Intro: I recently recieved an old AT server case from a friend. I have always liked big cases...they match my big...feet ( i know what you were thinking, shame on you!)...but I was saddened by the condition of this one. It had been sitting in storage for a while and was full of rat crap and corrosion. It also was missing its outer cover. I almost threw it out...but then my senses returned and I appreciated the beauty of this case...even full of crap! Here she is...in all her glory! I decided to clean it up...and if nothing else replace my midtower with it. Maybe do a few simple mods...whatever, but nothing extensive. As luck would have it, it began to rain as I was cleaning the case so I moved inside and began to scrub the thing with abrasive pads and glass cleaner. In the background the tv was on, 2001: A Space Odyssey...and once again fate took an odd twist...I had probably the only piece of the case that was still slightly reflective facing the tv. I looked down, and saw the reflection of the giant monolith in the case. Immediately I had an idea and a plan! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lets talk specs: This case is going to become my daily comp, so my current daily comp will be going into it. Processor: AMD K6-2 500mHz (Don't laugh) MOBO: Some generic short mobo that supports my chip (maybe I'll post a pic later) RAM: 64mb of PC100 (Stop laughing!) Video card : Some old, generic card that does what I need, but not much more. Sound card: some old sound blaster card that is great for MIDI support, but not much else! I know this sounds pitiful, but until about two weeks ago I was using a P2 266mhz as my main comp so this is a major improvement! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The "master" plan: 1. Paint: High gloss black with a clearcoat that I can wax with automotive wax for very high gloss shine. Probably rustoleum products for everything! 2. Modifications: Stealth everything! I want the front to have no controls, no displays, no drives, nothing, just a blank face. To accomplish this I am tipping my drives vertical and making a cabinet in the top that will allow me to access the drives and power switches 3. Special parts: Slot drive cd drive. Probably a Pioneer DVD-106S 4. Lighting: I am an uber light freak and I have a cheap supplier of ccfls...so this case is going to have 8 of them, four green, four blue! I figure...big case...need a lot of light. The 'rents, who monitor my spending habits don't know better, they assumed 8 ccfls was normal. Hehehe Also two 3 foot strips of EL strip in blue and green. 5. window: maybe...probably with this much light you'll be able to see through the cover anyways! 6. Cooling: This is going to be an aircooled mod. With a K6-2 you don't need much more than a good heatsync and processor fan combo, but there will be a few suprises to keep this beast cool. (Look for tons of little heatsyncs and processors for auxillary chips!) Obstacles in my way: 1. Cash! I hope to complete this mod for less than $100! 2. No dremel... 3. NO outer cover for the case (this is on its way to me hopefully!) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- And onto the modding: Note: This post was written over several days in wordpad so events do show a passage of time, but no day by day headings are included. Be assured this wasn't one day of work! Anyways...you've already seen how the case started. Lets see where it goes shall we? The first step was to get this beast apart. Being used to old cases, I expected pop rivets...but not ones made of depleted uranium or something! These rivets were uber hard and smoked two drill bits ... not cheapos either! I finally got them all out and took some pics of all the pieces. But alas, my trusty old Sony Mavica has finally started its inevitable decent into the depths of electronic hell. It has started to eat floppy disks. So all my pics of the case pieces are gone. I did manage to salvage one though so here it is: You probably can't tell, but I have already sanded the case. Unfortunately all my sanding pictures are gone to the winds so I will just talk you thorugh what I did. First, using just cheapo sandpaper of a 320 grit I hand sanded down every part on the case to remove any film that a cleaner might have left or any dirt I missed. Next time to break out the dremel...contour sander(I don't own a dremel rotary tool, but I have a dremel sander that just sits around. Thats what I get for asking for a dremel for christmas!) and some 3m 320 grit WetorDry sandpaper...the good stuff! I sanded down the case entirely to remove corrosion and some of the plating and or finish on the case so primer and paint will adhere nicely. Since I can't make any mods until I get a dremel (I am being "loaned" one here soon) I am only going to paint and primer the pieces that don't need to be cut for now. This is a small support bar and the bottom of the case. Look how nice the primer is! I have been held off on final paint because of rain and work. So the parts are wither still naked or just first or second primer coated. They don't look too bad for $3.17 rattle cans of Rustoleum though! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Well...I am now currently stalled on modding probably until this weekend. At first I was going to set the case aside and work on some other projects...but this case seems to beckon me. So I decided to order/prepare to order some parts! First off...my cd drive! I managed to find a working Pioneer DVD-106S on ebay for $15.00 and just won the auction last night! yeah. uber cool part #1 While glancing through a cyberguys catalog at work I can across a part I just have to have! A Cooler Master Musketeer II System Dynamics Detector! I know I wanted to keep the front bare...but this part is too slick to pass up. I'll either compromise and mount it on the front in the top 5.25" bay or maybe vertically on the top, but with no cover over ti so you can see the gauges! Also from cyberguys was this cool sound contol kit that makes your ccfls and el wire pulse to your sound card output. I figured for less than $,6 why not? ^^This will be mounted internally, since I probably won't have to fiddle with it often. I might mod the switch on it, so it can be remotely accessed or something. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- I guess thats all for now. Next installment: More pics and hopefully some major mods! See you after the weekend!
Just a quick addon: I have my switches too. Just some black toggles from Radio Shack! Click Image to see info!
Update 7/22 Ohh man! Have I ever hit a snag! it seems that the cover that is "supposed" to be from this case is not actually from it. Its three inches too short and an inch and a half too wide. Grr...I guess I have to find another cover. anyone know where I can get a cover that is 24 1/4" tall x 7" wide x 15 1/4" deep?
Dude make panels for the case! Thats what its all about. Get some plexi and alu and start cutting and drilling and stuff. Mod the sucker!
I'm thinking that....but there really is no way to secure panels unless I bolt them to the case itself and I don't want bolts sticking out the side. I need a one piece cover....
Oh... THATS why I just got a mini-itx case for a VIA board... small feet here . Although on the other hand, I'm also planning to get a lian li v2000 which is probably the biggest non cube on the planet. Mental conflict of interests maybe? Anyways, it should be pretty interesting. You always know something good's going to happen in these mega case mods since theres just so much room for you to do stuff.
7/24/04: Sorry no pics. between my @$&#%* up camera and bad weather, I didn't have any turn out. I have decided to make custom panels and top for the case. After searching forever, no case has shown up. Luckily, I happen to be friends with the guy who runs a local metal shop! He is making me stainless steel or aluminum panels this week! I have also decided to replace the front bezel with a solid piece. Since I am not going to be using it for anything, I figured a smooth piece of metal would look better than the crappy bezel I have. I will also be covering the back of the case and cutting holes for plugs etc. Between the gaps, I hope to sandwich blue el wire! Salvaged a bunch of old heatsyncs that I am going to place on every frigging chip on my mobo and video card. Now the problem is airflow! To improve airflow, some blowholes and grills will be added. I salvaged an awesome mesh grill from an old microwave that will look nice. I almost grabbed the 150v turbine exhaust fan, but the thing was so noisy...that I resisted. I did grab the hideaway exhaust flap/vent thingy. It blows open when exhaust is blowing through it. Adding that to the side of the case So...mega case fan buying time! The parents have banned my ordering of parts until I have a working comp in the case...so part ordering is on hold for a while! The slot load cd drive arives on monday and then I can begin setting it up vertical! I have already modded the 5.25" bays in the case to accept a vertical drive and I'm working on a box to hold switches and stuff using the covers of two old cd drives. I am definitely going with a window on the right side of the case...and I'm thinking about the front and top. Maybe if I can work it a sliding "sunroof" to improve airflow and light effects. I have some sort of plan involving the motors from two old cd drives and some worm gears.... On the subject of massive cases: Massive cases require massive lighting...I am thinking of upping my order of cathodes from 8 to 10 or getting some more el strip! (I got some extra cash this weekend!) This thing is going to glow! Basically to sum up this update, I have alot of crap...and no cover.
I love watching large case mods! I have two here at my house that are ITCHING to be hit with the modding hammer! $$$$ and time ... two things I seem to not have enough of lately. Oh well, I like your wrap up line, "alot of crap... and no cover!" Hehehe, sums up most of my garage! I have a ton of misfit cases that people have ditched for one reason or another. Spare parts for me! Wiring harnesses, spare molexes, fans, heat sinks, etc. I have 3 cases out side that I know have no skins... poor lil guys! Keep up the great work! Prove to the parentals that this mod will work, and that you can make it sparkle!
I should be getting a well "tuned" working motherboard back from my boss monday or tueday. Then I am just going to put the thing in the case, hook it up, and say...it works...lets buy parts now! grr...I need my own credit card
you know what i want to see someone do with one of these HUGE cases is put like 4 computers in it. that would be cool. if they used one of the new motherboards that VIA is putting out they could have like 20 computers in one case. thats a small server room in one box. now that would be one heck of a mod. not to mention one of the more expensive ones. i guess its just another idea for the "when i ger reallly rich" book
No...my cover has been lost again. Once again not the right size! I have decided that I am just going to make custom panels for the case...cover or no cover! Well...here are some pics to satiate your hunger for pics. No case...no dremel....but the mac daddy of cutting tools! once again another dermel product to add to my tool box...this time a dremel engraver to match my dremel sander. Here are the grills I salvaged from the microwave. I have two of the left one. Here is the vent flap from the microwave.
Nice dvd drive! I have one of those as well.. I can't figure out why they don't make more slot drives.. Love the idea of the completely stealthed front. And a case like that, which is very "plain" (right word?) is a good start. Gonna watch this one closely.. Good work so far!
cool. How does the drive work for you? And they do need to make more slot load drives! plain works...i perfer minimalist. The front won't be completely plain, a few well placed fans for cooling and a tight backlit bit Tech casebadge I'm making out of a piece of acrylic will grace it. thank you! for my first mod, i think it is turning out okay. Besides a few mishaps along the way that required two hours of hand sanding (don't ask! ) I've had a lot of fun. Its almost as fun building this monster as it is planning on it. Edit: WOOT! 202 posts! I've passed the 200 mark and didn't even realizxe it!
I figured I better give a more usefull update than my last message so here goes! I haved decided on dual power supplies for this beast! My 500w ATX server suply (if it works) will power mobo and devices and a 200 w at supply will power lights and some extra fans so I can flip them on and off! Luckily, I grabbed an old surge protector that is going to find its home in here, so only one cord out the back. Cooling wll definitely be better after my newegg order get in. 5 Speeze 80mm DC Case fans should do the trick, along with some 50mm and 120mm fans I already have! WOOT! This thing is going to lift off! Also, since I am running an AMD k6-2 that gets insanely hot, I am going to duct the heatsync and fan and run the duct to a blowhole with another fan in it. Gotta keep this beast cool somehow! And as I mentioned before, I am collecting heat syncs for use on EVERY FREAKING CHIP in this case! So cooling is just going to be a matter of airflow! Well, that looks like all for now! I'm going to do some work tonight and hopefully will update with some pics tomorrow! Edit: Just a little more info for now... Tonight I am planning to round some ide cables and "sleeve" them with electrical tape (for now, until I get some proper sleeving) and get precise measurements for the cover/sides/top/front/back/etc!. I also need to firgure out how much el strip I need!
I really like the drive. It's a bit noisy, but hey, aren't they all?! Anyway, if you should decide to paint the front, I've got two tips. 1. Remove the "brush" before painting, as it turns all stiff when the paint dries. 2. Find a piece of cardboard and make holes in it to fit with the clips (right word??), and stick the front to the cardboard. Prevents it from tipping over and ruining your paint job. And yeah, minimalistic is a better word. I like minimalistic. I started thinking out the circuit for a home made fan controller today, allowing me to control 4 fans with one potmeter
cool. thanks for the advice. On the subject of fan controllers...I have decided to go with function over form. I will no longer be using the Cool Master Musketeer series....the most that they can control is two fans...but damn I love the analog gauges. I have decided to add the black Cooler Master AeroGate II Thermal Contoller to this mod instead. It just functions a whole lot better, doesn't look as nice, but sometimes sacrifices have to be made. This one allows me to control 4 fans (5 with some creative wiring) and is all digitally temperature controlled too!
i like the idea, and looks spiffy. not sure about lighting, i thing it would be better if it was just compleatlystealthed and black all over. but this should be cool keep it up.
