Neat! That last bit looks tricky to paint. I wonder what it would look like if you left it rough and had it copper plated.
For routing the channels of the 2 distro plates I want to use the real dimensions of the fitted motherboard, GPU and radiator. I marked them on the acrylic and took them over in my CAD software to laser the milling jigs. I think I will tape the bottom sheet, so I can get closer to the material with the paint. Yeah I tought about that, but I realy like the black matt look with the oak framework.
The D5 pump also needs a pump top made from acrylic, so that’s what I’m making with this update. Drilled the M4 thread holes so I can mount the milling jig on the right position. Screwed the inner circle on the acrylic (after this step this will be milled, so it’s not a problem when the screws would crack the acrylic). Also made the side and top acrylic panel that would close the Oak frame Thanks Realy liked to work with acrylic and milling, so kind of looking for a CNC router.. Alex Banks his work is amazing and realy interesting.
Sweet pump Do-hickey. I gotta respect someone that can get an O-ring channel with manual tools. Screws cracking plexi: Don't man-hand them. Finger tighten the screwdriver, and a very light finger tight at that. CNC: There's a whole lot of options, most are crap. Router spindles have even worse options, I'm finding. 1/4" bits tend to be woodworking grade. Something that takes 3/16" and 3/8" bits offers better bit options.
nope they are visible, but sometimes, Bittech server is overwelmed I think, and pictures are unvailiable for a little time
Everything from working with acrylic is new for me (except from cutting a sheet a few times in my life). So especially for this part I was very excited. I made a mould to bend the acrylic 3mm sheet into the right form. I put it in the oven from the beginning and let it heat up to 160°, and leave it for like 5 minutes. Than I put it on the mould en gently pressed it down. But it was cooled down to quick, so I put the mould WITH the sheet in the oven (happy with our big oven haha). It still wasn’t right, so I screwed a few wooden panels on the acrylic to push it in the right direction so it couldn’t deform when cooling down, and than I put it back in the oven. And this worked! I used a “mortise and tenon connection” to fit the curved panel into the top panel of the case. Thanks!! Orderded the CNC-STEP high-z 1400 this week! Very excited, already ordered some Sorotec stuff, when everything goes well I will try out the Datron endmills. So my next case will have CNC milled parts.
I forgot you were on a different continent. You got a great bend. It helps that you made a top-notch jig for it. Love the dovetailed fit on the plastic.
Now it’s time to sand all the acrylic parts. Started with 240 and all the way up to 2500, very easy to polish when sanded with 2500. I polish it so I could carefully look for damage and make a good surface for glueing. Because I want it to have a “frosted” effect, when everything is done, I will sand it with like 400 until the desired effect. The glueing is done with Acryfix, works perfect with nothing visible between the sheets after it’s done. The O-ring is made with the how to from Alex (thanks!). Thanks mate! Realy satisfied with the result!
All the parts of the case are ready to be painted and oiled. Started grinding all the steel parts, this took a lot of time because of all the corners. Cleaned all the steel parts 2 times and made my garage ready for the painting. The result is amazing, really like it. Also oiled the oak parts. Used the same oil as I used for my desktop and some other furniture. 400 is great indeed! Didn't go further than 400. End result will be shown in the next post Thanks, but can't beat a CNC..
If you mean that a CNC would allow you to make some milling that you couldn't realise with your hand tools, I can't argue with that, but honestly, following this build from the start, the level of accuracy and the complexity of what you've done with hand tools, is stunning, and for me and certainly for other followers, it's definitely beating a CNC work, and I'll end saying that the building of the metal frame is equally impressive.
Now it’s finally time to assemble all the parts and finish this project! In the oak framework I had to make some Rampa threaded inserts. Located the holes with just the drill. Also installed the LED before the steel framework is closed with the acrylic distro plates. Mounted the PCI riser cable and disto plates. This is my first time working with hard tubes, but it went very well, the parts were done very quick. Used the EK leaktester to test the whole system, separately tested the distro plates. Wow thank you so much for the compliment! It doesn't look like a lot of work, but it takes so much time!
The case is done! Enjoyed making it, and a a lot more complicated than my first scratch build. Now I can finally enjoy it on my desk. Thanks for the following!
Absolutely beautiful. It came out awesome. I wish I had noticed some things earlier, though. You will want to keep an eye on your temperatures. There was a passive build here years ago that learned that random stuff on the board still needs airflow. Also, you will want to add a baffle or duct to the radiator, or half of your fan intake will come from the exhaust.
