hardnrg Posted July 16, 2008 Posted July 16, 2008 Like the stupid TV show, Cold Case, bringing a case (mod) back from the dead, with many (obvious and inevitable) twists and turns Ok, I'm bored of trying to make the Cold Case connection... basically as many of you know I started on a simple, yet extensive, case mod of my Chieftec Mesh Bigtower including a full strip-down, de-rivet, and some bodywork including aluminium mesh and body filler, orbital sanding, windows cutting, *full* paint job of entire case including plastic parts, vinyl masked painted graphics, etc etc... In theory, there's not much left to do... complete the side panels and the front bezel/door and other plastic parts, which is mostly clear-coating and mounting the window... So, here's a mini update on the left panel. Here's my panel, which has been cut, sanded, had bodywork to add material around the handle part. Maybe you forgot or didn't see this the first time, so here is what happened... Cut the window holes with a jigsaw: Used fibreglass, aluminium mesh and bodyfiller to create material around the door handle, and sanded flat: Prime, painted: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardnrg Posted July 16, 2008 Posted July 16, 2008 So, I got a piece of polycarbonate sheet (Lexan) that was almost the right size, and just needed a bit trimmed off for internal clearance of the hard drive rails, and a bit off round the handle, bit off one of the edges so it wasn't too tall... I marked out the panel, measuring and re-measuring, marking and remarking, double-checking it many times and then finally putting layers of tape down along the cut lines, also to protect the surface during cutting a bit more than the single peelable sheet that the Lexan comes with... A lot of people ask, "how do you cut Plexiglass?" Well, it's actually really really easy, all you need is some jigsaw blades made for sheet metal, and they will cut acrylic and polycarbonate sheet (Plexiglass/Perspex/Lexan) with ease. On my packet of blades it even says plastic on the front: Then I use my fixed speed 300W cheapo jigsaw and cut away. On the straight sections I could just cut continuously, moving forward slowly like a snail and the cut was very clean and easy. For the curved section it was easy to "ride" the trigger to effectively get a lower speed - this was easier to control when trying to turn sharply. And, so hey presto, here's the window cut to size, showing how it will fit inside the panel: At the back of my case, there are two 120mm exhausts, one in the "normal" position above the I/O plate, and this is over to one side with a Swiftech RadBox bolted to it on the outside, so it meant I had to cut out a section for extra clearance of the rubber washer and rubber seals around this area. Piece of cake with the jigsaw. Scuffed up the paintwork a bit, but really, I'm not bothered with paint damage on the rear lip of the panel, certainly not bothered enough to respray it lol. I think I'm going to wash the panels and parts now so that they are ready to clearcoat tomorrow... In case you are wondering what the other panel looks like, here's a reminder: Lots of clearcoating to do, you should see the amount of parts... That's like half of the parts Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Compxpert Posted July 16, 2008 Posted July 16, 2008 Nice. So after how many years you might actually finish it this year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Verran Posted July 16, 2008 Posted July 16, 2008 Nice. So after how many years you might actually finish it this year. Took the words out of my mouth! I remember you started this whole project about the same time I started my Armor modding... about two years ago!!! Seriously though, it's looking good. It's about time you got back on this thing! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingdingeling Posted July 16, 2008 Posted July 16, 2008 So how many years until you finally finish it? Someone cut his internet cord :lol: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardnrg Posted July 16, 2008 Posted July 16, 2008 Yeah... 2 years ago Ryan lol... been running with no panels for that long... kinda good because I've been constantly messing with the guts of my main rig during this time for upgrades and RMAs... I'm looking forward to having it completed... I'm moving house at the end of August so it needs to be done before then, I'm not moving the panels and parts separately again Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queenz Posted July 16, 2008 Posted July 16, 2008 Nice job just one question. When you spray paint those and everything can the paint come off easily after you painted it, like if the case gets scratched or something? btw I can see in that last pic you must not care about the bathroom because there is paint on the sink lol But then again your moving so it must not matter Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardnrg Posted July 17, 2008 Posted July 17, 2008 It's paint dust/overspray, the paint dries in the air and becomes dust... those pics are from two years ago when I did the bulk of the work and turned by bathroom into a workshop / paint-booth After about 3-4 coats of primer, 7+ coats of colour, 5+ coats of clear, it doesn't flake off, but you can scratch it pretty easy with a screwdriver or like, the metal hose clips I use are quite effective at scratching it up lol... If I do another full case, I'll almost certainly get the metals parts powder-coated by a paint shop, and the rest painted with auto paint from a paint gun... rattle-cans was a test of patience for the size of the case and number of parts... if you've ever used rattle-cans on a car, you'll know how it can take forever when you do more than just a small patch or panel Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardnrg Posted July 17, 2008 Posted July 17, 2008 So, last night I thought it would be a good idea to wash all the parts to be dirt and grease free, and thought, "hey, I could clearcoat everything now, and leave the extractor fan on overnight to take all the paint fumes out instead of having a toxic lounge/kitchen during the day" Woke up and everything seemed cured with just a hint of cellulose in the air (unlike last night when I needed a paint mask to watch TV lol) When I first got the case, the front panel was damaged on the top right corner, so I got a replacement shipped to me, this is handy for spare parts as there are about 30-50 parts in the front panel/door... Here you can see the original panel/door on the left (supposedly black/silver) and my painted panel/door on the right (actually black): The USB/audio/Firewire ports replaced: The original panel has a space for a 92mm fan, but I think this is used in other models with different vents on the front instead of the mesh. I cut out a hole for the fan, you can see where the screw holes are, already molded in the bezel. Because the mesh and foam/sponge sheet are very close to the fan, it would mean the fan hub and blades would be pressing against the foam sheet, so I cut out a hole to allow the fan to fit without clearance issues. So, with the mesh in place, this is what it looks like now. With the flash on, you can get a sort of x-ray view. And so, a before-and-after view of the lower section of the front panel, along with the drive bay covers. I guess next is mounting fans (5 of them) to the right side panel... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queenz Posted July 17, 2008 Posted July 17, 2008 Excellent paint job man!! :thumbs-up: So everything is going black right? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardnrg Posted July 17, 2008 Posted July 17, 2008 Yeah... the only part that isn't black is the right panel design, and the hard drive rails (red): Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queenz Posted July 17, 2008 Posted July 17, 2008 It'll look badass with the red & black theme btw how come you only got one fan on your rad Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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