracking...


here is something else that i have worked on in my previous posts was the simple yet complicated task of finding a home for my HDDs. now because of my lack in will power i now have two HDDs to mount which is a good thing and a bad thing. its good because i got more space to work with for literally nothing. the bad thing is now i have to mount two drives somewhere without taking up much room. at that moment i looked over and saw my answer sitting there on the work bench. all in all it was a bear trying to get it to fit just right but now that is is done i think it looks pretty good.



besides now i have a crystalfontz LCD to play with

 

yeah i hit enter...oh well. on with the update....

i also constructed the rest of the top panel which i will use for power input and battery backup output. also there are two USB plugs which i will attach to the security system so they can be disabled.




here is a shroud i am working on to hide those nasty cables.


MrBurritoMan -out

 

no comments or suggestions? i was hoping to hear what you guys think about what i have done and plan to do...

BTW here is a list of what still needs to be done on this project
• front security panel

a. Test Security Scheme on bead board
b. Salvage Wall Adaptor for use in powering circuit.​

• lumin panels

a. Power
b. Control Circuitry ​

• Plasma ball

a. Mounting
b. Power
c. Control Circuitry​

• Cable management

a. Power & Data Cable Sheathing with tubing​

• Cathode lighting

a. Power
b. Mounting
c. Placement
d. Control Circuitry​

• SATA adaptor size problem

a. Re-assessment of need for adaptor

1. If needed then shroud will be implemented​

b. If not needed then IDE Cables on DVDROM will be used ​

• Top panel shroud

a. Placement
b. Mounting
c. Holes for Cable​

• Front panel buttons and lights

a. Re-Design of Existing PCB or fabrication of replacement
b. Cabling
c. Shroud​

• Drive stealth

a. Shift Drives Back
b. Design Grill
c. Painting
d. Mounting​

• Crystalfontz LCD

a. Power
b. Control Cable ​

• Remote IR module

a. Logic adaptor Placement
b. Control Cable
c. Software​

• PSU umbilical cord

a. Routing of Functions to their respective destinations and origins
b. Cable Sheathing
c. Testing of electrical, UPS, and PSU​

• Distressed paint job

a. Old Steel Looking Equipment with rusted iron accents
b. Testing on Palates or old PSUs​

• HDD Cooling

a. Air to be passed over HDDS using fans salvaged from busted PSUs
b. Intake to be placed on rear shroud for drives
c. Positive airflow to protrude out of drive stealth mod​

i have another change planned as well and i hope you guys will like it because I'm excited, lets just say that i hope ebay will be good to me in the next 5 days and leave it at that for now.

sorry no progress for today...i woke up at noon and it was soooo bloody hot i didn't feel like doing anything out in my oven of a garage so i sat in front of a fan playing video games. i do however have some motivation to get this done because i have a LAN party coming up in my area and anyone interested in attending from this forum is welcome to attend. if there is any interest posted we will gladly accommodate any that want in on the fun. later for now, this post is getting too long

[EDIT]i knoe i cant spell [/edit]

 

nt]all I have to say is that I have copied this thread in to three forums and only one has shown activity in the last four months and because of it I will update the other two just for the heck of it.[/rant]

Sorry to those of you who have seen this thread for the first time.
Well now that's out of the way on to the long awaited...

Update 12-11-05

New Stuff
Two new additions for the 6ig-83457.
I decided that since I will have some serious processor through put I might as well take advantage of it and get a nice graphics card. Found this one on eBay for a steal of a deal.

Think it is any good?


Oh and since I am going to have a nice video card I figured what the heck, why not the monitor too. So here is my new 21" dell monitor. Yeah I know dell...bla bla bla. It’s still a nice monitor even if it is a dell.

On to some actual modding...

shroud modification

For the new video card to fit I had to extend the shroud by an inch and a half. Other than that it fit just fine. Notice the bondo? I nicked the top a bit with my angle grinder. That will invisible when I am done painting the case.


Back panel.


All set to rock.

cable sheath dilemma
I wanted my case to not resemble a computer on the inside as well as the outside so I needed to find something to sheath the cables with. This is where the black tubing that I bought comes in. I kind of wanted to go with the thick industrial electrical cable look so that plumbing tubing should do the trick.

To do this I had to find an efficient way to remove the ATX plug pins which are anything but easy. After a few hours of practice on a dead PSU I found a suitable and efficient method. First off you have to have two paper clips, hammer, tin snips, anvil of some sort, and needle nose pliers. Straighten out one end of the paper clip and bash it flat to about 1mm thickness. Take care to not make it too thin. Then with the tin snips cut off the un-even edges to make the thin part of the paper clip about 1mm thick and about 2.5-3mm wide.

Here are mine as an example.

It is recommended that you write down the pin outs of this connector on something before starting. Before you begin double check the diagram again to ensure accuracy.

Then with the two tools insert them on either side of the pin with the needle nose pliers. Make sure to go slow at first so you get the hang of it. You can mess up your pin removers with hasty movements. Push them in until they are snug. Once both removes are snug on ether side GENTLY pull on the cable on the other side it should slide out without any fuss. If it doesn't come out easily then DO NOT FORCE IT, you will damage the socket. Continue inserting the pins until it slides out easily.


Here is my connector once all the pins were removed.

Now if you don't know where they were supposed to go then you will need to find a pin-out of the atx plug using google because you cannot screw the next part up or you will fry stuff. With one of the tools GENTLY bend the small flanges on either side of the pins to ensure that they will lock in place. Make sure to not get over zealous in doing this because if you snap a flange then the socket will not seat correctly. About 10 degrees should be sufficient bendage.

Viola all done.

Now sadly enough after doing all that work my PSU started to act up. I found out that the specs on it were not true and it was under-powering my motherboard. I had to purchase another on newegg and it has been stable ever since. A note to any of you MSI motherboard owners. Your motherboards need ALOT of amperage on the 12v rail. DO NOT SCRIMP when buying a PSU. If you do then you will pay in system stability. I recommend going to the MSI forum and reading what PSUs they recommend.


Here is a glimpse at the style of the case.


Another look with the door. Of course there will be weathered effects and so forth so don't expect to look anything like this when I am done.

well on the plus side now that I had to get a new PSU I decided to look for another sheath material the stuff I had was too stiff and almost impossible to move where I wanted it.



Making all of the small bends that I needed was almost impossible. This left me with no other option but to find a new material.


Cue the new fabric shrink sheath.


This stuff is super sweet. Not only does it shrink to half its size but it is extremely flexible and it looks like old school wire insulation.


Here is an IDE cable all done up. The best part is I don’t have to remove any connectors. The shroud is big enough to handle the plugs!!

cathode tube bending

On a side note I have bent my first cathode tube and it is still functional. I might be using this method to light the strange corners of my case.

button panel

Here is where the buttons will go. I had a little problem here though. The buttons that I wanted to use would not match the current motif so I had to start over.


All cut


Installed and ready to go.

(continued)

 

(continued)
secueity circuit

Here is the first power adaptor that I wanted to use. It was originally used for the plasma ball so I figured that it should be powerful enough however I was wrong. Plugged it in a poof the fuse went out like a flash bulb.


Found this at a local electronics shop and it has so far not given me any problems.


Here is the first part of my security circuit.


And the second half.


Here are the brackets I used to install the tray for the security components.


That’s done...

front shroud
Unfortunately I didn't take these pictures during the construction so the final reveal will have to wait. For now pictures of the parts will have to do.

Inset optical drives.


Back of the optical drives.


Here is the back side of the plasma ball. The steel grating should cut down the EMF field a bit.




Tray covers


A shroud to cover up the cracks and hold the pieces in place.




Connections for the eject function.


Light panel functionality and wiring completed.


All cut out.


Front is all done (as far as the metal work is concerned).

second UPS (yes I said second)
As my particular part of the world is frequented with brown outs and lightening I quickly found out that the UPS that I was using would not be sufficient. This is what lead me to purchase and install an APC 1000VA on to my case. This is the second and as far as I am concerned winning design. The first compartment that I was going to use didn't look that right and it had some design problems.


Notice all the JB weld around the edge? That is just for crack filler. The real strength is coming from rivets. The jb weld will be cleaned up later in this thread.


Easy wiring hole for the computer power and USB connection.


I decided that installing a fan might be in my best interest if I am going to hope for any form of longevity from this UPS.


The front lights were a bit tricky. They didn't really shine through well because there was such a gap. if I didn't have to worry about APC's warranty then I would have just wired the blasted PCB to the door however I want to be able to rip this thing out and return it if things go wrong. So...


Light channels are the answer. Yeah it looks a bit ghetto I would have to admit but it works surprisingly well. And yes I will clean this up later.
(continued)

 

(continued)

Here is the rear door. It has a fan for exhaust and a hole for the cable to exit from, that’s about it.


Here is the back end of the UPS. Nothing too exciting here, just a bunch of plugs.

fun with epoxy
Now I know that some of you are going to say hey....there is a better and cheaper way to fill those cracks; and yes for most cracks you are right. However I have found a much better way of going about things if you are looking for both strength and looks.

Enter the epoxy of choice.

[plug]this stuff comes in two flavors, quick drying (4min) and regular 24hour dry. Both are incredibly amazing to behold when used correctly and incredibly crappy when not. Now when they advertise 4min they are not kidding that stuff is non-workable in about that time depending on the surrounding environment. The 24hour stuff is also not exaggerating their dry time that stuff can take FOREVER to dry in certain conditions. I would recommend the longer dry time if you are using it on a surface that is un-even or that has spaces that you need to fill. This stuff will run every where so be prepared. I would also not recommend this for projects that you cannot clamp and keep up right because it takes about 3 hours for it to become tacky. The four min epoxy is excellent for projects where clamps cannot fit and slopes are inevitable. It will become tacky in about 4 min and completely dry in about 30min. both cost the same so I would recommend picking some up for your tool boxes. [/plug]

Below you will find my somewhat un-orthodox use for this stuff.

I am going for the welded look with out doing any welding. I cannot weald this surface because there are electronics mounted in side that I cannot remove and in addition I suck at welding.


After shot of the pic above.

This stuff was everywhere and I just slapped it on because I will clean it up with my dremel.

SHA BAM!


Looks like the perfect weld.


While I had the dremel out I decided to sand off this logo.


all smoothed out and ready for some bondo to fill the tiny cracks.


Top of the drive cage, another perfect weld...


This stuff is also perfect for filling un-wanted holes in metal. Something that bondo can't do. Bondo is great for filling those tiny scratches however it just will not bond with metal quite like this stuff.


No I didn't go nuts just wait and see. After a coat of primer all of these holes and welds will disappear.

Well that’s it folks the pic above is what my work bench looks like right now. Expect more pics and progress later this week. For now....comments if you got them.

Mr. Burrito Man -out *whew*

 

WOW, I kinda forgot about this project. Great to see your still at it. Looks like its going good. Seems like you and JBWeld are like white on rice. Coming along nicely, can't wait for the next update.