Scratch Build – In Progress Project: Blue Horizon - "MOTY" Nominee

Thanks TotalGaos I've designed it so the best bit of the fan will be visible at the bottom, or were you thinking of the entire thing being visible?:

 

Great build so far mate! I been watching silently since near day 1. Really starting to take shape now! Loving the stylish design.

my guess is that he's going for cooling efficiency as much as anything. Heat rises so the fan helps push it up quicker.. Unless he set the fan to pull from top..

 

Well you put a lot of work in making the whole fan looking good (by machining a custom case for the motor) so its justified to show the whole thing. However the rotor (is that the proper english term?) is the element that makes this thing so cool so maybe a window to just show that part keeps the design a bit calm, since the rest of your case is almost minimalistic as well.

On the other hand, if you tend to put the case on your desk, it probably doesn't matter. You'd see it anyway, lol

 

Thanks Combatus & slothy , I've got it setup so it pulls air through the inside of the case then pushes it up through the heatsink and the coolant tube will be in the way if I put the fan at the top as it sticks out on the inside of the side panel and also because heat rises.

Yeah I tried to make the motor visible but it made it look worse as to keep it symmetrical I had to extend the perspex part on both sides which then make it look bad as it reveals that the fan doesn't span the entire heatsink:





I made the curved panel which hides the wiring yesterday:

I first cut out the shape from 1mm aluminium:



I then made the curve by hand and spent hours gently filling it down in the right places so I will fit into the case:



Then after some sanding here it is in the case (not fixed in yet just loose):



I then glued in some LED's and soldered them in parallel with a 5W resistor:



The light reflects off the sides and floor to create an effect which makes the bright spots move around as you move your head:

 

That design looks fantastic bro!! One idea though. How about bending a small piece of aluminum the same way and then attach on it an smd led strip so the distribution of light will be more equal. Also some leds attached on the front facing backwards will look cool too! Mod on!

 

I agree with AnG3L. The LED light should be distributed better.

 

More niceness .

 

An inside wiring hiding panel....mmmm

I've always wondered what those bits were called but I was to embarrassed to ask...lol

Nice tidy solution to hading it all away.

 

Thanks AnG3L , do you mean the front of the case facing to the back of the case? If so where abouts?

Yeah me too, the LED redesign shown below should solve that

Thanks Waynio

Lol , thanks bulldogjeff


Heres the new LED design, with LED's projecting light down from further up:





I then very trimmed down the front door panels on the milling machine:

 

Said it before & I'll say it again this just keeps getting better .

 

Much better lighting - great job!

 

this is nice i like the blue lighting

 

Thanks everyone


I started work on the front door panel again, as I had some short access to the milling machine:


I began the day by using the milling machine clamps to bend both the front aluminium panels to make the front edge straight:





The curve then shifted to the top edge:



I then milled down the top edge to make it straight:







I then trimmed down the angled sections:





Here they are after all that:





I then used a ginder on the inside of both panels to smooth out all the rough surface from the sandcasting:



I then used an orbital sander to make the panels perfectly match with the curve on the top and bottom of the case:

 

To make the hinges I first milled a aluminium flat bar:







I then marked up for the next bit of milling:







I then filed the pieces and drilled a hole through each one:



I then tapped the holes:





I then used a mini saw on the dremel to cut out a channel in the front door panel:





I then sanded down the top edge of the front panels:





I then sanded the inside of the front door panels:



And then glued in the hinge peices with JB weld:





Presuming the JB weld hold I will next drill a through the hinge into the front door panel in glue in a stainless steel bar to provide further strength.

The back of the front door panels will also be painted that why I'm not sanding that much.

 

Looks good.

What make and model is that minisaw?

 

They dont seem to sell this dremel anymore but heres the updated version:

http://www.axminster.co.uk/dremel-dremel-9100-21-fortiflex-flexible-drive-unit-prod836188/

And heres the discs: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/6PC-HSS-Steel-Saw-Cutting-Disc-Wheel-Set-Fits-Dremel-/280665784920?pt=UK_BOI_Metalworking_Milling_Welding_Metalworking_Supplies_ET&hash=item4158fc0258#ht_5400wt_905

 

Colour me impressed!

 

Pure awesome sturdy doors, these will rock .

 

those look excellent.

JB Weld is incredible stuff. I even used it once to patch a crack in my transmission at the drain bolt. Saved me a bunch of money.