Scratch Build – In Progress Project: Big Loud Server

Looks like SketchUp IIRC it can be downloaded for free - just do a quick search with $favorite_searchengine. There's also a parts-database for SketchUp; I forgot the URL though

 

SketchUp Components Collection
http://scc.jazzle.co.uk/

 

Frame/Motherboard Tray
I finally gutted my current case for the motherboard tray and I/O plate.


To get a better fit I cut about 120mm off the front of the motherboard tray.

In its original case the way the I/O plate connected to the tray was crap so I joined them with 2 rivets through the base of the I/O plate.

The motherboard tray is then connected to the back of the frame with 3 rivets.

The front of the motherboard tray is then riveted via 2 L brackets to a L rail upright.



Back Panel
The holes to fix the back panel to the frame were drill in an identical way to the front panel. The 2 PSU's will be supported by the back panel. To cut the holes for these I printed templates from Sketchup and cut a test in a piece of plywood before cutting the chequerplate panel. I got a little frustrated by the dremel being generally crap so i didn't take many pics of this.




Once the PSU holes were cut I reattached the back panel and traced around the I/O plate. I then drilled guide holes in each corner then started cutting this with the dremel but it was going crap so I switched to the jigsaw to finish it.

 

Just on a side note do people prefer the clickable thumbnail photos or embedded 800X600 images?

 

clickable thumbnails but if it involves more work there is nothing wrong with 800x600 images

 

I personally prefer the 800x600 so i can scroll through, and not have to decide if each thumbnail is interesting enough to click on...

 

I too like 800x600 better. Simply less work.

 

Edging

The next stage of the project is the edging around all edges of the case. The edging is made from 25mm x 1.4 mm L rail aluminium. The idea is to cover the rough cut edges of the checkerplate, cover the mounting holes through the checkerplate thus I don’t need to counter sink the screws and to hold on the side panels while allowing them to easily slide on and off.



I used 3mm thick off cuts of aluminium from the frame as spacers then clamped the edging piece of aluminium to the frame, marked the original mounting holes on to the edging and then drilled it on a drill press.
The same process is repeated for all sides.





The side panels have their sticky points but they more or less slide on and off with ease.


Because the rear I/O plate was riveted to the inner most edge of the frame i had to put in spaces to allow it to be bolted to the back panel. The spacers are made from 2 lengths of 20mm x 3mm aluminum flat bar which are glued together with araldite, then drilled and screwed on with 1/8" x 12mm screws and nuts.

That’s pretty much all of the construction work done. There is a little bit of wiring plus just a general clean of all the crap on the case before I can start to put components in it.

 

Storage

So how many Tera bytes will this baby hold

 

Awesome project, but in this picture...



Won't the angled brace at the top of the HDD rack get in the way of inserting and removing the top-most HDD? Unless you're hanging the HDDs from the underside, in which case you'll have the same problem on the bottom with the bottom angled support.

Although it could just be the angle of the picture and the clearance is fine.

 

The angle of the picture doesnt help but yes it is a tight fit but for the number of times I'll be taking the drive out it isnt a big issue.

 

Looks nice and tough, good work, yeah an if it does prove to be a problem, you could always modify the angle brace... it would look kidna cool if the sliding panels were made of rusted metal. BUt i figure thats not the look your going for.

 

Wiring



http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n270/323987025/Server%20Case/IMG_5863.jpg[/imgl]
[img]http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n270/323987025/Server%20Case/IMG_5868.jpg
the wiring for the front four 120mm fans connects via a 12 pin connector. Wiring for this runs along the base of the case to the fan controller at the back.


Due to the lack of a windows appearance was unimportant so adhesive mounts and cable ties will do to secure everything.

Once the panels slide on they are secured but a piece of L rail edging screwed on in two places.

 

seeing all the intake fans, how are you planning to get all that air out? I believe that you want a way to get all the air coming in to go out at the same rate of exchange to increase cooling efficiency. If i am not correct however please correct me.
BTW sweet case, the diamond plating looks awesome.

 

i saw a picture in the modding section that this mod is compleated...
where are them missing updates?

 

Air will always come in and go out at the same rate, no matter what your fan confiiguration is. Ideally, you want your input CFM to exceed the exhaust CFM -it's called 'positive pressure', and the theory behind it is quite simple: If you are forcing more air into a case than you are pulling out of it, then all the air entering the case is being forced (by your intake fans). Your exhaust fans expel some of the air, and the rest escapes through holes / vents in the case. The air pressure inside the case is always greater than that outside, but that does not mean that air is leaving the case slower than it is entering, which only happens for a few seconds after the fans are turned on and the pressure inside the case stabilises. Anyway, the upshot of all this is that if you put filters on your fans, there's no way dust can get into your case.
The thing you are getting at, is that there may be too much positive pressure, causing excessive air pressure inside the case, as it gets trapped and does not have many places to escape from. This is never usually a problem, and usually only results in increased noise. Judging by the name of this project, that shouldn't be a problem

 

I have been following this mod and i must say this looks like a great mod. i love the diamond plate, and the air cooling