Project - BioPhreak **Day 7 Posted - Front Panel Revised**

i use my main rig as server. it can handle it with ease

 

Now that's a beutiful and interesting modding, that most of us can do. Go to Home Depot, get some tools, go home, incorporate our ideas on steel and PC parts.... Lovely

Not one of crazy impossible SuperHero mods... at least not yet.

Not that I don't like SuperHero mods, it's just I can't relate to those mods as they are too difficult to make. =)

 

I agree with Cheap Mod Wannabe, it's nothing crazy, pretty darn simple, but I think it came out better than I expected. A lot cleaner to.

I bought a hitch pin clip for the side of the cover retention bar, and it's working much better than the cotter pin did. I'll still leave one of the cotter pins on one side though, and use the hitch pin clip on the side that will be accessible.

I also bought a new camera today! Got myself a Kodak CX7330 digi cam. It was marked at $149.99 manager's special, at CompUSA, but when she rang it up it came up as $99.99. Not only did it ring up lower, but I also had $30 in CompUSA gift cards from my b-day that helped pay for it. Not to bad for a $74 camera, and it's better than what I was using before.

 

Day 6 Begins

Now that I have my own good digital camera, it makes modding even more enjoyable.

Here's the hitch pin clip I bought for the retention rod:


And it installed:



Now onto the big stuff. I was able to get the front panel done to day, for the most part. It came out pretty close to what I wanted to!

Here's a picture of a sheet of the perforated metal I bought. I have three of these sheets, all of them measuring 16"x24", which cost me $27 ($5 of it was labor to cut it from a larger sheet).


1/8" holes all over, and a nice clean machine cut where they cut it for me.



Every day of this project has been a Home Depot day. Which isn't bad though, it gives me a good excuse to get out of the house and see some of my friends while I'm out. This time I bought some 8-32 1" stainless steel machine bolts, some 8-32 quick nuts (which I like to call quick clips), and some 1.5" double hole 90 degree angle brackets.


Some shots of one of the bolts. Yes, they do have a hex head.




And one of the brackets.

 

Whenever I plan on using the Dremel a lot like on this day, I always prepare the other two mandrels with cutting wheels. That way when one grinds down, I just pop it out, mandrel and all, and install the other one. Back in business in about 10 seconds.


The file which I've used since my first mod (window mod on a case just like this) four years ago, still works wonders on steel.


And of coarse my #2 favorite (#1 is my dad's Milwaukee 18V drill) tool in my dad's workshop, his pair of Quick-Grip clamps. I'll get myself a pair of these next time I mod, unless I get them for Christmas of coarse.
[/IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a115/haxor417/Project_Phreak/Day6/Picture027.jpg[/IMG]

20 minutes later, I get this.



Now that the panel is cut, I needed to find out how to secure it to the case. Here's what I decided to do first:


Speed clips on the angle brackets, and then the bolt going through with the panel on the outside of them.





I decided not to long after taking those pix, that I really didn't want the speed clips so far up on the bracket, so that's why it's lower in these next pictures.

I riveted the bracket to the case:





Then I experimented with ideas again and decided it wasn't going to come out right with the panel on the outside of the brackets, so I moved the panel to the inside.

 

However, that still wouldn't work, as it wouldn't really SECURE the panel to the case in any way. So instead, I put the clips around the edge of the panel, instead of the brackets. For them to line up with the holes in the brackets, I had to cut a notch out of the panels where the clip would sit.




So that was the bottom. Next was securing it at the top of the case.

Here's what i did for the top:


They had to be in the middle, otherwise the bolts would run straight into the drawer of the CD drive on the left side.


I also had to cut the bolts, which wasn't easy (them being stainless steel), because they would run into the PSU if I hadn't.


Here's an okay shot of how the speed clips are on the panel.



And the mounting scheme complete:





And a few early candy shots:

 

End of Day 6

Now to wire up that vandal switch! To hold it in place, I used one of my dad's steel clamps. The switch face is slightly smaller than the body bolt, so I didn't have to worry to much about trashing the switch unless I wasn't paying attention.


Here it is with the switch wired up:


And both the switch and LED:



I then twisted both pairs of wires together by hand, and it gave me a very nice factory look.





It's actually a lot more green than it is in this photo. For some reason, I've had to much luck photographing LED light, except for the LED fans for this case.



Now to test how it's going to look with the lights off and the computer on:





And then with the lights on:





The bottom front fan grill isn't the one I'm going to keep for this project. It's just one I used for reference to check for clearance with the front panel. I should have one more black matching grill on Monday.

A friend recommended I just brush the case panels, then seal them with some type of clear coat or something. His father works with a lot of different metals and seals a lot of steel against weathering and moisture, so I'll have to wait for a reply about that. I think a brushed steel look would be pretty sweet though.

I'm considering putting a washer behind the switch where it sits on the panel, as the hole seems like it's going to eat the switch. But this idea will remain in consideration for a bit longer I think.

 

Nicely thought out and executed.

A few nits to pick...
Why are you using fan grills behind the mesh panel at all?
Have you tried it without them?
If the mesh opened like a door I could see the point, but since it doesn't, the effect seems weird to me.

About the front panel...
Mightn't it be possible to make another mesh panel with the edges folded over 90 degrees?
It looks like there is clearance on all three sides for it to lay underneath your pivoted clamshell.
This would give you a much more finished transition from the bezel area to the panel skin.

She's very nice as is though.

 

When lights are out and the LED fans are on, you can see the biohazard grills through the mesh pretty clearly. Putting them beneath the grill gives it that "unsuspecting stranger" look.

And you know what? folding the mesh 90 degrees over the edges was my original idea, and I thank you for reminding me about it! I can't believe I finished this panel without even having it cross my mind. I've got more than enough mesh left over to cut a new panel, which I might do today to try it out and see if I like the look.

Which reminds me of one other thing I was going to post. How should I go about bending this sheet metal?

 

mmm...

very nice project,
but,

I really wouldn't do THAT !

a few times i connected the molex connector upside down to my Seagate, and it died already 3 times because of that..
so i don't want to imagine 220...

 

It's a female connector, he shouldn't have that problem.

 

and also a male

 

AWesome job so far on your mod, and were those, ISA slots i saw on that motherboard?!

 

First off nice work on the case conversion.


Im Forced to agree with them what you have done with the AC power is VERY dangerous . An arrangement like this will start a fire. Im in Electronics at college and have started a few PSU fires so this is important.

The plastic and metal in the Molex connector is NOT designed for 10A. Its not rated safely for that Voltage or current. Also the AC is not protected….and you want to use a lot more heat shrink then that. Most of it I is not rated for AC so you need to triple up

What you could do is re attach you rear plug housing to the inner side of the PSU and bring a Regulated Power cable to the case….

1. (Wall) ----Cord----Plug (EXACTLY AS YOU HAVE IT THERE)
2. (on case back)Plug housing-(heat shrink and Solder)----Cord----Plug
3. plug housing (on PSU) power from plug to PSU board

two cords and two plugs the regualr cord is a regualr cord and the other one is attached to the your current case plug on the back of the PC. The difference (from waht you have) is from that plug attach part of another cord to go form the back plug to another plug on the PSU on the inside of the PC.

So in short- replace the inner cable with a FULLY sheathed Cord and the Molex with another Regular plug assembly

(I really need to get a Pic Host - Can ano one help me with that?)



This will also get rid of you splices and make everything safer.

 

Here's what I did for another project of mine about a year ago. This is the fan PSU for my Logitech Z-680's speaker amp. The amp runs really hot, so I rigged an old Macintosh LC power supply to power two 80mm Panaflo low speed/noise fans to cool it down. This is how I've had it setup for about a year, without any problems at all.

This is from the power supply. This is the main 110V AC line.







Which then lead up to a switch on my desktop that I can easilly turn the fans on and off with. This is a switch rated for 6A at 125V or 4A at 250V.

 

just becase it works does not mean it is safe!
(aka not going to kill you)
….I work for a company that does Electrical Equipment approval and what you are doing is not very safe. A regular power cord has Insulated Live Insulated neutral Ground and all of that is then Re insulated for ruggedness and safety. Im not knocking you work, they are really go ideas, and im not yelling at you. I just don’t want you to burn you house down. A 12V DC Molex are not rated for 120VAC current.

Im a big fan of desk integration but look at you Second and third Pics (just above), you have exposed AC conductors. Neutral or Hot it doesn’t matter Exposed AC can kill you.

The smaller sizes of Hobby shirk wrap also are not approve protection you sould and a few more layers of it, iv had AC arc throgh 1 layer of that stuff

I guess the appropriate question is - Do you like life??

 

Would it be possible to link to me a connector and pins that are rated for 120V AC? I'm in the US, and I've got a radio shack and radar electric near by to pick up what I need. Radar specializes in non-hobby electronic parts and equipment.

From salvaging parts of dozens of electronic equipment over the years, I've recieved two EMI filters, which also came from power supplies. Perhaps using one of these on the back of the case would be safer. Then do as you said and triple up the shrink tubing where the wires are soldered to the leads.





EDIT: One thing I'm not to clear about is WHERE you don't think I have enough shrink tubing. Is it on the rear power cord connector, or the molex connectors? When I pulled the rear connector out of the PSU, it was as bare as it was when I took the first pix of it.

 

The plastic connector you used on Day 3 is good (but the ther end is attached to your PSU board). ......

Also on the same day when you heat shrink the little metal bits from the same connector. There is only 1 layer of H/S on the Solder connections...somthing like that sould have 2 or 3 and then a larger on to hold them together. The entrie point of this is that 1 layer of H/S is thinner then the original wire sheath. so a few more layers will make it thinker then before and wont case a fire.

In short ALL AC connection More H/S

(wall)-->(Regular Cord)> >(Plug on case)H/S(Choped power cord-wall end removed)> >(Plug on PSU)

verry crude but simple


The same as what you have except replace the Case to PSU wire with a power cord and replace the molex with a second AC plug.

 

The only problem with your idea is that there is no room in the PSU to move the connector anywhere else, except for back where it was before. It's far to crowded to do any of that. Any ideas or links to a 120V 10A connector pair I can use?

I just got done bending and cutting the new front panel, and I must say, it looks VERY nice compared to before. I haven't yet put the power switch back on it, but I'll do that and stealth the optical drive tomorrow or Wednesday. I'll have more pix up tonight.

 

Day 7 - New Front Panel Design

Okay, I'm sure most of you actually read what clocker posted. His question about why I didn't bend the sheet metal over the edges. I was originally planning this, but for some reason it hadn't popped into my mind until he posted this and it reminded me. So for day 7, I give myself 2 hours and I redo the front panel. But trust me, it was worth the extra work.

I got tired of waiting to buy a $23 sheet metal break from Harbor Freight, so I took my skills to a workbench, clamps, wood and a rubber mallet. It took time to get it done, but it all worked out well in the end.

It's got a 2x4, but it's a piece of wood my dad had lying around left over from a past project. For what I'm doing, it'll be perfect:


Clamp it down real nice and straight.



Now for bending it, I didn't want to use my hands, or it'd be to rounded of a bend, not having pressure as close as possible to the bending point. So I cut this long stick of wood...


with one of my favorite tools in my dad's workshop.


And got this 16" long square piece of wood.


That I'll be hitting with this rubber mallet.



This particular bend took me about 40 minutes to do, but I think it was due to not having the clamps tight enough and the sheet metal kept slipping. It was also my first time ever bending sheet metal to such a sharp angle.



an hour and 15 minutes later, I get this:







From this view, you can see how fine of a bend it really is. It's the best I could do without a sheet metal break, but it's perfect for this project.



And I received the third black biohazard fan grill in the mail yesterday, which I install today while I had the front of the case accessible.