Project Stealthlow

[waynio]

dont stop

could it not just be bent the rest of the way? just hold it in tension?

The actual curve is fairly ok & in parts near perfect but has warpage, if I make a proper jig I should be able to get the same curve but without any warpage or high/low points.

Still have enough acrylic for 2 more attempts so I'm thinking of getting a load of mdf sheet so I can layer up to make a jig where I can bolt it down like in the case blitz it with heat strapping it down bit by bit letting it cool down before moving on along the way to the bottom, should have a similar effect to perfect thermo forming.

 

[waynio]

It's not terrible but wanted it to be much better, there are some areas that are risen & sunk & some warpage, I have 2 more attempts left & after a tip from someone else I was going to get some mdf & make a solid jig to do this on but someone else also suggested using thin alu sheet so I have a bunch of spare 0.7mm sheet left over from my last case so I'll be able to form it to the curve bars & something someone else said a while ago heat that up so it's like a hot plate & it will also be a solid base to get the curves without any warpage, 2 lives left so hopefully I'll get it done properly tomorrow I really can't afford to be getting new materials so if I fail again I'll have to do an alternative.

 

[waynio]

What about a vented piece of aluminium in the front instead of the acrylic, would be much easier and easy clean

Definitely an option .

Waynio, could you remake the front curved aluminium bars so that the acrylic sits behind them? Reckon it would be much easier. You could screw them in at the top, then heat and bend the acrylic as you go, screwing the bars in when ready.

Also, if there are any bits that aren't quite perfect, you can either glue it from the inside, or use small screws etc to hold it flush.

I think you're really going to struggle just having it fit in the middle.

EDIT - if this is likely to work, you could even do a similar recess like on the side panels so that it still sits flush with the front.

EDIT 2 - if you don't have the material to remake the bars, then how about thinner material on top of them?

I could remake the curve bars but I 'd need to remake the mobo tray & side panels also lol, I could opt for thinner acrylic though, wouldn't even need to heat it up neither, right now I'm thinking of a 1mm acrylic window, a 1mm mesh panel & 1mm pattern panel with mounting tabs so it does stay 100% flush for an unplanned silly awesome look .

This looks very impressive, those designs look very tasty

Thanks Menthis .

Here I go again I felt quite optimistic starting off lol.

Here is a few of the 0.7mm alu sheet I had spare & the metal shears I used to trim the mounting holes away & then cut what I need to size.

Clamping the cut to size alu sheets to the case to do the top curve.

Top curve done.

Start of the main curve with added alu sheets to the rest of the length which is where it all goes wrong.

A vision of how it could be with alu sheet.

Gotta laugh & forget but not to forget trying to do this diy again, 1 curve doable, maybe even 2 curves or more but not if they are to be flush to an existing curve & they all curve the opposite ways .

Ok I know when I can't win lol, I knew this was going to be the most challenging part of the build & a good learn by doing part of it , after 10 attempts I'm calling it quits on the double curve window, what I learnt on trying to do this bit was never try doing double curve in different directions by diy lol, best way to get this done is like others said a big oven & jig or get it thermo formed to perfection by a plastics place well at least for 3mm & above acrylic.

I was either able to do the top curve or the big curve very well but not both on the same piece lol so it's back to the drawing board with what to do, could do a big sprawling alu grill or simple bars or both as bars will introduce even more strength, it could loose a bit of the nice look but sometimes that isn't a bad thing if it improves the structure & if I put enough creative effort into the bars then they could make a nice feature.

Up next? well I have to come up with a nice design that compliments what's already done, I'll get there .

Actually ideas are in place for a 1mm acrylic sheet for the window with tinting film added + a 1mm full mesh panel + a 1mm pattern panel + nicely shaped tabs to keep everything flush, Just need to draw the fitting design .

 

[waynio]

Could you use one of the top curves that worked well and one of the big curves that went well, then join them together with some sort of 'artistic joint'? maybe put in a couple of lines accross the acrylic to mask the fact that one 'line' is a joint?

As always, just throwing an idea up in the air... Let's see how hard it hits the floor shall we?

Could do but I'm not thanks though I had a final attempt with the last piece today though with better results but still a muckup lol.

I have an idea of how you could get it to work, up to you if you try it or not though, im guessing that you have had enough of trying to bend acrylic.

1. Get a sheet of acrylic that is about 20mm too wide and about 3mm too thick

2. Use a router to remove the thickness if the Aluminium from 10mm off of each side.

should look something like this (not to scale)


3. Do what you have been doing (heating it up and pushing it in to place), but do it from the inside so the thinner tabs at the sides hold the acrylic in place and dont let it sit anywhere other than flush with the case front/top.

4. If you want you can then remove the thinner tabs at the sides so that it just sits there between the metal (I would leave them in place so I could glue the acrylic to the case for more strength).

Hope this helps in some way mate, great build so far.

Thanks dandos23 it's a good solution but the motherboard tray sits flush with the edge of the right curve bar so nowhere for it to go on that side (although this could still be done if I did it in notches & filed out the corresponding areas on the mobo tray) & I'm out of acrylic lol & no intentions of burning more money on acrylic unless it's for flat pieces or basic bending, bit of a shame to be honest as I got it quite close to what I was aiming for but hiccups happen especially with brittle acrylic lol .
Thermo forming is possibly an option though if I still want a plain flush window but have no idea what it would cost & I'd have to make a curve line example for them with precise instructions as to where the mounting holes & vents go.

Took me many hours today to get all the alu sheets in place & got an extra set of hands from my dad else I wouldn't have been able to clamp it all up right (alu sheets on both sides sandwiching the acrylic to make a hot plate effect with the heat gun), the top left mount snapped though lol but carried on to see if it this method works since it's all clamped up, I'll never know for sure since the mount broke but I think if done with long continuous alu sheets it very well could work & nicely but wowzers it really is a true pita to set up lol, maybe if I'd have thought about this method earlier I'd have got it done to a good standard, anyway the alternative is a go go now so I'll get the 1mm polycarbonate sheet ordered & get to work on finalising the designs for the 1mm alu panels .

No warpage, couple of slight high/low points but if done with full length alu panels I think it is doable but not putting out more money for acrylic, like said I just wish I'd have thought about this method before when I had a good bit spare, oh well on with plan b .

Here is a couple of shots of the sata holes on the mobo panel in good lighting to get this log back on a bright note, so much effort & no progress, but knowledge gained lol .

 

[waynio]

I sent a quote request to a plastics shop that has cnc & thermo forming capabilities for prices for the size of piece I need forming & that I want a little cnc doing on it & just worked up a design for the vents & a little extra stealthlow text worked in there & a silly doodle I did in sketchup which isn't a cut out but a 1mm sunken bit for painting that I worked in there last minute , the vents are of the side panel pattern mirrored, this is easily the best of the 4 I designed so won't show the others, I totally doubt the grin will be put in if this happens lol but the rest will if the price is reasonable & they are able to do the design exactly to my spec .

This design may have more added to it as it's fresh out of the mind .

 

[waynio]

That looks awesome! glad you didn't completely abandon the acrylic idea

Ahh it's a big part of the mod so it's hard to not go for it .

Just got the price quote from the plastics shop.

Price for moulding tool £67.20 vat included
Price for each piece £43.20 vat included
Delivery £14.40 vat included

So for 1 piece say will be £124.80 & I think this is without vents being put in & to have a spare window it would be £168.

Soooo, 4 more clamps £24 -- a new sheet of acrylic for 3 more attempts £15 = £39 diy leaving more than enough change for a diy powder coating setup.

Or

2440mm x 1220mm x 25mm mdf sheet £25 which I'm unsure of how I'd get it here unless I can get b&q to cut it into smaller pieces for easy transport, cutout the shape of curve 7 times, jam them together, put the sheet of acrylic on a flat surface, use a secondary heat gun (dual wielding ) to get the whole sheet easily formable, then some how move the really softened acrylic to the shaped jig & use the trimmed away jigs as a pressing tool & this should do a perfect thermo form diy for a little more than the clamping method.

Either way DIY window is definitely back in the house .

 

[waynio]

Waynio, I think you just might be able to pull off the DIY method. I would suggest getting the MDF as you say above, and when cutting it, allow say 40mm extra at either the top or the bottom of your template.

Try to cut it as clean as possible, so you can use both portions (the template and offcut) to squeeze the acrylic into the correct form.

Then when cutting your acrylic, again, cut it 40mm longer than needed and attach it to the extra bit of your template, either by clamping or screwing.

Once its held in place, heat it up and allow it to drop into position. When you are happy that it is completely pliable, put the offcut portion on top and clamp it all up.

The only issue I can see is keeping it hot enough to stay pliable. You might need to make the top portion of the template (offcut portion) out of 2 pieces of MDF with a sheet of aluminium on top, and brace it in several places with your dowels.

Once it's set on top of the acrylic, you should be able to continue to heat the aluminium, which should in turn keep the heat in the acrylic.

I hope you can make out what I mean, I will try to maybe draw it later

Sounds like the right way to do this to perfection .

Revised clamping jig with excess length on both ends & for a precautionary backup plan if needed I'm getting some polycarbonate too which is tougher & more formable, when I go at it next time I'm getting it done at last .

So just ordered more tinted acrylic & a sheet of polycarbonate, no idea when I'll receive it with all the bank holiday madness at the moment.

The plan is to heat the sheet up on a flat surface so it's droopy, then place it on the bending jig & clamp it down & let it cool, I'll put guide lines so I put it on straight, I'll have to put something on the edges of the mdf so it doesn't mark the acrylic, tips on what to put on the edge of the mdf anyone?.

Still though I'm not 100% sure an mdf jig is necessary, if I bought 4 more clamps & used full length sheets of aluminium I think I could get a perfect result, it came very close when I did my last try & it also had no warping, I do think I'd benefit from using 2 heat guns also.

 

[waynio]

Grease proof paper might work, suggest you try a scrap piece first though, yeah I think more heat guns would help a lot, you may want heat up the jig a bit as well, or another method that might work is if you have the aluminium or some sort of material you can get to the perfect shape from inside the case and use that as the jig with heat and let the acrylic mould to it?<< if that makes any sense

Yes it's another option, main thing that has me worried is if I do the curving out of the case I may have trouble drilling the curved acrylic, it can break easy enough when it's flat but when curved it cracks a whole lot easier when drilling which is why I've been getting it mounted to the case before bending, not only that but it needs a bevelled edge for it to go flush to the back panel but yeah clamping sheet alu to the inside & outside works & if I end up doing this again I'll use full length pieces & 4 more clamps so it's held down properly on every curve but I'll attempt the mdf jig first which I'll go shopping for tomorrow if possible & get the jig made up ready & even have a practice with the failed pieces to see what kind of results I can get from it as with most things practice makes perfect .

 

[waynio]

If all else fails there's always clear cast GRP. Will take a lot of polishing for proper transparency though.

Sounds like quite a mission also .

This is pretty much what I meant (although I maybe wouldn't leave the extra at the top, as it might be very difficult to cut afterwards). For heating the acrylic, I would think you could lay the template on it's side (as if the PCI Slots are flat on the floor) and screw or clamp the acrylic onto the extra 40mm. Once it's held properly and you're sure it's square, apply the heat and allow it to bend naturally onto the template.

When it's all pliable get the top on pronto and clamp it well. Although I think you may be better to make the top section hollow with an aluminium surface so you can continue to heat the acrylic through the aluminium even when it's clamped.

EDIT - thinking of the aluminium, as you said yourself, you could very well get it to work with 2 sheets of it and lots of clamps. At least that way you can apply loads of heat while it's clamped exactly in place. Might be worth trying this method first actually.

Ahh it's been a sucky few days of doing nothing, didn't start on the right method until my last attempt out of 10 or 12 lol, I'll probably get this piece nailed though on the first attempt when I have a go on Tuesday .

The jig idea is good... only flaw is really the finish of the 'molding' surfaces as mdf is a bummer to sand. Any imperfections will show on your acrylic if you're not careful.

Good luck!

This was something that was putting me off using mdf & even thought about adding a layer of sheet alu so it would be a nice finish but this could make the form slightly off so I'm gonna persist with doing it on the case .

This looks very promising, i am excited to see the end product, keep us updated mate

Thanks Menthis & will do once this main window is complete I think it's a little more cable work & adding fan cable gaps in the bottom hdd area bars for hiding the fan power cables neatly, then I can think properly about finishing.

I do the top curve by clamping sheet alu to the outside while the acrylic is mounted in place & with the case on it's front so gravity lets it fall into place when it gets hot enough, then when it gets to the straighter line coming towards the big curve I remove the acrylic piece & get the internal alu sheet clamped in & then put the acrylic back in place gradually letting heat & gravity do the rest while clamping the sheet alu as it gets further down, it definitely works but only started this approach on my last attempt & didn't quite have enough clamps & was using small pieces of sheet alu so didn't clamp perfectly.

Sorry for not commenting much lately but just got nothing to do but wait for the acrylic & eventually get around to B&Q to either get more clamps or mdf.

Been a bit split between going for the mdf sheet or more clamps but I'm gonna have another bash at clamping sheet alu to the case, but full pieces, naturally I'll get the top curve done first as before but I looked closely at the pics of the last piece I done & it really was pretty close to what I was aiming for, I think I just need more clamps & maybe a few bars for extra force to keep the alu sheet from flexing out in the middle, might get away with 4 more but I think 6 more clamps would be perfect, it would be £10 more than the sheet of mdf I was going to get but if I manage to do my own forming & get it figured it would only cost me like £4 for each window & a little dedication if I ever needed to remake 1 .

Thing about this way it has the oven effect but is better as it's in place already so once it's been given a good cooking it should do the trick in keeping a perfect form, I've been approaching this a bit too timidly really so I feel I should kick a bit of overkill into it to make sure I get the right result, still though it won't be until Tuesday until I do the main finished piece but once I get the clamps I'll get some practice on the scrap ones so by the time I get the new acrylic I should have it done quite fast :thumb:.

I let it droop naturally rather than pushing it but clamp down as it droops & the surface of the acrylic stays in perfect optical clarity as I'm not heating the acrylic directly, gets a nice natural curve.

Once I have this curving perfected I'll have to add vents too lol but I know it would be best done when it's flat if I want to do something nice, I could just cut basic gaps like in the original concept but after playing with something nicer on the recent concept for if I'd have gone CNC I'd like to do this, damn I must be a glutten for punishment lol but it is a big part of the functionality & look so has to be done right or not at all.

 

[waynio]

wow, this is a great log! it's really inspirational to me that you've managed to do this stuff...hopefully I'll feel confident enough now to mod my own case, even if I don't build one from scratch like you!

well done man!

Thank you dirtychinchilla & welcome to ocuk practice is key mate so it's good to find some scrap to practice on before hacking a new case up with .

Looking brilliant already from the pictures on the last 1 or 2 pages. Will be interesting to see what the cooling is like, hopefully good.

Hope everything goes to plan, by the end of it you can say you have a unique PC .

Thanks lolwithtim appreciated, I doubt it'll be as good cooling as the air cube but should still be good & easily good enough to keep a decent overclock .

Been a while since a real update but the project hasn't died yet lol .

There are many ways to fill the middle void but for the time being I want to focus on doing what I originally intended.

Here we go again sort of.

First I cut the 1mm sheet alu into an inner piece & outer piece, the scrap left over from the 2 cuts I clamped to the curve & put the motherboard tray in place so I could see exactly where the bottom end should be & to mark where the vents should be, I left about 10mm over for the bottom end of the acrylic.

Then I got side tracked with cleaning off all the red marker on the right side panels inside edges, started off using wet&dry strips but was taking forever so painted the edges with wd40 & it came off nice & easy .

I got the top mount block cut outs done with the internal alu sheet & had to unbolt 1 side of the curve bar so I could get this 1 piece alu sheet in place, if only this was the design lol would be an absolute breeze to just cut a grill pattern into this, oh well I chose the difficult route & I'm sticking with it .

Anyway I got the clamping pieces ready for tomorrow so might have a solid update of good progress then & if not tomorrow then day after .

 

[waynio]

cant believe ive never read this thread til now.. absolutely stunning, well done on everything you've done so far EPIC = You

Hehe Cheers Dea924.

this is a sick thread, just read it all! love the case so far, cant wait to see it finished. good work!

Thanks arnoldma .

Been working on a video slideshow for when it's finished, a quick fix project log I've got timed to the beat should be nice .

 

[waynio]

Oh yeah this will do me, at freaking last hehe .

Window cut to size & vents & top mounting holes added

Top little curve beginning, it was soooo difficult setting up this curving procedure with it just being me, but if I'd have been able to get a hand off someone it could have been done a lot easier, instead I had an ultra fiddly time & often had to use my head or chin to tighten the clamps lol.

Setting up for the big curve.

Crazy clampage .

It didn't take a solid form of what I was aiming for but once mounted to the bottom mounts & a few added tabs in key spots it should be good.

And I wrapped it up for the day since it hit midnight lol.

Still though I'll need to make some 3mm alu tabs inside & out to hold it flush to the bars & with the top mounting holes being so close to the edge I'd be wise to use washers too & I have done better top curves but this one isn't too bad but if it bothers me enough I might do what some have suggested & combine 2 winning pieces & do something to hide the fact it's 2 separate parts .

 

[waynio]

looks great

Thanks oliver2601 .

Those clamps look like there's some kind of vertebrate thing going on. lol

Anyway, looks like its coming on well. Glad to see you've finally got it sorted.

Thanks Poodmund .

Looking damn fine waynio. How much longer do you think till completion?

Cheers gary996 the window isn't 100% done yet but once it is I think I only have to mount a power button somewhere & make openings to lead fan wires underneath the hdd cages, then I can decide what I'll do for the finish.

If I do go & get it anodised it'll need the steel helicoils removing from any parts to be done & I'd have to drill out the brass thread inserts out of the motherboard tray, the helicoils I'll be able to replace once anodised, the motherboard mounting holes I'll have to prep so they are ready for taking nut rivets.
I think I have the colours of choice in my mind, blue for the internals & a dark colour (probably black) for the externals.

Also diy powder coating could be an option especially since I found out about clear powder coating & candy colour powder coating.

Other finishing option is paint, clear primer, then candy paint, then clear lacquer.

Whatever finish I go for I want to keep the brushed alu visible underneath, anodising would be my favourite of the lot but whether I can be bothered arranging & leaving parts in a companies hands I'm not sure .
So yeah, once I have the window completed it should be very close to the finish of this .

 

[waynio]

Look forward to what you decide to do.

Hehe I missed 1 other bit that still needs making the front bottom panel , yeah that needs the optical stealthing & a grill for the hdd cage fans.

Looking pretty good. With regards the window curve, are you sure you are getting the acrylic hot enough to properly manipulate it? Do you know the ideal temperature?

EDIT - this might be of use... http://website.lineone.net/~mike.bissett/advice.htm

To be honest Diggsy I think this is as good as it's gonna get with 1 heat gun lol , I do know tight curves or bends hold form very well but big loose curves don't seem to & have some flex especially with it only being 3mm thick acrylic, at least with just 1 heat gun anyway, I expect with 2 heat guns 1 at either end would do a slightly better job but would still have some flex.

looking good man....

Thanks Tackleberry .

Ok I've decided what I'll do about the tabs, whichever I do will require the tab sized slots filed out of the edge of the motherboard tray so they can be mounted properly on both sides, it's a pity it has to be uglied up a little but to make it work right it has to be done.

I was thinking of using an acrylic adhesive & sticking tabs to the acrylic so it slots onto the bars but scrapped that idea with the possibility of them sliding around & making a mess while it sets so I've narrowed it down to needing 4 tabs on each side & possibly a 5th 1 if needed & I'll be making them out of 3mm aluminium so the top piece will be countersunk the curved bar will be drilled & the internal tab will be tapped & have helicoils in so they can be properly tightened & to be honest they might not look entirely bad once brushed then the acrylic piece slots in place with the needed support in the right spots.

I just have to dedicate to making them & once I do I expect it to be a few hours of making it right, although if I want them to look really nice then maybe a bit longer .

 

[waynio]

I've had a good relax after that & been thinking about how to make the tabs look like a good feature of the mod & other bits of the mod & I've blown the rest of the money from the motherboard switchover refund, could be a few weeks before I get to assemble it all, could be sooner, depends on how things go, I'm going to start getting quotes for anodising tomorrow but have no idea on how to enquire about it to be honest with there being many different pieces, sizes, thicknesses & a couple of different spec of alu, I still need to remove the steel helicoils & brass inserts but I'm not worried about that, it'll get done soon enough & I'll have an alternative ready for once it's been anodised, also gonna have to get the case feet anodised but don't know if they already are or not.

I've ordered some copper so I'll be changing from doing anodised blue internals to anodised copper internals to keep with the colours, was semi split between polished alu or polished copper & copper won as copper & black just looks awesome together , got it with the refund from the replacement b3 revision motherboard, I was gonna use the money for a few upcoming games but to be honest I doubt I'd play them until this mod is done so put it into the mod & I'll buy the games once I get this up & running, was gonna get the witcher 2, fable 3 & possibly brink but I think I'll get to see how they do in the reviews now.

The real copper I'm adding is.

DIY mesh for the vents on the window to fill the shape of the big vents I made.

10mm copper tabs that go 15mm over the acrylic & 15mm over the alu bars above & under & nicely rounded & about every 90mm along the full length of the case, even to the bottom so it looks right. Where the vents on the window are they will possibly get full length tabs, all the tabs will be polished & given a protective coat.

And the bottom front alu panel 1mm thick exterior panel brushed anodised black with some cut out details with a 2mm thick copper panel with diy mesh & the optical stealthed with 3mm copper piece, sure that isn't exactly stealthed but it should look good .

And since I ended up using body filler on the internal fan bars I'm redoing them in copper with properly aligned mounting holes so that's my refund gone .

--------


Parts getting anodised black
Side panels, curve bars, back panel, external bottom front panel, Bottom panel, a few pieces on the hdd platform.

Parts getting anodised copper colour
Mobo tray, 2nd level, hdd cages.

Parts getting painted either copper or black
Fixing bars, pci/io piece, optical drive.

Parts that will actually be copper
All front meshes, all the holding tabs & all the fan bars.

 

[waynio]

Again, Waynio, I’ve got to say I’m really enjoying the comprehensive, step by step guide that you’re running parallel to this build.

Your unflappable approach is very refreshing too - you’ve had moments during the build that I would have been tempted to beat the case senseless with the nearest suitably weighted power tool.

Copper’s really expensive, in fact most of the materials used in the build aren’t that cheap – and when adding all the additional tools you’ve had to buy, or worn out, the costs must be getting pretty ‘eye watering’?

If you don’t mind me asking what’s the ball park figure for the build so far – just materials? (If you added in man hours I suspect it would be in the £1000s)

Don’t feel obliged to answer the above as you may be deliberately ignoring costs – but I have to say, that what ever the cost, the experience and the end result has got to be worth it!

Good luck with the remaining build - and if it's any consolation i think the slight hiccup with the acrylic is making for a more interesting design.

Thanks Plec I got over the wanting to smash projects up a while ago when I knew little of fabrication I just take it as it is now & learn from hiccups & just keep going at it until I get something to work.
The only tool that has been a hassle while modding has been the dremel as I made 5 die from overheating on past mods, they just aren't built for lengthy work & they aint cheap when adding up the cost of 5, for that I could have bought a very good quality power fretsaw & done way more intricate cuts & in thick materials too.

Ok the bit you & maybe others are curious about, the cost .

The tools are worth it though as if looked after will last a long time, wasted a couple of aluminium panels & a load of acrylic but I chopped off the bent acrylic & kept the straight stuff for scrap & same with the aluminium so I have a decent reserve of scrap & excess materials now, I've got enough to do a premium ITX build with scrap alone , maybe a few.

Yeah the copper round & flat bars & 2 small sheets cost £70, if I'd have stuck with the alu fan bars the copper bill would have been £38 less.

Alu bars are cheap like £1 to £4 for 2 metre lengths but the chunky solid square bar is a little more expensive at about £10 for 2 metres, the 1000mm x 500mm x 3mm sheets are £22 on ebay which is way cheaper than the shop I used to buy alu from & they do a superior service.

The case alone without mistakes would cost.

Aluminium
1000x500x4 £38
1000x1000x3 £43
1000x500x3 £22
500x500x1 £7
Bars £34
£144

Acrylic
1000x500x5 £23
500x500x5 £12
3 1000x500x3 £14 each = £42
2 500x500x3 £7 each = £14
£91

Copper
2 12x600 round bars £19 each = £38
30x3x600 flat bar £14
2 3x150x100 £4.50 each = £9
1 2x200x200 £9
£70

Bolts
about £15 to £20

Helicoils
about £10

Case feet would have been £30 but I got sponsored by Bill Owen of MNPCtech

Holy sheeeeet £330 lol but would be £70 lighter if I didn't add copper.

And this is without postage costs, good grief I really went to town on this one lol , the original budget was around the price of a corsair 800D, well after this gets anodised it'll probably cost double lol deary me.

With 3 Enermax Apollish fans £40 --- 6 Enermax UCTB12 T.B. Silence fans £43 = £83 on fans
£413

Anodising on top which I'm waiting for the quote of that omg thanks for making me depressed , I'll get over it though & soon be enjoying an awesome case plus it kept the winter blues away , I'd dread to know what price tag manufacturers would put on a case like this probably about £2000 since that most expensive one on here is not much change of £500 & to me it really doesn't look £476 worth but each to their own .

I wouldn't want to know the damage with the mistakes or "learning process" as I like to call it but it can be like this when learning a new technique, better, cheaper & quicker than a college course though .

I'm pretty sure if I was to make another I could do it a heck of a lot faster & without any wasted material other than the cutoffs & to be honest I could easily trim down the material costs by using mesh instead of acrylic, I think I'd keep the aluminium the same though & instead of copper, polished aluminium anodised, believe I could trim cost while keeping quality high to about £200 & whatever the anodising costs on top so still a premium case but at a sane price, in fact I could get my own powder coating kit & do the finish myself for very little like less than £5.

I've not been wasting any money on games or anything so had the money there to get through this just about, I really never set out to be so dedicated to make an uber premium air cooled case but it's ended up as one sheesh.

And lets say I put 10 solid days of work into this since December which would be 2400 hours times by £5.60 would be £1344, wowzers but again I doubt I'd need anywhere near this many hours going into it if I made one I already made, once you have something mastered you can quickly do it the next time as you know exactly what your getting into .

Currently waiting for a price quote on the anodising, I chose a local place so hopefully I can do business with them & drop it off & pick it up.

 

[waynio]

Thanks for the comprehensive reply - and I couldn’t agree more with your ethos with regard to learning/experience compared to cost.



I think you do yourself a disservice with your hourly rate. If you were to include the designing aspect of the project and combine it with your engineering talents and power tool skills – I would be inclined to quadruple that figure.



With the above quote in mind, you could have quite the ‘cottage industry’ if you were able to fine tune your skills and quarter your build times through experience. I expect there may be quite a steady market for a case of that quality through these forums. I know I would have been interested 3 years ago - infact i would be sorely tempted now...

Best of luck!

Cheers mate, I'd have to keep getting the practice in & skills up to be anywhere near CNC production levels in fact it's a very silly idea to even try , CNC really whoops my rear in absolute precision & speed of work but I'll be able to do a few neat things once I get a router & master using it, make a selection of important jigs to make the most regular parts of a mod done easier, better & quicker.
But putting a price tag on a diy case is difficult, price of the materials would be minimal compared to the hours gone into it so even at min wage it could cost a lot, I mean I look at the current premium retail cases & nearly spat coffee at my screen from the shock lol so a grand & upwards seems insane unless it's to people with a lot of money & want a unique case without the effort & time needed to do it, maybe freelance design would be the way to go, then a client could get the parts made professionally.

MY god dude... you're still going strong ?

I took a break just after you start this .. come back and it's looking Fiiiine !

Grats and keep up good work .. makes me want to put down the Dremel and get me some CLAMPS !!!

Thanks OCD-OC .

Not to nitpick on your postings, but your labour total is missing a zero at the end

Ahh lols typo on the hours holy sheet imagine that 2400 hours , no it's 240 hours, this is a very rough guess btw but lol 2400 hours would indeed need another 0 .

 

[waynio]

Sanded the pci/io piece & primed it, I bought some copper paint to cover it - Toyota Copper metallic & Vauxhall Bright Copper metallic so hopefully between the 2 I can make it look somewhere near the look of copper, was either this or black & since the back panel is going to be black I'd have a go at copper paint, how I left it last night I really wasn't sure about it but I think it turned out pretty good .

The copper came yesterday & wow it weighs a lot compared to aluminium (never worked with it before), on the sheet copper though the place sent correct sizes for 2 of the pieces but what should have been a 200x200x2 piece was the same as the other 150x100 sheets so just ordered another sheet & sorted it with the ebayer to refund the difference with free postage.

Printed out the layout for the cut-outs & drill marks & cut the patterns out & stuck them on with cello tape lol it worked though I also pre drilled the curve bars, I'll still need to file slots out of the motherboard tray to take the underside tabs.

Here is all the tabs & the optical tray cover to a basic cut done on the power fretsaw I got it out & messed around with it & wow, wish I did sooner lol it will change the way I mod quite a bit in future mods .

Test fit of the 2 full length tabs.

All of them with perfectly flat edges & rounded corners.

And a finishing shot for this session of the copper pieces with the pci/io piece , for the tabs I still need to do the underside ones in aluminium & polish the copper & aluminium then the tabs are done, also got to make the copper vents where the vents in the acrylic is, might be tricky as they'll have to be a very good fit & perfect faint curve but it's copper & it's easy to shape when hot as I accidentally found out .

I didn't get around to phoning the anodising place but will do on Monday.

 

[waynio]

it looks like it's going to be amazing!

Thanks GJS1 .

Don't remember the Periodic Table from all those Science lessons then?

Science lessons? lol I don't remember learning anything in the science classes I had 17+ years ago hehe .

 

[waynio]

Aluminium underside tabs.

Printed same template & stuck with cello tape, spot drilled, drilled, tapped, cut, put helicoils in & got all the edges straight & gave them all a bevelled edge & mounted to the case, need 2 people to put the window in so left that out for the time being .

They still need sanding & polishing & 1 of the full length copper bars or aluminium bars need re doing as 1 of them doesn't line up 100%.