Project AquaLight - updated [23-2-2007] FINISHED!!!

tkdwarrior, i agree with u the case would look somewhat busy with all those cuts so for now i canceled the last design.

and now for today's update

i worked mostly on the front panel today, mostly cosmetic stuff. other than that i removed the paint from the right side panel as well as from the top of the case


and now for the front panel. today i concentrated on the 2 things that disturbed me the most. the not-so-perfect blowhole shape and the connection between the blowhole ring and the panel itself. i took some bondo and threw it around the ring. but how to make it perfectly rounded and smooth. i took a small metal ball and smoother the bondo with it. and the result...


next was the blowhole itself. i tried sanding it to the perfect shape and failed. so i stuck a small plastic bucket in it


and the closeup on the crack i had to fill to make it perfect


mixed some epoxy with microbaloons and heated it in a glass of hot water (heating up the epoxy makes it more liquid)


then i molded the compound in the crack

and the closeup


after the epoxy cured i hammered the bucket out... and the result:
on the internal side


and the front


perfect round blowhole with supersmooth finish

other than that i applied a thin player of filler on the entire panel to cover all the pinholes left after all the fiberglass work... ill sand it tomorrow. the work on the front panel is far from being done

 

Very nice work, looks like you know what youre doing with chemicals and i think that front looks amazing

 

Love the blowhole and bondo skills!!!
Can't wait till next update

 

Love the finish on the blowhole.
Can't wait to see the front panel painted.

 

hehe thanks guys glad u like it

a small update for today, hopefully ill continue working on the project tomorrow. im kinda stuck right now due to the lack of parts and plexi

so today i drilled the holes in the main window plexi including the fan hole. i then sanded the hole with 360 to 600 grid sandpaper





its been 3 weeks since i ordered my stuff at blackdog-pcs.com and they still havent answered me nor sent me the invoice (which they promise to send within 24h after the payment is complete)

i got 2 friends working at the plexi industry and they should get me some samples i can choose from before i move on and make the actual parts. a guy at our israeli modding website suggested to make a plexi cover for the mobo and im still thinking about it. maybe CNCing it cause i already have some ideas regarding that cover. im a bit scared of the temps tho as my system is under OC

 

is that aqua-blue-colored plexi, or just blank plexi with blue protection plastic on it?
I like the color of it...

If it's just transparent plexi with blue plastic, please try to get plexi in that color
Or just one teint darker. in my opinion it looks very nice next to that RAL 6063 you were going to use

 

its clear. the color comes from the protection cover. there will be no need in changing it cause the internal lighting will give it a blueish effect

 

The window looks good, what are you attaching it with bolts i assume, from the holes.
Allen bolts? or a more rounded or flat head ?

 

i was expecting that question hehe

thats the bolts im gonna use



ill try to get plexi in the actual color for the window, just need to find some time. im overloaded with work lately

 

Nice bolts and i like the use of the nylocks as well, i'm using them on my hdd cage/

 

Well since the project is somewhat on hold till i get the plexi (might take a few days) i decided to assemble the case and take a look at what i got so far, look for possible mistakes and things to improve

Here are some teaser pics to give you a basic idea of where this case is heading












i found some minor problems which are easy to fix generally...

1. the front bezel got twisted a bit i guess at the stage where the fiberglass was curing. nothing too serious, you can see the fit between the front and the side panel isnt perfect, but for now i still havent mounted the front with screws i just slided it there so once it will be screwed the fit will be perfect

2. the drives cage is sitting really close to the top, something that will be disturbing the plexi which will be seating underneath. nothing some cutting discs cant solve

you can see a piece of blue plexi i put in 1 of the drive slots. was just testing some things out. im thinking to cover the front panel with blue plexi (doesnt have to be this exact color, ill check some other colors once ill get to the plexi shop

thats it for now meanwhile im just playing with some pieces i got at work (cutting, drilling, sanding, bending and other kinds of tortures you can think of)

 

even though it's raw and still needs work it looks great man. cant wait to see your progress. keep it up

 

sorry for not updating daily like i used to. im simply stuck without the plexi. meanwhile i decided to work on some other things. since i plan to stealth both of the drives im gonna put in this rig i had to think of some way to replace the original open/close buttons since i didnt like the ordinary push-the-stealthing-panel-to-open-the-drive method. instead i decided to place the microswitches next to the drives. ill let the pics do the talking from here

first i made the mounting plate for the microswitches from glassepoxy (kinda like the stuff all the PCBs are made from

this is after cutting the piece and glueing the switches in place with some CA glue


and the front


i molded some epoxy around it so they wont move


then i moved on to the front bezel

drilled holes for the buttons


and on the back


i used a fiberglass rod to make the buttons


secured it in the vertical drill


then as the drill is spinning i pushed a file against it to get the desired shape

and the finished button


in place


both buttons finished


this is just a little something i thought about. if ill go on with this concept ill prolly make the plexi ring smaller


btw i got the ideas for both the buttons and the plexi ring from here:

http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?t=120090

indeed a great idea and i hope the guy doesnt mind im using his methods

 

i'd go for a really narrow ring or plexi and alu surrounding that, like a bulgin switch. Failing that just a plain, small plexi ring colourmatched to the rest of the stuff youre using.

 

lol nipples...

Looks better without the plexi rings IMO.

 

lol i have seen purple nipples, but never blue ahha
(dont ask it was cold and spur of the moment with two other girls)

 

hey look belial is a lemming.
Well that is i'm following the previous comments.
Methinks it looks better either without the surround or even flush mounted rather than having the buttons stick out that far.
With the sidepanel, front and top on it really does look better and i think i get more of an idea of the overall style your going for.
EIther way can't wait to see it painted.
-Belial

Sorry if i dont make sense lots of alcohol, programming and lack of sleep causes many things.

 

hmm thanks for the comments

sorry i forgot to mention those are just dummy buttons. the actual concept will remain the same but im planning to make the buttons from 6mm plexi rod and illuminate it with leds.

tkdwarrior: of course i can do a narrower ring, dont see any reason why i should fail accomplishing that

belial669: i agree they do stick out a bit too far but once again this is only an experiment i can assure you the final result will look much better

 

Ah lit up flushmount led buttons now i like the sound of that.

 

haha i meant like if you dont go one way then use that one etc. but all's well.

question: frosted plexi?