[Build Log] Project Frostworks (Phanteks Enthoo Primo)

Coops_THC

Coops_THC

Coops_THC

Associate
Joined
27 Dec 2012
Posts
26
Hi ladies & gentlemen,

I am taking my first steps into the realm of water cooling which has been prompted after seeing the vast amount of b-e-a-utiful machines on here. I am jumping in at the deep end and using acrylic tubing which I really hope I can master as I have seen many posts of people finding it difficult going through over 10ft of tubing... I have been buying parts since December and have pretty much got everything I need now (After many returns of faulty goods and being messed about by retailers...) so lets take a look :D

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PC Components:

CPU: i5 3570K
Motherboard: MSI Z77A-GD65
GPU: EVGA GTX 660 FTW SLI
RAM: Corsair Vengeance Low Profile (2x4GB)
HDD: Samsung 830 256GB, Seagate Barracuda (3x2TB)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Primo
PSU: OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W

P.S All the PC Components I have used for nearly a year and due to financial constraints I could not upgrade.

Water Cooling Components:

CPU Block: EK-Supremacy - Acetal
GPU Blocks: EK-VGA Supremacy - Acetal
Pump: Alphacool VPP655
Radiators: Alphacool NexXxoS UT60 420, Alphacool NexXxoS UT60 280
Reservoir: Alphacool Cape Fuzion Core 30
Tubing: EK-HD Tube 12/16mm
Fittings: EK-HD Adapter - Black
Fans: Phanteks PH-F140SP
Coolant: Mayhems Pastel UV White, Mayhems Blue Dye

Miscellaneous:

Lighting: Phobya LED-Flexlight LowDensity (2xUV, 3xWhite)
Cables: Bitfenix Alchemy SATA (5xWhite), Gelid Solutions 24pin, 8pin, 6pin


Possible Loop Configurations:
1:
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2:
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Gallery:

Parts:
What i had when i started the build:
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2 dusty looking GPUs:
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Mayhems Pastel White and Blue dye.
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M3 Dome Acorn Nut:
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GPU bridge:
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Kobra spraypaint:
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New delivery of tubing:
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Some XSPC compression fittings along side an EK-HD 12/16mm for the GPU bridge:
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Spray Paint & Vinyl:
Carbon Fibre vinyl:
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Front grill sprayed white, i like the contrast:
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Cable Stitching:

First ever attempt at cable stitching using my own method:
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Acrylic Tubing:
First attempt at pipe bending:
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At the time of taking these photos i had ran out of my 2 metres of tubing and was awaiting another 3 metres. I was not very happy with the outcome as the bends were not as tidy as i would have liked, therefore i have decided to re-create each piece when the new tubing arrives:
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Bending equipment:
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New piece using new tubing and the new Nitrile O-Ring cord (Unlike the blue silicone tube shown in the previous photos)
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GPU Backplate (Not yet fitted):
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GPU bridge combing my 2 universal blocks (Previously i decided to join them together using acrylic tubing but this proved difficult and messy so i decided to go down this route):
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UPDATE: As you can see from the photos i have already done a fair amount of work on this but due to time constraints i have not been able to create this thread any sooner, any progress in the future will be posted here as and when i can. Please feel free to ask any questions and i will ask them as best as i can.
 
Coops_THC said:
Hi ladies & gentlemen,

I am taking my first steps into the realm of water cooling which has been prompted after seeing the vast amount of b-e-a-utiful machines on here. I am jumping in at the deep end and using acrylic tubing which I really hope I can master as I have seen many posts of people finding it difficult going through over 10ft of tubing... I have been buying parts since December and have pretty much got everything I need now (After many returns of faulty goods and being messed about by retailers...) so lets take a look :D

http://www.overclock.net/content/type/61/id/1937211/width/500/height/1000[IMG]

[SIZE=4][B]PC Components:[/B][/SIZE]

[B]CPU:[/B] i5 3570K
[B]Motherboard:[/B] MSI Z77A-GD65
[B]GPU:[/B] EVGA GTX 660 FTW SLI
[B]RAM:[/B] Corsair Vengeance Low Profile (2x4GB)
[B]HDD:[/B] Samsung 830 256GB, Seagate Barracuda (3x2TB)
[B]Case:[/B] Phanteks Enthoo Primo
[B]PSU:[/B] OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W

P.S All the PC Components I have used for nearly a year and due to financial constraints I could not upgrade.

[SIZE=4][B]Water Cooling Components:[/B][/SIZE]

[B]CPU Block:[/B] EK-Supremacy - Acetal
[B]GPU Blocks:[/B] EK-VGA Supremacy - Acetal
[B]Pump:[/B] Alphacool VPP655
[B]Radiators:[/B] Alphacool NexXxoS UT60 420, Alphacool NexXxoS UT60 280
[B]Reservoir:[/B] Alphacool Cape Fuzion Core 30
[B]Tubing:[/B] EK-HD Tube 12/16mm
[B]Fittings:[/B] EK-HD Adapter - Black
[B]Fans:[/B] Phanteks PH-F140SP
[B]Coolant:[/B] Mayhems Pastel UV White, Mayhems Blue Dye

[SIZE=4][B]Miscellaneous:[/B][/SIZE]

[B]Lighting:[/B] Phobya LED-Flexlight LowDensity (2xUV, 3xWhite)
[B]Cables:[/B] Bitfenix Alchemy SATA (5xWhite), Gelid Solutions 24pin, 8pin, 6pin


Possible Loop Configurations:
1:
[IMG]http://www.overclock.net/content/type/61/id/1937119/width/500/height/1000[IMG]

2:
[IMG]http://www.overclock.net/content/type/61/id/1937136/width/500/height/1000[IMG]

[COLOR="Yellow"]No image quoting as per the rules. Thank you.[/COLOR]

[/QUOTE]

Looks like its going to be great, how hard did you find bending the tubing was it incredibly fustrating i might venture into acrylic when i do mine to would you advise doing it i think it looks awesome and can't wait to see what your build turns out to be like!
Click to expand...
 
TheyCallMeAndy said:
Looks like its going to be great, how hard did you find bending the tubing was it incredibly fustrating i might venture into acrylic when i do mine to would you advise doing it i think it looks awesome and can't wait to see what your build turns out to be like!
Click to expand...

It's easy to make a functioning loop however it's hard to make a loop that looks pretty. Acrylic tubing is a bit like a paper clip, once bent it's near impossible to make it perfectly straight again so basically measure twice and bend once. I initially bought 2 metres of tubing and ran out with only a few sections left. My second lot of tubing was unbranded but was under a quarter of the price and bends just as well.

Ultimately I would recommend it if that's what you want but expect to make mistakes.
 
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I actually quite enjoyed working with Acrylic tubing, admittedly I did waste a lot of tube as I was pretty much eye-balling the bending & cutting (and being rather indecisive about tube routing etc..). In total I think I ended up using nearly 5 meters of tubing, but it does look good & you can pull off bends that normal hoses just cannot do (without kinking)

That 12/16mm tubing looks massive (I used 10/12mm).. Look forward to seeing the completed article :)
 
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I will be uploading a short guide on how to do this as I used my own method after finding other fairly complicated.

As you can see you need to pick a side that's going to be visible and a side that's not as there will be a knot on one side:

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BattFink said:
I actually quite enjoyed working with Acrylic tubing, admittedly I did waste a lot of tube as I was pretty much eye-balling the bending & cutting (and being rather indecisive about tube routing etc..). In total I think I ended up using nearly 5 meters of tubing, but it does look good & you can pull off bends that normal hoses just cannot do (without kinking)

That 12/16mm tubing looks massive (I used 10/12mm).. Look forward to seeing the completed article :)
Click to expand...

Yes, I have to say I am the same. I have changed the layout a few times already which I have not pictured so think I may go through a similar amount.

The 12/16mm tubing is extremely stiff so there is very little room for error (I cannot comment on the 10/12mm stuff as I have never used it) and also its difficult to maintain a good look when 2 bends are close together.
 
One little trick I found to get a nice tight bend was to use a diffuser (I think that's what it's called) on the heat gun & heat the tube along it's axis. Allows me to heat the tube quite evenly and get a very tight bend without it looking kinked (example below - excuse the mess in the background)

0f98a4f5-96a0-447d-933d-aa1559ffa545.jpg


Getting multiple bends is quite tricky, can only really do it by having a good think before you heat the tube, but when done it's very satisfying

This is my attempt (am going to be changing the coolant colour & fans & wiring in the near future) - all that was guestimated so can be done much better:

IMG_20140324_192642.jpg
 
BattFink said:
One little trick I found to get a nice tight bend was to use a diffuser (I think that's what it's called) on the heat gun & heat the tube along it's axis. Allows me to heat the tube quite evenly and get a very tight bend without it looking kinked (example below - excuse the mess in the background)


Getting multiple bends is quite tricky, can only really do it by having a good think before you heat the tube, but when done it's very satisfying

This is my attempt (am going to be changing the coolant colour & fans & wiring in the near future) - all that was guestimated so can be done much better:
Click to expand...

I have an attachment like that for mine, I will give it a try. What I also do is take the o-rings out of the fitting so after heating the tube and bending it to where I think it should be, I quickly put it into the fittings where it's going and make fine adjustments as it's cooling. Removing the o-rings just make putting the fittings on easier (obviously I will put them back In once finished)
 
Coops_THC said:
What I also do is take the o-rings out of the fitting so after heating the tube and bending it to where I think it should be, I quickly put it into the fittings where it's going and make fine adjustments as it's cooling. Removing the o-rings just make putting the fittings on easier (obviously I will put them back In once finished)
Click to expand...

I just chamfered the tube & used a little bit of Silicon based lubricant (same stuff I use when I rebuild my motorbike brake calipers). Just apply a bit to your finger and rub it around the o-rings, can just pop the tube in to the fitting really easily then.
 
UPDATE:

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So i a further update to this update, i have cracked one of the acrylic backplates so have ordered another sheet. I am also thinking of having more fixing points as 4 looks boring.

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More tubing and fittings as i have given up and decided to use normal tubing to link up the pump as its in a awkward spot and its extremely difficult to bend acrylic tubing to fit.

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More paint work. I am going to brush the fitting back down to the bare metal and redo them as the finish is not as good as i would like.

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Trying to work out where to put the LED's, i have 3 white and 2 UV however i am going to put up the UV ones at a later date and think i may only use 2 strips of white LED's as 3 may be to overpowering. Where do you guys think i should place them?

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So i was flushing the system (Tap water through one end and down the drain at the other) and had a leak at the bottom of the res, i thought i had not tightened the fittings enough so tightened them however the leak re-appeared. Turns out the leak was coming from the little plastic rods which are intended to be used with LEDs for a nice lighting effect so i tightened these just finger tight at first but the leak came back so i then tightened them with pliers but nothing changed so what i have done is simply swap the ends of the res so the plastic rods are at the top rather than the bottom.
 
UPDATE:

Since the fans that came with the case did not come with rubber anti-vibration pads i decided to make some out of an old bike inner-tube.
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Tubing nearly all done, just one more piece.
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All filled up with destilled water.
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Blue dye.
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I will run it like this for a few days and then flush it and replace it with Mayhems pastel white as well and complete the GPU back-plates and finish the lighting.
 
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