Motorized Madness

[rendermandan]

As many of you know, I just finished my Water Cooled Turbine Project. I have been designing a case to mount it to. Well the time has come to start this project. I am calling it "Motorized Madness". Simply put, there will be several panels on the case that will be motorized to reveal objects, fans, controls etc. Some panels will be hidden, and some will be obvious.

The most electronically challenging part of this mod will be to integrate all the motorization with a servo controller and have them automatically open on windows start and close on windows shutdown. I have already placed orders for some of the equipment I will be using such as a clear acrylic case,

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/11-166-033-02.jpg

I have begun the 3d model sketch to help layout objects and how everything is going to work. here are some screen shots.

Overall case with turbine mounted on top. Note, all doors and panels are in closed position.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/case-closed.jpg

Here is the case with the doors in the open position. you will notice there is a large round hole on the side of the case. That is actually a window that opens up to the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/case-open.jpg

Here we see the round case window, a small temperature monitor that gets revealed by a panel that slides up, the front intake fan that is covered by 3 panes that rotate. A flip down accesory panel for the fan controller and switches, and the stealthed dvd tray.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/case-open3.jpg

Here are some other shots:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/case-open4.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/case-open5.jpg

On the top of the front panel there is a door that hinges upward (Inside) that opens the channel for the air to the dual 120mm radiator.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/case-open2.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/case-open6.jpg

The entire case is going to be covered in panels similar to the Turbine, however I won't have to run el wire as I did on the turbine because of the clear case. there will be cold cathode lights on the inside that will shine thru the slots and gaps in the panel that I build. This way I can have the openengs go around corners and have much more interesting patterns. In fact, most of the clear case will be covered. I will airbrush and paint the case similar to the turbine as well. Obviously more kit bashing and the industrial look is in order.

The round opening window will prove to be the most mechanically challenging portion of this project as I cannot find this item anywhere, I've only seen it in movies, so I wll need to build it from scratch.

Hope everyone likes my design, If you have any suggestions or ideas to make it better, please let me know.

[rendermandan]

I forgot to mention, I also ordered a dual 120 mm Danger Den Black Ice Extreme II radiator.

http://www.dangerden.com/store/product.php?productid=2&cat=5&page=1

I figured I'd need this to cool my video card.

here is the servor contoller I am looking at getting.
http://www.lynxmotion.com/Product.aspx?productID=395&CategoryID=52
I'll have to wait untill payday to order it. but it has the ability to control up to 32 servos, with full postition and speed control. Programming it could be PITA though.

[rendermandan]

That circular opening on the side is killer.. like the iris in a lens. Might be a p.i.t.a. to make, but will be super cool to see. :D

Thanks for the term IRIS. I was trying to come up with what to call it, and you hit it on the head! +Rep to you.

here is a screenshot of the cad file I desinged to make it work
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/iris.jpg

I'm going to make the framwork out of plastic sheet and the iris parts themselves will be laser cut out of thin aluminum. I think I'm going to add more blades than the 14 I designed. By addign more, I can make them thinner and therefore get a larger diameter opening without making the frame larger.

[Spawn-Inc]

Hey Rendermandan. I just found your turbine project this morning. Now I'll be able to say I got in on the first post now.

On a different note. For the Iris. I was thinking about something that would work. But I forgot it by the time I got here. But an old style vegitable steamer that sits in the pan and has sides that fold still comes to mind. You could mod that piece and use some of the original design since it comes in a round shape to begin with. I hope that little bit helps.

i believe you mean this...

http://fantes.com/images/6096steamers.jpg

http://www.johnlewis.com/jl_assets/product/230398163.jpg

my parents use one. i think he wants it flat so this would open up and stick out. also it would be harder to open and close that. i think the only way to use this would be with some cables pushing in and out. though it would be neat to hide a big red button under it, like a power switch.

[rendermandan]

Wow, I can tell you guys are really excited! The case and dvd burner should arrive today. I talked to my buddy who has the laser etcher about cutting out the parts for the iris with that. he said we could do it, but not untill next week. -I guess that gives me a little more time to refine the design.

Luke, you are exactly right on how this is designed, the pins toward the inside are the static pivot points and the ring around the outside is what rotates all the blades simultaneously.

Spawn, -I can see where you thought there were shutters for the radiator. that was actually the radiator fins that you saw in the pic. -I just didnt' model the all the fins. -I was planning to cover the outside with the large
round hole mesh I used on the turbine. But great idea though, I might have to look into that. :)

I should have some pics of the case up tonight, and hopefully get started on construction this weekend. Have to go buy some more sytrene first. -ALOT MORE!

[rendermandan]

Well, my wallet is now $200 lighter. -I just ordered the servo contoller, 6 servos, power supply and a bunch of hardware from http://www.lynxmotion.com/ViewPage.aspx?ContentCode=Home


here is the servo controller I ordered. It controls can control up to 32 servos.
-6 will be enough (right now).
http://www.lynxmotion.com/Product.aspx?productID=395&CategoryID=52

Man-I'm really broke now, and I still have to buy styrene.

[rendermandan]

ok, here is a revised drawing of the iris. I upped the panes to 20 and added the servo mount
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/finaliris.jpg

The overall diamater of the entire structure is 12". this will give me a 8" dia opening when completly opened.

Not sure how much torque it will need. -Hopefully not alot.

[rendermandan]

Ok, here we go.

the case and dvd drive arrived yesterday. Last night I put the case together and started doing some work.

Here is the case, all tightly packed in this box. -This is how they actually shipped it to.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2531.jpg

after an hour or so, here it is assembled.

Man, what a NICE case! this thing is gorgeous. every edge is polished and smooth. If anyone want to get a clear case and leave it clear, this is the case to get! -Its a shame to see it get cut up and mostly covered.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2534.jpg

and just for a before shot, here is the case with the water cooling turbine on top:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2536.jpg

When starting a project like this, its hard to figure out where to get started, so I decided to do some easy stuff first.

I cut off the mounting tabs for the front movable 120 mm fan bracket.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2537.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2538.jpg

Then I used a cutoff wheel on my dremel and trimmed out the bottom of the front panel where the usb and power switches are usually.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2539.jpg

The idea is to have the fan as low as possible.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2540.jpg

I made a box to frame and set its depth. This box will help me to mount and form the 3 doors on the front.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2541.jpg

Here it is with the fan:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2542.jpg

Thats about it for now. I'm still waiting on about 4 packages that won't be here untill next week. Then I can really get started on this. Mostly right now I have to buy more styrene plastic and wait on the hardware.

Later!

[rendermandan]

Sorry to keep you guys in suspense, I've been working on the Iris this weekend and have been getting frustrated. Its not turning out to work very well. I'll have some pictures and possible, If I can get it to work, some video of the Iris in action tomorrow. It takes too long to upload a 10mb file from my home computer, So I'll updated tomorrow from work.

Just so you don't get your hopes up, Its not finished yet, and It may never be, you'll see why tomorrow. :mad:
I may have to redesign it, or come up with a different window mod.

[rendermandan]

ok, here's whats been happening. This part is good!

I finished making the doors for the front intake fan.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2544.jpg

Here they are opened.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2545.jpg

and the back side to show the hinges:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2546.jpg

Then I made the mechanism at the top to open them:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2548.jpg

I'll have to hold here till my servos come in today.

NOW, here is the start of the IRIS.

(20) Identical vanes.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2552.jpg

I laid them out on a patter to get the feel for things.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2551.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2553.jpg

Then I cut out and made the mounting plate:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2559.jpg

Here are the vanes on the mounting plate:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2561.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2558.jpg

Then I made the movment ring:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2563.jpg

Here you can see it all assembled:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2564.jpg

here is a closeup of the pins
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2565.jpg

here it is opened:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2568.jpg

Here it is closed: THIS IS WHAT I'M PISSED ABOUT!!!!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2570.jpg

It doesn't close correctly. there are huge gaps! What I've found, even after about 3 hours of adjusting the hole locations, is that everything must be identical and perfectly aligned, with no slop or play whatsoever. everythign was hand cut to the best of my ability to get them exaclty the same, but even the slightest offset or hole drilled sligtly incorrectly, will cause this. Everything has to be too perfect to make this work.

here is a video so you guys can see it in action.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/th_100_2567.jpg (http://s65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/?action=view&current=100_2567.flv)

I'm not sure where to go on from this point on this part of the mod. I may have to redesign the whole thing from how many vanes to the actuall shape of the vanes and its size. Also, I may have to seriously look into having this laser cut out.

Today, I should get my servos and controller, so that will give me something to play around with for a few days. There is not point in building all this stuff if I can't get the servos to work, so I will concentrate on getting that setup for now.

Later, Dan

[rendermandan]

Render - Don't give up man! I'm sure we can brainstorm something between everyone here! Honestly, I don't have any ideaon how to improve upon what you have already made. I doubt I could even get it to the point it is now! Maybe you should find an old camera, and take it apart. study the shutter and see how it is constructed. Maybe if you made less vanes? What if it were 4 or 5 main vains instead of 20? That would at least leave a little more room for error (as in - not needing to be laser-accurate..)

-Jeremy

Good suggestion Minty, However here is what happens with less vanes. The fewer vanes you have, the thicker they have to be to cover the gap from one vane to the other. So if they are real thick (wide) then when they open, they can only open as far untill they hit the pin of the next vane. This wil make the opening smaller because they are wider. That is why I went to 20 and they were very thin, I think I just have to find a happy medium between number of vanes and width to how large of an opening.

I have an idea about cutting a notch on the back side of the vane to fit around the pin of the adjacent vane though. I'm working on drawing that up
but I think I will still need the laser cutting. I actually isn't that hard to do, My friend is a teacher at a local high school, and they have a laser etcher that will cut through thin material. I might have to give him a call. They also have a rapid prototyper too. That thing is kick ass!

[rendermandan]

Thanks you guys, I talked to my buddy with the laser etcher, he said we should be able to do it but in a few weeks. they are just getting classes started and he wanted to wait till things settle down. So for now, I'll just work on another part of it.

I got he electronics from Lynxmotion.com and I have to say, I'm very impressed. The shipping was very fast! The packaging was impecable. they used very heavy clear plastic bags that had every part I ordered sealed in its own "pouch" and very clearly labled. -Everything was accounted for and in good order. -I would recommend buying from them to anyone!

Here is the hardware I purchased: there is alot!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2576.jpg

here is a usb to serial cable I ordered from newegg.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2571.jpg

Here is the pouch of 6 servos that I orderd. here are the specs:
Speed: 0.23 sec/60° @ 4.8V
Torque: 4.4 kg-cm (61 oz-in) at 4.8V
Length: 38.8mm (1.52")
Width: 19.8mm (0.77")
Height: 36.0mm (1.41")
Weight: 40g (1.41oz)

I couldn't find specs for 6.0v which is what I'm running them at. so the torque and speeds are actually higher than listed.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2572.jpg

Here is it all put together. You see the SSC-32 Controller, The serial to usb cable, a power cable with switch that plugs into a 6V wall adapeter that I didnt' show, and 2 of the servos.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2575.jpg

Programming it was very easy and almost worked the first time around. it didn't because I had the baud rating set wrong, but once I changed a jumper on the board, everyting started to work like a charm.

I sat down and wrote 2 text files. one called open, and one called close.
it was simple 2 line code that simply told the servo where to go and at what speed. thats it.

here is the open code:

#1 P1500 S1000
#3 P1500 S1000

the close is basically the same only with different numbers.

then I wrote two batch files that I loaded into the local computer policy startup and shutdown scripts. that simply send the open and close text files to the com port.

thats it. when I start my computer and it goes into the welcome screen to ask for the user name and password, the 2 servos go to the open position.

then when I shut down, during the time where windows says "saving system settings" there is another one now called running scripts. And that is when the servos move to the close position.

What is cool about this, is I can have it completly automated to open and close all doors automaticaly without hitting anything.

But If I wanted to control something indepentantly, i could. all I have to do is write a .txt file and a batch file. then when i click on the batch file, it will do whatever I want it to. KICK ASS!!!!

I do need to give the good people over at lynxmotion a very large THANK YOU! for helping me get this running and figure all this out. here is a link to the forum Thread I started so they could help me.
http://www.lynxmotion.net/viewtopic.php?t=2710
If anyone has any questions about motorization or robotics, these guys should be able to help you, they were just as friendly as the people on this forum.

I'm so glad this works... Now, let the modding begin!

[rendermandan]

should look great when you get some more of it together.

Thanks, I've been holding off doing alot of building untill I was sure that the servos would work. I'd hate to go through all that work only to find out I couldn't motorize anything at the end. But now that I know the servos work like I want, I can really start to build all the parts.

the first part of the build, just like the doors and iris is going to be building all the moving parts, doors and windows, I will also work on mounting the 240mm radiator. then I will work on dressing everyting up and making it look good. and lastly, like everyting will come the painting.

[rendermandan]

Edit: WOOT!!!! 500th post!

Here is what I got done last night.

This is the servo and hardware to actuate the doors.
It includes 4/40 threaded rod, (2) ball ends, and (2) ball joints that will screw into the servo arm and object to be moved. the ball joints allow a full swivel and IMO are the best solution.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2577.jpg

I cut a hole in the side of the drive support to allow the actuator arm to extend through to where I am going to mount the servo.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2578.jpg

here is the servo mount I made:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2579.jpg

and here it is installed:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2580.jpg

after adjusting the length of the actuator arm, here it is in the closed position:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2581.jpg

and opened position:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2582.jpg

Then I started on making the frame for the flip down switch panel:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2589.jpg

that is all I got done last night.
Later!

[rendermandan]

Last night I worked on making the flip down switch panel.

here it is in the closed position:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2590.jpg

and here it is opened.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2591.jpg

I then mounted it in the case:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2592.jpg

You can see i used the drive mounting slots to mount it.
I also cut a notch to allow the actuator arm to extend into the space beside the drive bays for the servo:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2593.jpg

Here it is in the case opened:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2594.jpg

I cut a hole to mount the servo in the case:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2595.jpg

Then I connected it with linkage the same as the doors below:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2596.jpg

Opened:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2597.jpg

Then I mounted the DVD burner above it. -ONLY I realized when I assembled the case at the start, I installed the drive rails upside down. So the screw slots did not match the drive. Oh well, since I only have 1 drive, I just drilled my own holes to mount the dvd burner.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2598.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2599.jpg

Up next is the 240mm radiator mount, cut a hole in the side of the case for it, and making the louvered shaft for the air vent at the top. FUN FUN!!!!

Edit: I also gave a couple sample pieces of plastic to my friend with the laser cutter to test and see how hard it will be to cut out parts for the Iris. Keep your fingers crossed!

[rendermandan]

hi,

i like so much the idea of the motorized IRIS. I have found a link i think will be usefull. they produce metal iris and they show in their web site how the iris work. You can see the design to improbe your iris.

http://www.wilkes-iris.com/flashIris/iris.htm

dont stop modding :twisted:

Wow, Nice find! Those are some pretty cool Iris designs. I'm not sure exactly how some of them work. in all the examples the part that moves with the handle makes sense, but it passes over the top of another pin. -confused on that, How does a pin pass through the blade below it? and the other end seems to be free floating. I don't understand what makes it move the way it does. almost moves in a circular pattern. But nice find anyway. Thanks! +rep


As for the other suggestions. Thanks, I really appreciate your guys input. I have redesigned the blades so they have 3 times more overlap than before and will still yield the same size opening. I designed them wider so there would be more material that overlaps each other. that way it should account for the "Slop" in the pins. I am still going to laser cut them when I get back from a work trip on week of the 10th. I've been working on the radiator mount and fans for the top. I should have some pics up later tonight. I'm still undecided about the door for it.

Later!

[rendermandan]

i also see that the iris dont close at all.

It is impossible to make one close clompletly due to the thickness of the material. at the center the more layers there are the hard the push against each other to form an overlapping circle. Think about it this way, if you were to lay a bunch of quarters in a circle and have the first one overlap the last one, then by the time you got around to the beginning, everyone would be slanted, or sloped (hope that makes sense).

Don't worry guys, I'll figure it out! That is a promise!!!!

[rendermandan]

Finally, an update! this is a big one.

I've been working on this the past few nights, so its more than just one's nights work.

I cut out a mounting plate for the radiator:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2601.jpg

then I built the air box that will direct the hot air out of the case:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2602.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2603.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2604.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2605.jpg

Here it is in the case:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2606.jpg

Installed some fans:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2611.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2612.jpg

Cut a hole in the drive bay mounting bracket so the air would flow throught:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2613.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2614.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2615.jpg

Then I cut 14 louvers for the door:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2610.jpg

here are the louvers in place:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2620.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2621.jpg

Opened:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2624.jpg


Then i cut and drilled a piece of plastic for the actuator arm:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2625.jpg

closed:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2627.jpg

Opened:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2629.jpg

here you can see all the small pieces I had to make with the actuator arm:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2630.jpg

I had to heat and bend the actuator arm to fit in the case:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2631.jpg

I had to mark and cut an area out of the case to make this work:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2632.jpg

and here it is sitting properly:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2634.jpg

Closed, you can see the servo I mounted to motorize this:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2636.jpg

opened:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2637.jpg

[rendermandan]

Wow, only allowed 25 images per post. -That sucks.

Then I added some panels to cover the gaps in the front. The front will be kit bashed so having multiple levels and layers will work to my advantage:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2639.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2640.jpg

Then I mounted the radiator to the fans:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2644.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2645.jpg

Lastly I placed the side cover on to mark for the hole I have to cut. the hole will fit around the radiator as it sticks out of the side slightly. -this is intentional, I'm going to make a cover that goes over it and will be mounted to the side panel. but I want to make the side panel removable without having to take the radiator out.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2646.jpg

here is a shot with the defunct iris approx where I'm going to install it. the Idea is to have the iris over the cpu area.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2647.jpg

thats it for now.

[rendermandan]

Mate that looks fantastic, all the hot air wont warm up the components, great idea. Is that Barbie I see on the T.V :0, You don't have a secret do you dan? lol

LOL, I have no idea what that was. probably a commercial or something. my son was watching Sponge Bob Square pants while I was working. I don't really pay attention to what is on tv, I just have it on for background noise.

-funny that that caught YOUR interest though! :think:

[rendermandan]

You're using styrene for most of the work now, right? Where'd you get it, locally, internet? Know of any hardware stores that carry it?

Yes, I'm using Styrene, I've found that for anything that would require some type of structural integrity, I should use styrene. for the decorative stuff I'm going to use matt board, much cheaper and easier to cut!

I bought the sheets at a local place called Hobby town. They sell all kinds of modeling supplies as well as remote controlled stuff. planes, cars, trains etc.

FYI, I will be gone for at least 10 days. my work is sending me to Sunny SanFrancisco for a job. So untill I get back, sadly this will have to be put on hold.

Later!

[rendermandan]

I'm new to the forum bought saw your iris and had to post. I know in woodworking if we need identical peices we stick them all together and cut and sand it as one piece. I'm not sure if this is possible with styrene though having never used it

That is a good point. In fact I have tried that method but what happens with Styrene is it the thicker the material gets, the hotter it makes the blade when you cut it, then at a certain point, it just starts to melt the styrene together, then you have a real mess!

Thanks though. and Welcome to TBCS!

[rendermandan]

Finally the long awaited update!!!


I picked right up where I left off.
Because the Radiator will stick out of the side of the case sligtly, I traced the perimeter of the radiator on the side panel. -Man working with clear material really makes this easy!!!

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2734.jpg

Then I cut it out.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2735.jpg

And here it is on the case. You can see how much it sticks out.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2739.jpg

The idea is to build a cover that goes over the radiator. but you can still remove the side panel without taking the radiator out. -That will make it much easier to work on.

Then I turned my attention to the hard drive mounts.
Here is the one that came with the sunbeam case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2743.jpg

I turned the case upside down. So your looking at the bottom of the case in this one. -I drilled some holes to mount the verticle drive sides to the bottom.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2748.jpg

but I decided that I would never need 5 spaces. so to make some room, I cut them down shorter.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2749.jpg

Then I simply screwed them to the bottom of the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2750.jpg

here it is with a old defunct hard drive as a test fit. I have room for 2 drives.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2751.jpg

Next up was the fan controller. Here is the one out of my current case:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2752.jpg

I took off the bay cover I made earlier. and made a new on out of styrene.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2754.jpg

The idea here is to have it motorize out of the side of the case in a tilting motion. The servo will be mounted to one side of the verticle arms.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2755.jpg

here is the servo horn attached to the side piece.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2756.jpg

And here it is on all together.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2758.jpg

The last part I did for the night was to round off the bottoms of the verticle legs.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2759.jpg

I still have to assemble it, mount it, cut the hole in the side of the case etc. etc.

Untill next time.... Happy modding :)

[rendermandan]

ok, here is another update.

I decided that I needed to remake the side bars for the fan controller. i shouldn't have rounded both ends. so i made these:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2760.jpg

here they are installed on the fan controller. -I had to make them longer due to the sides, front and back because of the depth of the knobs and switches.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2761.jpg

Then I made the mounting plate for the bottom:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2762.jpg

I added some gussets for strength and to limit flexing of the mounts.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2763.jpg

This is where it will go in the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2765.jpg

Then I laid the side cover over it and drew an outline as to where the cut the panel:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2768.jpg

here it is cut out. -the bottom of the panel is cut at an angle due to the motion of the panel. the top angles out, but the bottom angles inward.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2770.jpg

here it is mounted with the side panel:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2771.jpg

here it is angled out.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2772.jpg

closed:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2773.jpg

opened:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2774.jpg

And here it is with the clear side panel mounted to it. -Its clear because I want light to be able to transmit through. but most will be covered.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2775.jpg

That is one more motorized part done. Now its on to the IRIS and one other item. I have to include usb ports, a SD media card reader, and I'd like to include a water temperature gauge somewhere, but I'm not sure what to do to motorize it. anyone have any ideas? Ive got lots of room directly above the fan controller. I was thinking about a tube that motorizes out from the side of the case...
I was thinking about getting one of these: http://www.xoxide.com/thermaltake-t-type-water-temperature-indicator.html anyone have any experience with it?

Later!

[rendermandan]

I placed my order for the Thermaltake temp monitor and a few 120mm turbine fans that I'm going to replace the fans in the turbine mod. They look alot more like a turbine than the ones I had. here are the ones I ordered. http://www.xoxide.com/aerocool-xtreme-turbine-2000-black.html

Now I just have to figure out how I'm going to motorize the temperature monitor panel along with a sd media card reader and some usb ports. -Any ideas???? I'm open to any new ideas. I'm trying to do something different with each motorized item.

[rendermandan]

Thanks Spawn,

Sorry its been taking so long for an update. My Chron's flared up and I haven't been feeling well. But after another Cat scan and $80 in meds, I'm starting to feel better.... That is untill the next flare up.

So as promised, here is an update.

I measured and drilled 4 holes and mounted some stud in the back side of the drive rack. They are kind of hard to pick out in the picture but if you look close, you can see them.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2790.jpg

These studs are to mount the servo controller.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2791.jpg

I came up with an idea for how to motorize the temperature monitor, USB ports, Reset switch, SD Media card reader etc. -Basically, I wanted a panel that would move and be replaced with an identical panel only with the stuff mounted to it. I thought about haveing doors open, then pull back and have the panel exposed, or move forward, or whatever. Then I just decided to have a triangular panel rotate around that had the same size. So I started with 2 Equilateral Triangular pieces.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2776.jpg

Then I found the center and drilled some holes.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2777.jpg

I mounted a servo horn, just like I did for the fan controller.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2778.jpg

Then I had to remove a large section of the drive bay support to mount the servo. here it is in its location (un mounted).
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2780.jpg

I then made 2 panels and glued it together. This is one side.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2781.jpg

This is the "Back" side. Its left open to mount the objects and for wireing.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2782.jpg

Then I made some servo mounts.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2786.jpg

And finally mounted it to the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2788.jpg

Here it is with the panel attached.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2789.jpg

I still have to make a mount for the other side to pivot on so it won't Flop around.

Here is an overall shot of everything in the case. FYI Its lying on the front of the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2793.jpg

Thats all I got done last night. It was getting late so I decided to leave off there.

Later!

[rendermandan]

I"m really glad you guys like it!!!! and thank you to all who have +repped me.


Small update today.

I built a small verticle support for the end of the rotating panel.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2794.jpg

Then I laid the clear side over to mark out where to cut the openeing.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2795.jpg

5 minutes later with a dremel, and Voila. an opening cut in the panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2799.jpg

Here you can see it in the closed position with the panel on.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2800.jpg

here you can see it with it opened partially. -Fully opened looks the same as it is when closed.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2801.jpg

Then for lateral stability, I cut a small section of the scrap from part of the case that had one of those brass threaded inserts in it and glued it to the side. then I drilled and counter sunk a hole in the side of the case. This will hold the end so it doesnt move front to back.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2803.jpg

and here it is with the screw in it.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2805.jpg

Ok, that part is done. -I'm still waiting on my Temperature monitor that UPS says will be deliverd on Monday. I then can mount it and the the other stuff in the panel. Untill then, the only thing I really have to work on is the IRIS. but I'm still waiting on my buddy witht he laser cutter. I'm at his mercy so I don't know when that will get done.

I suppose I could start to work cleaning things up, mounting the power switch, switches in the front, remote dvd eject button, lights, mounting the turbine, painting, fan wireing, programing the controller, blah blah blah. Crap, I have alot to do!!!!!!!!!

[rendermandan]

Hey guys,

Just another small update today. I'm still waiting on that delivery so I decided to work the remote eject button for the dvd burner, and stealth it. I removed the cover off the drive and located the 2 solder joints that I needed to solder wires to.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2836.jpg

I will hook these wires up to a switch located in motorized panel.

Then I cut a face plate for the front.
Here are the 3 pieces. the top piece is a spacer for the drawer.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2837.jpg

Glued it to the front of the drive.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2838.jpg

and here it is with the drawer closed.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2839.jpg

and ejected.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2840.jpg

Then I simply mounted it back in the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2842.jpg

Currently it is still a rectangular panel, but I will add onto that later.


Thats it for now.

[rendermandan]

Finally my package arrived. I ordered a thermaltake temperature monitor and 2 turbine fans to replace the ones in the turbine. Man do they look sweet. They will really add to the "look" of the turbine! not to mention 2 of them on the radiator is going to push some serious air. 89CFM each. -I'm going to take the 2 thermaltake fans I have on there now and move them to the 240mm radiator in the case. then take those case fans (the sunbeam ones) and put on in the rear of the case. I also have another thermaltake fan to use in the front intake of the case. I wont' be able to get to it tonight because of Bowling so I should get to work on it tuesday night.

Today I placed an order for some black sleeving, a vandal resistand bulgin power switch and some water cooling fittings. I also had to get some servo extension wires for a couple of the servos. :)

Later.

[rendermandan]

lol, sorry. right now its 1:46 pm. -in addition to the IRIS parts, I'm working on some final layouts of stuff I'm going to have laser cut. Might as well get as much cut as possible while I can.

[rendermandan]

I have some good news and some bad news.

First the good news. here is an update on the progress.

Here is what I got in the mail yesterday. 2 turbine fans to replace the thermaltake fans in the turbine mod. and the Water temperature monitor.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2843.jpg

I replaced the fans in the Turbine Mod. I think the fins really make it look more like a turbine.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2846.jpg

Next are the electronics that I'm going to mount in the side motorized panel.
It consits of a SD Media card reader, USB ports and reset switch and the Temperature Monitor.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2847.jpg

So I started to layout the placement on the panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2848.jpg

then I cut the holes.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2849.jpg

I then glued the media card reader and added some gussets for support to the back side.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2851.jpg

Then I cut the switch board that came with the case kit to seperate the usb ports.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2852.jpg

and I mounted them in the panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2853.jpg

here is the back side.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2854.jpg

next I de-soldered one of the reset switches.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2855.jpg

and mounted it in the panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2856.jpg

Here it is will everything so far.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2857.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2858.jpg

and I reinstalled it back in the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2861.jpg

I stil lhave to install a HDD light and some more status monitors like maybe the dvd activity light and others. -Not sure about the design of those yet.

The last small thing I did was mount one of the nose caps that came with the turbine fans onto a thermaltake fan that will become the intake fan.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2862.jpg


Now for the bad news. The IRIS is not going to happen. Yesterday my Friend and I worked on getting the parts laser cut. Basically the machine is only a Laser etcher, not a cutter. Although it will cut through material, the time it would take and the number of passes would basically talk way too long.

there were 4 sheets total that needed to be cut. 2 sheets were .030 thick and 2 were .100 thick. We started with the .030 sheet. and after 20 minutes, it was only 1/4 of the way through the entire sheet. but that was just about 1/4 through the thickness as well. So if you run the numbers thats 80 minutes per pass X 4 passes = over 5 hours for 1 sheet. Now the .100 sheet is over 3 times as thick and would take all day to cut. so I'd be looking at around 3 days total of cutting. -keep in mind you can't tell it to run multiple passes, you have to tell it to send each pass after its done. I can't tell it to keep running all night long, and this is located at a High school on the other side of town for me. -So basically due to time restraints. I can't get the pieces cut.

Also, the piece it did etch. I noticed that the edges wern't smooth either. they were somewhat "Melted" from the laser. so I would have to sand everything down and I'd be back to where I started.

So my here are my 2 options. I can try and rebuild it from scratch and hope it works again using some other method of aligning the holes, or I can come up with a different idea to have a motorized cover over a window in my case that will still be cool, but not an Iris.

What do you guys think I should do?

[rendermandan]

small update. I got some more parts in the mail today. -power switch, sleeving kit, some elbow fittings, some servo extensions and some more hardware (nuts and washers).

I also picked up some clear printer sheets for making the button and switch iluminated labels.

FUN-FUN!

[rendermandan]

Ok, here is another update.

I worked on some of the labeling for the parts. I started with the fan controller. So I made a built a channel to enclose the leds.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2863.jpg

Then I made the lables. Basically these are laser printed onto clear printer sheets with sticky backing. then I stuck them to a translucent piece of plastic.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2865.jpg

here it is mounted in the panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2866.jpg

and here it is lit up. I only connected 1 fan but you should get the idea.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2867.jpg

and here it is back in the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2872.jpg


Next I turned my attention to the Hard drive activity light.

This time I just cut an opening in the panel and installed the label behind it.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2874.jpg

To illuminate it, I made a box with a hole in the back for an led.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2873.jpg

Then I just glued it behind the panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2875.jpg

While I was at it, I sleeved the led for the HDD.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2879.jpg

Lastly, I worked on the front switch panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2876.jpg

Using the same methods as before. here it is.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2878.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2881.jpg

The center switch is the dvd eject button. I still have to install the other switches as soon as I take them out of my current case. :)

Later,

[rendermandan]

Hope everyone had a good Productive weekend. I did.

I added a "Logo" to the monitor panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2884.jpg

and I installed the switches in the front panel. I still have to wire everyting up.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2887.jpg

Then I turned my attention to the side panel where the IRIS was going to go. I decided to go with a different idea. One that starts to show you guys what the overall theme of this case is about. Its called motorized madness, and when I think of Motors, I think of gears. So to continue that theme, I figured I might as well have some moving gears in the case. So I drew up some gears and made a "quarter" gear that will rotate out of the way to reveal the window behind. Here is the drawing.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2888.jpg

I cut it out using the scroll saw.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2889.jpg

Then I drilled a hole and mounted the servo to the side panel. This will be the only thing attached to the side panel that will have to be "unplugged" when I take of the panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2895.jpg

I added a thin sheet to the back side of the gear so it will hide the window.
here it attached to the servo.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2891.jpg

From the back side you can see where the window will be. -There are 2 fan holes that will have to be closed. So I cut a small piece to fill in the Gap where the fan openenign was. and Cut out the window opening.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2896.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2898.jpg

Then I cut a template and a piece of plexi to use for the window.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2900.jpg

Here you can see the plexi window glued into position, and then on the front, I glued the trim plate. so you don't see the joint. This view is from the back.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2901.jpg

Then to make it look more like a half gear, I cut out another one on the scroll saw for the bottome "Channel".

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2902.jpg

I added some sides to the bottom piece and glued it to the side panel. -Basically from the side, it looks like 1/2 of a gear, but the top rotates down into the "channnel" that is created .
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2903.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2905.jpg

Here is the side panel with everything closed.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2906.jpg

and now with everything open.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2907.jpg


I know alot of you are dissapointed that I coudn't get the iris to work. Believe me, I'm the most dissapointed. I tried building it 3 times and wasted about $40 in materials. but It just wouldn't close right. Every time It would be perfect in the opened position, and then get all screwed up when closed, or it wouldn't close at all. I gave a valiant effort, but at some time I had to say enough was enough and move on to a different idea. I hope everyone likes it. Its obviously a much simpler design and not as cool as the iris, but I think it ties to the theme of the case nicely.

So stay tuned. The moving panels and parts are completed, now comes the fun part of covering all of it, so you don't see it!

-Dan

[rendermandan]

Actually the labels were quite easy. I went to my local hobby lobby and picked up some clear printer label sheets with adhesive backing. -6 sheets for $10. then using photoshop I typed out the text and made a reverse image of it so the background would print black and not print the actuall lettering. Then I just printed them out and stuck them to a sheet of semi-translucent plastic. I think it was supposed to used to cut your own stencils. I got that at hobby lobby too. Then I just cut the shape to size and glued it on.

The black from the laser print looks pretty good. although i wish it were a little darker. you can kind of see through it a tada. but I can live with that. I also tried printing it twice to darken it up. but I had a hard time getting it to print in the exact spot each time. -Not sure how well it would do on an inject, or in color.

[rendermandan]

LOL, way ahead of you, here is one of my designs. The shaded areas would be windows or frosted windows as well!!! -Maybe now you understand why I started with an acrylic case?

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/gears.jpg

[rendermandan]

Thanks to all of you!

I've been working on the gears.
Here is the first one.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2914.jpg

I mounted it above the window opening and added a frosted sheet behind to give it that "translucent" feel. I also started to cover the panel where I dont' want light comming through. -Particularly around the radiator.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2917.jpg

I orderd some mesh from MNPCTECH.com for the Radiator cover. -That should get here tomorrow.
Then I worked on cutting out some more of the gears. All that detail takes some time to cut out.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2920.jpg

Thats it for now.

[rendermandan]

Thanks you guys!

-Wannabe, I'm using a scroll saw to cut all the gears. The holes are cut with drill bits and A stepped drill bit set.

Here is my progress over the weekend.

I covered the entire side in Thin sheets of styrene. I used tape to hold the piece there temporarily.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2922.jpg

Then I laid out where the gears would go.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2923.jpg

This process is the same for all the translucent gear parts.
-1st. I cut a circle slighly smaller than the gear.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2924.jpg

Then I frost the plexi in that area.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2925.jpg

Then I glue the gear over the top.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2926.jpg

Here you can see that there are 4 gears, (holes) that will be frosted and the rest will be just decoration.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2927.jpg

Here it is with all the gears applied.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2933.jpg

and opened.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2932.jpg

Next I worked on the cover for the Radiator.
I made some 1/2" tall sides to make a frame around the radiator.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2936.jpg

Then I cut a top trim piece.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2938.jpg

and I glued some Modders Mesh to the underside.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2940.jpg

then I glued the entire thing to the side panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2941.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2942.jpg

Remember, this panel is removable!
I still have to cut 2 more gears to go over the modders mesh as show in the sketch in a previous post.

Thats it for now. -Cheers!

[rendermandan]

Yeah, some of the gears are thicker than others. There are actually 3 different thickness there. Just hard do see due to the flash of the camera and that everything is the same white color. -I plan on painting everyting and the gears will stand out alot more once its painted. -It will follow my Turbine mod with the weathered and rusted look of an old machine. But thanks for your suggestion!

[rendermandan]

Sorry guys, Its been a few days and I haven't gotten much done. Been swamped at work and other stuff going on. so I just have a few pics today.

I cut out 2 more gears to go over the radiator.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2947.jpg

then I just glued them on.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2948.jpg

-Thats all I've gotten done. LOL. Sorry I know its not much, but hey, a little progress is at least some progress right?

[rendermandan]

Thanks again you guys for the support!

I got some odds and ends done this weekend. I started with the relay for servo controller. This will allow the controller to turn on and off with the computer. It has its own 6V power supply.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2985.jpg

And here is the power connector and manual switch to turn it on and off.
You can also see where I mounted the Water pump.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2986.jpg

Next I took the side panel off and filled some of the holes and gaps with filler.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2987.jpg

And then sanded them down.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2988.jpg

I also worked on the front switch panel. Here is the back side without much wiring. The wiring that is there is for the dvd eject tray.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2989.jpg

After appling 5v to 1 switch and 12v to the other 3, here is the wireing mess. I tried to add some black wire sleeving to clean things up. But I don't think I can get any better than this.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2990.jpg

After all the wireing was done. I added the led lights to light up the panel.
These got wired in directly to the power comming into the panel.
-I also replaced the styrene bars that make the hinges of the panel with some Carbon Fiber bars. The styrene bent way to much.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2991.jpg

Here is what it looks like from the front. -Looks like there some light comming through some holes that will require filler.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2992.jpg

I also started to cover the front of the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2995.jpg

I added some trim around the top vent.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3000.jpg

I also added the final dvd try cover and some additional trim pieces. -I have a lot more to go.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3002.jpg

The last thing I worked on was the Part of the logo for the other side of the case. Here it is partially cut out on the scroll saw.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2993.jpg

and here is the final piece.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_2994.jpg

Thats it for now. -Cheers!

[rendermandan]

Here's the next update.

-I decided to take a break from case a little bit and worked on the base unit.

I started with three 7"X12" pieces of thick styrene.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3003.jpg

I glued them together to make one large sheet.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3004.jpg

Then I cut some 1" high strips and glued them around the perimeter. I left openings on the front and both sides for some motorized trays. -YES more motorized stuff!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3006.jpg

Then I cut some 1/8" diameter solid carbon fiber rods. I chose carbon fiber for its rigidity.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3008.jpg

I cut some more 1" high strips and drilled some holes for the rods. -Basically these rods will act as rails for the trays to slide in and out on.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3010.jpg

Here are the sleeves that go over the carbon fiber rods.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3011.jpg

Here is one of the trays. On the bottom side it has the 2 sleeves.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3014.jpg

Here it is on the front in the closed position.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3012.jpg

And here it is in the open position.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3013.jpg

Then I made 2 more for the sides.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3015.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3016.jpg

Then to make things move. I drilled and installed a ball joint just like some of the previous motorized parts.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3017.jpg

I drilled and cut holes in the supports so the threaded rod will converge on a central pivot point.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3018.jpg

The servo horn that came with supplied was too small and would not give enough horizontal movement, so I made a larger one.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3019.jpg

After making a mounting block and attaching the servo horn in place. Here are all 3 trays hooked up with the linkage to make them slide in and out. THis is the closed position.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3021.jpg

Here they are in the open position.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3022.jpg

To mount the servo, this is the approximate location. I ran out of ball joints so I have to go get some more before I can continue.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3023.jpg

-I should be able to get the base finished this weekend.
-Later!

[rendermandan]

guess i missed something but whats gonna be in the motorized trays?

The tray areas is about 1.5" deep and the widths are around 6" and 10". -So whatever I put there has to be pretty small.

So, at first I'm going to have some led's that shine up and light up the sides of the case.
I also thought about putting an LCD disply in there like this one. http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=141&products_id=20599
But I'm not sure if I can make it fit. -Probably have to take it apart and solder wires to remotely mount the disply away from the electronics. has anyone done something like this?

-not sure what else to put there. -Any suggestions?

[rendermandan]

Thanks for the suggestions guys. After I looked at it some more, the trays really dont' extend all that far out, so I just decided to put some led's that light up the sides of the case. -See the final pics and I think you will agree, that it looks great!.

I picked up a few more ball ends and got the servo for the trays installed.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3024.jpg

So then it was time to start on the top of the base. I cut and glued a frame -smaller than the size of the bottom.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3025.jpg

then I cut some stand offs and glued them to the framwork of the base.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3026.jpg

then i glued on the top.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3028.jpg

next I started to fill in the gap with some more Sytrene.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3029.jpg

Here it is all done.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3031.jpg

This is what it looks like with the case on top.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3032.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3034.jpg

Here you can see the led's I installed in each tray.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3042.jpg

And here is what it looks like in the dark.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3044.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3045.jpg

I'm going to be covering alot of the base in kit-bashing type work. But for now, What do you guys think?

[rendermandan]

Well, I'm a little pissed off today. -3 things happend.

1st. I went to install my Bulgin Iluminated power switch. I prewired it before putting it in the case for both power and led light. -The switch works great. but guess what. the led doesn't work correctly. It goes in and out because the connector on the back is loose or something. When I wiggle the connector on the back it flickers the light. -I'm going to give performance-pcs.com a call later today to see if they will RMA it.

2nd. Some of the led's that I installed in the base trays. -3 of them went out on me. I got them from Lsdiodes.com -I wondering if they are really cheap, and if these 3 went out, what will happen to the others? I don't have any more to replace them.

And 3rd. -The Rockies suck ass! -They could have at least shown up to the game.

-Very frustrated right now!

[rendermandan]

Sorry, but I already de-soldered it and put it back in its packaging to send back.

By the way you are describing your switch. It has the 2 terminals for the switch and one negative ground terminal for the led. your switch is probably not momentary.

-See the diagram below. -the swith must control the flow of positive power whatever your switching, like a light. then the positive feeds the led and that is why it needs its own ground.
Not sure what the exact layout of your wires on the switch is though. You can test this with a simple electrical ohm meter.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/switch.jpg

Hope that helps.

[rendermandan]

Yeah, I thought so too, but they were working for a while. -I was working on another part of the case while they were on and I looked up and they suddenly 3 of them were off. -not sure what happened. -you can see that they were working in this pic. http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3045.jpg

I got a RMA number to send the $20 switch back. hopefully the next will work!

[rendermandan]

Can't wait to see the videos! *hint

Working on it. -I have alot of wiring to get done first before I can power it up. -not to mention individual programming of each servo for start location, end location, speed and timing between other servos. -going to take some work there. -But I will get a video going soon. :)

[rendermandan]

Just ask, and ye shall receive.

-all I did last night was mount the base to the case. -sorry for the crappy picture. Not sure what happened. -I simply drilled and tapped a few holes in the base and secured it to the bottom with some cap head allen machine screws.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3067.jpg

-This is probably premature, but, I hauled the whole thing upstairs and went to town on programming the servos. -I had to do each one individually and then write a script to send each command to the servo controller.

I made 2 versions. The first one has all the servos opening at the same time. and same speed. The reason they don't all finish at the same time is because each servo has to travel a different distance. So to make them start and end at the same time, would take some more programming to set the speed of each on to match.

Then for closing I just told all of them to close real fast. (Could go faster!)

Here is a video showing this setup.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/th_100_3071.jpg (http://s65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/?action=view&current=100_3071.flv)

Next I programmed it to open each item sequentially. So the speed does not matter. I didn't change how they closed yet.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/th_100_3073.jpg (http://s65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/?action=view&current=100_3073.flv)


So what do you think? Do you like them opening all together or seqentially? or how about the speed? Too Fast or slow?

Thanks!

[rendermandan]

LMAO. Thanks you guys.

I can slow down the closing a bit. The problem with having them go too slow is if they take too long, and the computer shuts off before they are done closing then the servo controller turns off. -But I haven't timed it yet to see how long I have.

As for the Led's. -I know what you mean about them shining through. After its painted and all the kit bashing stuff is on, I was hoping they would not show through. But I could wire in a switch to the servo to have them turn on and off with the motion. -Have to make a stop at radio shack!

As for opening with power on and off. -Already done. I just didn't show it in the video. They automatically open up while window is booting just after the login screen comes on. When I shut it off, they close when the screen says "Windows is shutting down".

I wish I could make them open sooner, but what happens is the servo controller runs off of a USB to Serial Adapter. so the drivers have to load for that to work and then the script file that runs doesn't load untill after a bunch of other stuff loads first. So it takes a little bit before all the action happens.

As for controlling each item individually. -yes. I have icons in a folder that run scripts to each servo to open and close, so if I wanted to close the front intake fan by itself, I can do just that. :)

[rendermandan]

I like the sequential opening myself. It really looks awesome. It gives you time to apppeciate all of the modules one at a time. I do have a question though. When you power off and you have some open and some closed. Does it automatically open the closed and close the opened. Or does it just make sure that they all close on power off?
+ Rep

If some are closed before the shutdown. it will leave those closed and close the others. the Same for opening.

Basically the way it works is the controller sends signals to each servo to go to a specific location (rotation) at a specific speed. -so if the servo is already at that location, it just remains there.

[rendermandan]

WOW, Thanks for everyone's responses. I didn't think that many people were following my mod. LOL.

I'm working on some more programming to adjust the servos so that when they get done moving, they shut down so I dont' hear the gears fighting the tension on them. My first attempt worked at shutting them down, but now I lost the speed controlls. But I think I have it figured out. -I'll try it again tonight and post another video. I'm going to add a swith for the led's like many of you suggested. That was a good idea!

I also noticed a few minor modifications I need to make to some of the moving parts to make them function a little smoother, nothing special.

-Cheers!

[rendermandan]

Last night I stopped at Radio Shack and picked up a lever switch.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3093.jpg

Then I spliced it into the power wire to the lights on the base and mounted it so that when the servo opens, it engages the switch.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3096.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3095.jpg

I also go my new order of led lights and I fixed the 3 that were burnt out.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3097.jpg

-Interesting thing though. One of the led's that I replaced one with, didn't work right out of the package. I'm starting to wonder about the quality of led's from LSDiode.com...

the last thing I did was fill all the joints in the base with putty. I still have to sand it all down yet. But thats it for now. :)

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3098.jpg

[Spawn-Inc]

even though its to late you can find switichs like that for free if you see someone tossing out a busted microwave.

here is some of the neat stuff i found and have collected over the years (2 microwaves worth of parts)

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/9726/11020001sp9.th.jpg (http://img144.imageshack.us/my.php?image=11020001sp9.jpg)

these are the switches that are from the door so the microwave turns on and off when the door. you could have used then for the lights but ohwell, next time.
http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/1478/11020002pu4.th.jpg (http://img251.imageshack.us/my.php?image=11020002pu4.jpg)

this the motor that turns the glass plate. it seems like a strong slow moving motor, you might have even been able to use it for a servo.
http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/531/11020006oc0.th.jpg (http://img407.imageshack.us/my.php?image=11020006oc0.jpg)

magnetron
http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/6043/11020007cb3.th.jpg (http://img407.imageshack.us/my.php?image=11020007cb3.jpg)

all the stuff i could take from the microwaves - the body
http://img229.imageshack.us/img229/6078/11020010nc7.th.jpg (http://img229.imageshack.us/my.php?image=11020010nc7.jpg)

oh and of course great work as always!

[rendermandan]

Congrats Renderman, your rig rocks!
Give us a shot with the tubine on it, I am curiuos how big it looks on top of the case.

Doesn't the controller board have some simple I/O-Ports to switch the LEDs or some other stuff? That would have been the easiest way.

BTW: Are these digital servos? Because if so, they should send back the current they consume. And you could use this info to switch them off, when they reached the end position (if the controller board suports this). I know this from robotics boards.

Keep on the great work!

Um.... Yeah sounds like you have a little more experience with robotics than me. I know the board does have 4 inputs on them. But I'm not sure how to use/program them. And I believe it will read the servos position but from everyting that the guys over at lynxmotion.com forum have told me, they won't automattically shut off. I have to send that command. But I've gotten it all figured out. :)

I'm actually contemplating one more motorized item... it will take 2 servos to run. Its just a matter if I want to spend the money and if I have room for it.

Cheers!

[rendermandan]

Well guys, I ordered my last (hopefully last) big purchase for this mod. You'll have to wait and see what it is though. I also picked up 2 more servos to motorize this item. :) It won't be here for a while though. I got an email saying they had a 3-5 day lead time. Any guesses?

-FYI, I sent back my bulgin switch last week, and they said they haven't received it yet. Hmmmm. Hope it didn't get lost in the mail.

I've been working on the back panel of the case and started doing some kit bashing. Sorry I don't have any pics right now. I just jumped on to check my mail. I'll post what I can tomorrow.

-Untill next time...

[rendermandan]

sorry if you posted this already, you probably did but i will ask anyway. what hardware are you putting in this case?

For right now, I'm just going to transfer my hardware from my current computer. Its an Asus P5N32-SLI SE Delux. Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHZ Processor,
ATI 1900 XTX, 2 gb Corsair xms2 800 mhz. memory. Ultra x2 550 watt modular power supply and a sound card.

I'll have to convert my video card over to water cooling which I already have the block from Danger Den for but I need to lap it first.

I've been spending all my free money on this case and medical bills lately so I haven't had any extra money to buy new hardware.... YET!
I would like to get a new dx10 card. and some more ram. -Maybe a new power supply (has to be small!)

[rendermandan]

DOHHH. Nevermind. My mind is about to explode here at work. I'm finding it very difficutl to concentrate on what I'm doing. work is not very clear as to what they want done, so its making my mind go haywire. Sorry.

Its actually not that big. its only a 5" lcd. I"m running out of room in the case quickly. I still have to leave room for all the computer components. It will take 2 servos because it will have a compound motorization action. -Not just a flip up panel or anythig but somethign completly different!

and incase anybody asks, I forgot to bring my pics with me to upload so sorry!

[rendermandan]

Ok, Finally here's an update.

I left off the base where I had filled all the cracks and joints. So I sanded everything down nice and flat.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3100.jpg

Then I coated the led's in some liquid masking film, so when I paint it, they led's will be protected.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3099.jpg

Then I cut another gear for the front doors. I staggered the joints so it would help make the doors close evenly.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3101.jpg

here they are opened part of the way.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3102.jpg

Next I started to work on the back side panel. I wanted it to give some continuity between the turbine mod and this mod so I gave it the angular patter with light surrounding them "look".
This shot shows the thin styrene sheets taped together. I used a marker to layout the design.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3105.jpg

Then i started to cut out the design and glue each piece to the back panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3106.jpg

Here is a partially done section. so you can see it easier.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3107.jpg

here is a shot of the whole thing done.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3110.jpg

Then I mounted the turbine on the top.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3113.jpg

And filled the top panel with styrene sheets.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3114.jpg

next came some more gears. here they are laid out ready to be cut.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3115.jpg

After several hours of scroll saw work, here they are.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3116.jpg

I glued some thin styrene sheet to the back sides.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3117.jpg

Then I primed and painted the logo. I also added a blue tinted sheet to the back side to give it some contrast.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3119.jpg

Then I laid it out on the panel with the gears.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3122.jpg

But before I can glue it together, I had to mask off the light openings.
I used some more of that liquid mask.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3123.jpg

Here you can see how liberal I was with it. Its designed to dry clear and then be cut to shape. After I was done, I set that piece aside to dry overnight.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3124.jpg

I then started to do a little kit bashing.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3125.jpg

here's a shot of one of the side light trays at the base. You can see the primer color for now.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3126.jpg

some more kit bashing. -Makes it look like the gear is attached to an actuated arm doesn't it?
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3127.jpg

And the start of the front panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3128.jpg

That a pretty good size update that should hold you over for a while. I'm currently waiting on my LCD panel to do more work to the back panel. In the meantime, More kitbashing, yeah baby!!!

[rendermandan]

Thanks you guys. All your comments have put a huge smile on my face!

I did some more kit bashing tonight and glued the gears on the panel for the logo. -Have to wait till the end for the actual name plate to go on for that final touch after all the painting is done.

Sorry I don't have any pics. Its not much more than what I showed earlier today. Just some more plastic pieces mainly on the base.

Once I get further along in the kit bashing I'll post some more pics.

-FYI, my lcd screen should be here on monday, But that is my bowling night, so I won't be able to start that untill Tuesday night. I can't wait to test it out.

-Oh and about painting, yeah, I'm planning on spending a lot of time painting all the little parts and pieces with multiple colors and then to match the turbine, it will get the weathered look.

Thanks again for everyone's support!

Dan

[rendermandan]

Thanks you guys. All your comments have put a huge smile on my face!

I did some more kit bashing tonight and glued the gears on the panel for the logo. -Have to wait till the end for the actual name plate to go on for that final touch after all the painting is done.

Sorry I don't have any pics. Its not much more than what I showed earlier today. Just some more plastic pieces mainly on the base.

Once I get further along in the kit bashing I'll post some more pics.

-FYI, my lcd screen should be here on monday, But that is my bowling night, so I won't be able to start that untill Tuesday night. I can't wait to test it out.

-Oh and about painting, yeah, I'm planning on spending a lot of time painting all the little parts and pieces with multiple colors and then to match the turbine, it will get the weathered look.

Thanks again for everyone's support!

Dan

[rendermandan]

Hey guys, I've got some good news, and some bad news. First the good news,
I received my lcd monitor on friday!!! and I've been diligently working on getting it integrated into the case. I'm about half way done. I've got the motorization part done and the surrounding case for it finished. All I have left to do is mount it in the case and program the servos.

Now the bad news. I won't be posting any pics of this till I"m all done. :) I wouldn't want to show you bits and pieces and just leave you hanging. I'd hate to keep your suspense up any longer that I have to. So I've decided that once its done, I'll show you a video first, then how I did it.

So don't get upset at me, I'm just looking out for YOUR best interest. Muahhhaaahhhh (Evil Laugh). :)

[rendermandan]

Hey guys, I've got some good news, and some bad news. First the good news,
I received my lcd monitor on friday!!! and I've been diligently working on getting it integrated into the case. I'm about half way done. I've got the motorization part done and the surrounding case for it finished. All I have left to do is mount it in the case and program the servos.

Now the bad news. I won't be posting any pics of this till I"m all done. :) I wouldn't want to show you bits and pieces and just leave you hanging. I'd hate to keep your suspense up any longer that I have to. So I've decided that once its done, I'll show you a video first, then how I did it.

So don't get upset at me, I'm just looking out for YOUR best interest. Muahhhaaahhhh (Evil Laugh). :)

[rendermandan]

I got it installed and mounted in the case. I cut out the side panel to allow for room. Bad news is I have to get a servo extension cable before I can hook it up. So I won't be able to get any video of it yet. One of the servos is fine, but the other is short by about 2 inches. :( -Have to make a stop at hobby town before I can get to work on the programing.

-I've been taking plenty of pictures, And I could post them, I just think it will be cooler if you guys see it in action first before I post how I did it. :)

Should have an update in a few days for you. And thanks for the Reps by the way!

[rendermandan]

I got it installed and mounted in the case. I cut out the side panel to allow for room. Bad news is I have to get a servo extension cable before I can hook it up. So I won't be able to get any video of it yet. One of the servos is fine, but the other is short by about 2 inches. :( -Have to make a stop at hobby town before I can get to work on the programing.

-I've been taking plenty of pictures, And I could post them, I just think it will be cooler if you guys see it in action first before I post how I did it. :)

Should have an update in a few days for you. And thanks for the Reps by the way!

[rendermandan]

Ok, to tide you guys over, here are some shots of the work I did before the monitor.

I got the replacement Bulgin switch and wired it up and tested it before installing it. -It will be powered by the 6v power supply for the servo controller and be wired to be on constantly. that way I can find the power switch in the dark.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3131.jpg

I drilled a hole in the front of the base.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3130.jpg

And I temporarily installed in the base. I will remove it for painting.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3132.jpg

Here are some shots of the kit bashing I've been working on.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3133.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3134.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3135.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3136.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3137.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3138.jpg

Thats all for now. :)

[rendermandan]

Ok, to tide you guys over, here are some shots of the work I did before the monitor.

I got the replacement Bulgin switch and wired it up and tested it before installing it. -It will be powered by the 6v power supply for the servo controller and be wired to be on constantly. that way I can find the power switch in the dark.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3131.jpg

I drilled a hole in the front of the base.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3130.jpg

And I temporarily installed in the base. I will remove it for painting.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3132.jpg

Here are some shots of the kit bashing I've been working on.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3133.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3134.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3135.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3136.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3137.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3138.jpg

Thats all for now. :)

[rendermandan]

Well, here it is finally. The long awaited video of everything in action. It's a pretty big video, almost a minute long, so if you have a slow connection, let it load, its worth it. -I spent the last few days finishing the monitor compartment and adding some more kit bashing. Here a a few final pics first.

This is a shot of the lighted power switch that stays on constantly.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3181.jpg

And here is a shot of the right side of the case. I still have more kit bashing work to do before its done, plus I want to add a frame around the monitor area.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3180.jpg

Notice in the video that I added the switch for the lights to come on when the base trays fully extend.

And without further adue....
the video showing everyting.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/th_100_3187.jpg (http://s65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/?action=view&current=100_3187.flv)

See my next post for how I did it!

[rendermandan]

Well, here it is finally. The long awaited video of everything in action. It's a pretty big video, almost a minute long, so if you have a slow connection, let it load, its worth it. -I spent the last few days finishing the monitor compartment and adding some more kit bashing. Here a a few final pics first.

This is a shot of the lighted power switch that stays on constantly.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3181.jpg

And here is a shot of the right side of the case. I still have more kit bashing work to do before its done, plus I want to add a frame around the monitor area.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3180.jpg

Notice in the video that I added the switch for the lights to come on when the base trays fully extend.

And without further adue....
the video showing everyting.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/th_100_3187.jpg (http://s65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/?action=view&current=100_3187.flv)

See my next post for how I did it!

[rendermandan]

So now that you've seen it in action, here is how I did it.

this is the monitor that I ordered.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3142.jpg

and here is a test shot to make sure it works. -lights off.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3148.jpg

I started by making a frame out of styrene.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3150.jpg

and I glued the sides to the front panel, but I left the back off.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3152.jpg

here you can see the screen installed in the box.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3155.jpg

And this is what the back of the lcd looks like.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3156.jpg

I then added some gussets, blocking and a rim along the back side to attached back cover. I made it removable for painting and servicing the monitor. I also dilled a few holes to adjust the contrast and brightness.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3157.jpg

Then I glued and screwed a servo horn to the inside of the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3158.jpg

you can see I had to grind down the screws so they wouldn't hit the monitor.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3159.jpg

Here it is with the servo attached and I started to sleeve the wires.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3160.jpg

And here is the finished monitor box.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3162.jpg

Next came the rotating assembly.
I started with another and last servo (9 all together now). and mounted it to piece of styrene.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3163.jpg

You can see here how I just made a box for it. It has another servo horn on the bottom.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3165.jpg

Then I made another box to house the entire assembly.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3168.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3167.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3166.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3169.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3170.jpg

In this shot you can see how I ran the wires. I still have to sleeve the servo wire. (I forgot!) lol.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3171.jpg

[rendermandan]

So now that you've seen it in action, here is how I did it.

this is the monitor that I ordered.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3142.jpg

and here is a test shot to make sure it works. -lights off.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3148.jpg

I started by making a frame out of styrene.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3150.jpg

and I glued the sides to the front panel, but I left the back off.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3152.jpg

here you can see the screen installed in the box.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3155.jpg

And this is what the back of the lcd looks like.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3156.jpg

I then added some gussets, blocking and a rim along the back side to attached back cover. I made it removable for painting and servicing the monitor. I also dilled a few holes to adjust the contrast and brightness.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3157.jpg

Then I glued and screwed a servo horn to the inside of the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3158.jpg

you can see I had to grind down the screws so they wouldn't hit the monitor.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3159.jpg

Here it is with the servo attached and I started to sleeve the wires.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3160.jpg

And here is the finished monitor box.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3162.jpg

Next came the rotating assembly.
I started with another and last servo (9 all together now). and mounted it to piece of styrene.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3163.jpg

You can see here how I just made a box for it. It has another servo horn on the bottom.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3165.jpg

Then I made another box to house the entire assembly.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3168.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3167.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3166.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3169.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3170.jpg

In this shot you can see how I ran the wires. I still have to sleeve the servo wire. (I forgot!) lol.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3171.jpg

[rendermandan]

Then I added a removable cover over the wires and tilt servo.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3172.jpg

I added this small "guide" to help the wires not flex out of the channel.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3174.jpg

then to mount it, I added some gussets and a block on the sides of the box.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3176.jpg

then I drilled and tapped into the verticle acrylic drive supports. Man those thing really hold this thing together!

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3177.jpg


here are some shots of it in the case:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3178.jpg

I Cut an opening in the side panel to fit around the monitor case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3179.jpg

and that brings us up to the final images and video.

I hope you guys liked how it turned out. :)

next up, some more kit bashing!!!!

[rendermandan]

Then I added a removable cover over the wires and tilt servo.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3172.jpg

I added this small "guide" to help the wires not flex out of the channel.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3174.jpg

then to mount it, I added some gussets and a block on the sides of the box.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3176.jpg

then I drilled and tapped into the verticle acrylic drive supports. Man those thing really hold this thing together!

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3177.jpg


here are some shots of it in the case:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3178.jpg

I Cut an opening in the side panel to fit around the monitor case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3179.jpg

and that brings us up to the final images and video.

I hope you guys liked how it turned out. :)

next up, some more kit bashing!!!!

[rendermandan]

Looks awesome.. I cant say enough good things about this build.

One concern though.. it looks as though the weight of the LCD is causing it to sag a bit.. a bit of extra reinforcement may be needed to keep it supported. :)

Yeah, you are correct. the lcd is just too heavy to be stable. The only thing holding it up is the connection at the tilt servo horn. basically its a small 3/16"dia. plastic splined connection. Thats it. I even tried a metal servo and it does the same thing. I'm not sure what else I can do. :(

[rendermandan]

Looks awesome.. I cant say enough good things about this build.

One concern though.. it looks as though the weight of the LCD is causing it to sag a bit.. a bit of extra reinforcement may be needed to keep it supported. :)

Yeah, you are correct. the lcd is just too heavy to be stable. The only thing holding it up is the connection at the tilt servo horn. basically its a small 3/16"dia. plastic splined connection. Thats it. I even tried a metal servo and it does the same thing. I'm not sure what else I can do. :(

[rendermandan]

That is amazing. I can't wait to see the finishing touches.

For the swing action of the LCD. Coud you run a rod all the way through the box and attach a gear to it for the servo to run. I think this would take the weight of the single servo.

Thats a good suggestion, Like the carbon fiber rods I used on the base tray. They don't flex hardly at all. In order to make that happen, I'd have to redesign the entire thing. the center of the pivot point goes directly through the LCD screen, that way the weight is balanced, and doesn't make the LCD tilt under its own weight when the servos shut off. the other problem would be the width of the unit. I only have enough width before the assembly hits the motherboard standoffs. I left 1/2" of room for the edge. so any more width and It wouldn't fit. I might try and shim the bottom out, that way it counteracts the sag. but I'm not sure if that will work. But thanks though!


Sick work, as always. I do have a question though, about the kit bashing. What models are you using/where you find them? I have a need for some mechanical bits for my current project.

Basically I raided my local Hobby Town for any mechanical looking type kits. Most of the kits I bought were manufactured from AMT. I mostly used Star Wars Kits. The tank kits were way too expensive for the amount I could use, but I"ve used quite a bit of the others. :)

[rendermandan]

That is amazing. I can't wait to see the finishing touches.

For the swing action of the LCD. Coud you run a rod all the way through the box and attach a gear to it for the servo to run. I think this would take the weight of the single servo.

Thats a good suggestion, Like the carbon fiber rods I used on the base tray. They don't flex hardly at all. In order to make that happen, I'd have to redesign the entire thing. the center of the pivot point goes directly through the LCD screen, that way the weight is balanced, and doesn't make the LCD tilt under its own weight when the servos shut off. the other problem would be the width of the unit. I only have enough width before the assembly hits the motherboard standoffs. I left 1/2" of room for the edge. so any more width and It wouldn't fit. I might try and shim the bottom out, that way it counteracts the sag. but I'm not sure if that will work. But thanks though!


Sick work, as always. I do have a question though, about the kit bashing. What models are you using/where you find them? I have a need for some mechanical bits for my current project.

Basically I raided my local Hobby Town for any mechanical looking type kits. Most of the kits I bought were manufactured from AMT. I mostly used Star Wars Kits. The tank kits were way too expensive for the amount I could use, but I"ve used quite a bit of the others. :)

[rendermandan]

Sorry Big, not sure what you mean there. The lcd assembly, the whole thing is attached to the verticle acrylic pieces on the inside of the case. It is sagging at the servo connection between the rotating section and the case the LCD sits in. thanks.

[rendermandan]

Sorry Big, not sure what you mean there. The lcd assembly, the whole thing is attached to the verticle acrylic pieces on the inside of the case. It is sagging at the servo connection between the rotating section and the case the LCD sits in. thanks.

[rendermandan]

If it still sags, then you will need a stronger servo with a larger shaft.

That is really the only solution. the servo horn is not flexing itself. Nor is the box the LCD is in. Its the small 3/16" diameter plastic shaft that has the splines on it that is flexing. I can look for a steel shaft. Maybe that would help.

I did add a small "shim" so when it closes it doesn't sag.

Sorry I don't have any pics right now. :)

[rendermandan]

If it still sags, then you will need a stronger servo with a larger shaft.

That is really the only solution. the servo horn is not flexing itself. Nor is the box the LCD is in. Its the small 3/16" diameter plastic shaft that has the splines on it that is flexing. I can look for a steel shaft. Maybe that would help.

I did add a small "shim" so when it closes it doesn't sag.

Sorry I don't have any pics right now. :)

[rendermandan]

Here's a small update tonight.

Here is another shot of the side panel kit bashing.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3188.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3191.jpg

I decided it was time to get some paint on this. I still have some kit bashing to do but I figured it couldn't hurt. Plus it gave me a break from all the cutting and gluing.

Before I could paint some parts I had to apply some of that liquid mask to some areas.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3189.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3190.jpg


So first I primed some pieces with Red primer. It was all I had in the garage at the time.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3192.jpg

Still wet!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3193.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3194.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3195.jpg

Then i found some flat black and gave them a light coat.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3197.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3196.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3198.jpg

I have to go buy more primer and paint to finish the panels and do the rest of the parts. Still have the top and whole front of the case to prime and paint yet.

thats it for now.

[rendermandan]

Here's a small update tonight.

Here is another shot of the side panel kit bashing.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3188.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3191.jpg

I decided it was time to get some paint on this. I still have some kit bashing to do but I figured it couldn't hurt. Plus it gave me a break from all the cutting and gluing.

Before I could paint some parts I had to apply some of that liquid mask to some areas.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3189.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3190.jpg


So first I primed some pieces with Red primer. It was all I had in the garage at the time.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3192.jpg

Still wet!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3193.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3194.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3195.jpg

Then i found some flat black and gave them a light coat.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3197.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3196.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3198.jpg

I have to go buy more primer and paint to finish the panels and do the rest of the parts. Still have the top and whole front of the case to prime and paint yet.

thats it for now.

[rendermandan]

LOL, your right, I raided my old toy box at my parents house. I even found my all my old starwars toys. I have an original Milenium Falcon and X-Wing Fighter that had a broken wing, that I was going to use for some parts, but I just couldn't see myself cutting it up. But as for the Transformers. they were already in pieces so It didn't matter much.

[rendermandan]

LOL, your right, I raided my old toy box at my parents house. I even found my all my old starwars toys. I have an original Milenium Falcon and X-Wing Fighter that had a broken wing, that I was going to use for some parts, but I just couldn't see myself cutting it up. But as for the Transformers. they were already in pieces so It didn't matter much.

[rendermandan]

not sure if I'm folowing you. the black paint is just a base coat, there will be alot of air brushing and hand painting of all the parts, and then I'm going ot weather the entire thing similar to the turbine. So it will have the used/weathered/rustic look to it. But I can see doing some ares that look like they have been damaged, That is a good idea!

[rendermandan]

not sure if I'm folowing you. the black paint is just a base coat, there will be alot of air brushing and hand painting of all the parts, and then I'm going ot weather the entire thing similar to the turbine. So it will have the used/weathered/rustic look to it. But I can see doing some ares that look like they have been damaged, That is a good idea!

[rendermandan]

Hey guys, I've been pretty busy getting things ready for paint. I primed and painted everything a black base coat and found I had some issues with the liquid mask that I used. It wasn't cooperating with me, so I've had to result to the good old masking tape method in some areas, and I've had to redo some of the illuminated lables. The liquid mask didn't want to release from the printed labels I made for the fan controller and the hdd activity light. So I head to tear them out and remake them. The front switch panel came clean at least. -we;ll see how it looks when its done.

I also notices some of the paint got into some of my hinges like on the louvers on the top intake. Now they are almost impossible to move and it actually broke the actuator arm. So now I have to redo that entire louver assembly. :mad:

-Sorry I don't have any pics right now. I've been taking them, just haven't uploaded them yet.

I'm very frustrated right now!

[rendermandan]

Hey guys, I've been pretty busy getting things ready for paint. I primed and painted everything a black base coat and found I had some issues with the liquid mask that I used. It wasn't cooperating with me, so I've had to result to the good old masking tape method in some areas, and I've had to redo some of the illuminated lables. The liquid mask didn't want to release from the printed labels I made for the fan controller and the hdd activity light. So I head to tear them out and remake them. The front switch panel came clean at least. -we;ll see how it looks when its done.

I also notices some of the paint got into some of my hinges like on the louvers on the top intake. Now they are almost impossible to move and it actually broke the actuator arm. So now I have to redo that entire louver assembly. :mad:

-Sorry I don't have any pics right now. I've been taking them, just haven't uploaded them yet.

I'm very frustrated right now!

[rendermandan]

I must have been hit by the bad luck bug recently. I've been assembling the case piece by piece after i've fixed a few things and painted everything black.

Now I noticed that my DVD drive is not working properly. See this post:

http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?p=156187#post156187

[rendermandan]

I must have been hit by the bad luck bug recently. I've been assembling the case piece by piece after i've fixed a few things and painted everything black.

Now I noticed that my DVD drive is not working properly. See this post:

http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?p=156187#post156187

[rendermandan]

I think I've narrowed the problem down to something getting pinched or messed up due to the screws I use to install it. I can get 3 in, but the fourth one seems to mess it up. I got so frustrated with it, I just decided to put it away for a few days and work on something else. So here is a small update. Sorry its not very big, the holiday and xmas shopping, xmas lights on the house (that are set to music by the way) have been taking all my spare time. :)

But here you go anyway.

Here are some shots with all the parts painted black.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3211.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3201.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3208.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3210.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3197.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3198.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3196.jpg

God there are alot of parts to this case!

here is a shot of all the accesories and power input for the servo controller.

From the left we have, 6V power in, then switch to turn off servo controller, then Video in for the lcd, then a small 1/8" headphone jack, that I'm using as a connector for power to the lighted mouse pad.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3203.jpg

I also started on the back panel. here it sits all nice and clear.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3236.jpg

with some CA glue and .03" thick styrene sheets, I glued to the back side and trimed to match the panel.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3237.jpg

I want to install the rear exhaust 120mm fan on the outside of the case. this is due to the location of the window on the side. I dont' want to look in and see the ugly side of a fan right?

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3239.jpg

So I cut some styrene to make a box to fit over the fan.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3240.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3241.jpg

And here it is.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3242.jpg

I added some modders mesh, the same stuff I used over the side radiator. to the back of the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3243.jpg

and here is a shot with it on the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3245.jpg

Then I hit it with some primer and black paint.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3262.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3261.jpg

Here is another shot of the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3222.jpg

And just for reference. here is the black case with the turbine sitting on top. Sorry its a little blurry.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3229.jpg


As far as I can tell, all the major building and modding is complete. There is still some wiring that has to be done for lights inside the case. I bought a couple led light strips. and some more glow wire that came all messed up with black spots in it again. :(

So now its time to clean the workspace up and get the airbrush and paint brushes out.

Cheers!

[rendermandan]

I think I've narrowed the problem down to something getting pinched or messed up due to the screws I use to install it. I can get 3 in, but the fourth one seems to mess it up. I got so frustrated with it, I just decided to put it away for a few days and work on something else. So here is a small update. Sorry its not very big, the holiday and xmas shopping, xmas lights on the house (that are set to music by the way) have been taking all my spare time. :)

But here you go anyway.

Here are some shots with all the parts painted black.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3211.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3201.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3208.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3210.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3197.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3198.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3196.jpg

God there are alot of parts to this case!

here is a shot of all the accesories and power input for the servo controller.

From the left we have, 6V power in, then switch to turn off servo controller, then Video in for the lcd, then a small 1/8" headphone jack, that I'm using as a connector for power to the lighted mouse pad.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3203.jpg

I also started on the back panel. here it sits all nice and clear.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3236.jpg

with some CA glue and .03" thick styrene sheets, I glued to the back side and trimed to match the panel.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3237.jpg

I want to install the rear exhaust 120mm fan on the outside of the case. this is due to the location of the window on the side. I dont' want to look in and see the ugly side of a fan right?

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3239.jpg

So I cut some styrene to make a box to fit over the fan.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3240.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3241.jpg

And here it is.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3242.jpg

I added some modders mesh, the same stuff I used over the side radiator. to the back of the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3243.jpg

and here is a shot with it on the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3245.jpg

Then I hit it with some primer and black paint.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3262.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3261.jpg

Here is another shot of the case.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3222.jpg

And just for reference. here is the black case with the turbine sitting on top. Sorry its a little blurry.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3229.jpg


As far as I can tell, all the major building and modding is complete. There is still some wiring that has to be done for lights inside the case. I bought a couple led light strips. and some more glow wire that came all messed up with black spots in it again. :(

So now its time to clean the workspace up and get the airbrush and paint brushes out.

Cheers!

[rendermandan]

I'm pretty anxious to get this done myself. I can't wait to get everything working and all the parts setup and installed. I got some led stip lights in the mail yesterday that I will be using instead of the CCFL lights. the only thing about them is they dance. I wish they were just on solid all the time. :( I might have to do a little mod to them. :)

I will be using a lot of the same colors as the turbine. and I will give it the dirty, weathered look. although, there will be a lot of detail painting that will give it a little different look. I just have to figure out how :)


The light wire. Where do you get it? Does it need to be run off 12v or can it be modded to run off anything else?
I'm really excited to see this so far along. I hope you can get all the kinks worked out. I have to disagree with Spawn though. It looks really nice black, but it looks boring. I am highly anticipating a matching paint job. Great work man. Still can't rep you though.

Edit: I just realized how big that turbine is compared to the computer. Wow.

I ordered the light wire from Xoxide.com it was on sale for $5.99 for a 5 foot piece. However, the last 2 I ordered came all messed up with black spots in the wire. Like its old or worn out or something, so I'm considering not using it, maybe. I'd return it to them for a refund, but the cost of shipping would outweigh the benefit.

And just how big did you think the turbine was anyway? :)

[rendermandan]

Ok guys, here's a painting update!

Here is a shot of the paints I will be using. A pretty good selection of colors!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3274.jpg

I started by paint just one side panel first. the one with the most detail!

First I air brushed some gray onto some panels. Although they appear white.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3265.jpg

Then I randomly painted some rust colored panels.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3267.jpg

Then some green and tan panels.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3269.jpg

Then after several hours of fine detail painting with multiple colors, we have this witht he flash.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3270.jpg

No flash.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3275.jpg

Then I used some mesh drywal tape and sprayed the inside parts of the gears with some gray.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3299.jpg

Then I taped off the gears. and the center parts.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3302.jpg

Shot them with some rust from the airbrush.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3304.jpg

Then I got them dirty. (Drybrushing)
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3306.jpg

I drybrushed and airbrushed some dirt onto the rest of the panel to dull it up.
I am showed it on the case with the turbine above for color comparison.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3319.jpg

Remember those spaces between all those panels that I covered wit the liquid mask. Well, I'm pretty close to removing the masking but I want to make sure everything is painted before I do that. I dont' want to have to re-mask those areas. I will be frosting the back side of the Acrylic panel to give it that Blue glow.

I overlaid the logo on it and guess what. It sticks out like a sore thumb!!!!! I really didn't expect the blue to stand out that bad. What do you guys think?

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3311.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3325.jpg

Maybe some of you can give me some suggestions as to what to do about the logo. Maybe you think it looks OK, maybe not. Let me know!

Thanks.

[rendermandan]

Hey man been following this thread quietly and I think it is great!
Another +rep for all the inovativeness (Is that a word?) hehe:)

I like the logo but what I think would set the tone for the mod is to have the gears behind the logo slowly turning.
Maybe have a small motor turn one of the cogs and the others would turn by the teeth meshing.
The logo could be on top mounted on the shaft ends of the gears.
These could be slowly turning the whole time the system is on, I think it would bring that side of the case to life.

Just a thought and it may be too late to make that big of a modification.

Charles

Thats an excellent Idea, and I actually thought of that too a while back. the only thing that held me back from doing that is the noise the motor and gears would make while the system was on. Servo gears are very loud and having one go constantly would drive me bonkers! that is why I decided to have the stationary. But yeah its a little late in the game to be making that kind of change. :)

[rendermandan]

Excellent mod!

One question - and I may have missed this somewhere in here - what thickness of styrene are you using? Looks way thicker than anything I've seen at the store.

Thanks, I used different thicknesses throughout the project. They ranged from .02 to .125 inches thick.

I got the sheets at a local hobby town.


And for a first time, you did a hell of a job. If you want to refine the look a little, you should hit Crimson up for some tips (or as he would probably say..."yah, buy my book").

-Jon

Yeah, I was considering buying his book, but just haven't gotten around to it yet. :)
I'm sure there are many things that can be learned from his wealth of knowledge!
Maybe Santa will get me a copy for Christmas!!!!


edit: Hey I just noticed that I now have 6 Light green bars. Thanks everyone!!!!

[Crimson Sky]

Getting the paint just right is a very tough technique to master. Paint the whole thing black again and start to build up your color in subtle layers. For Doom 3, it was a combination of airbrush for base colors, then drybrushing, colored washes, pastels, powders and a combo of flat/gloss paints to bring depth and realism. Get some very good sable brushes too.

Jon saw Doom 3 close up and can vouch for the subtle yet effective paint job that was given to it. Airbrushing for models is only a rough process, the rest takes many (many many) hours of brush painting. I've been practicing for 30 years to become a master model maker, so just keep at it!

Try some of the following secret products and keep up the GREAT work.

Weathering Pastels for the Ultimate in Realism (http://www.ares-server.com/Ares/Ares.asp?MerchantID=RET01229&Action=Catalog&Type=Product&ID=82465)

Gray Tone Pastels for the Ultimate in Realism (http://www.ares-server.com/Ares/Ares.asp?MerchantID=RET01229&Action=Catalog&Type=Product&ID=60763)

Doc O'Brien's Weathering Powders (http://www.ares-server.com/Ares/Ares.asp?MerchantID=RET01229&Action=Catalog&Type=Product&ID=81632)

RUSTALL SYSTEM (http://www.ares-server.com/Ares/Ares.asp?MerchantID=RET01229&Action=Catalog&Type=Product&ID=80755)

[rendermandan]

Well, Its been a while since I've made an update. I apologize, I've been swamped with a project at work, My last day off other than Christmas day was December 1st. LOL.

Anyway, here's the progress that I manged to get done in the little free time I had.

I started to paint the base unit. First I taped off some shapes on the top.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3488.jpg

then i just did the same thing only in different colors.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3489.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3490.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3492.jpg

Then I started the detail painting of all the parts.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3493.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3494.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3495.jpg

Here a couple shots with the flash on. The flash really makes it look like crap. It looks so much better in person.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3499.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3501.jpg

Here are some shots with the flash off. this is alot closer to what it really looks like. but they are kind of dark.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3497.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3498.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3502.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3503.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3504.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3505.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3507.jpg

you can also notice I gave the entire inside a coat of black paint.
I gave everything so far a coat of semi-gloss clear coat to protect it too.

Then I installed the power switch. You can also see that I removed the liquid mask from the leds in the motorized trays.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3508.jpg

Next after clear coating. I went to remove the liquid mask that I applied so long ago. Here is a shot before I remove it. You can see the "channels" where it is located between the panels.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3513.jpg

Here is a shot with the back up to light. It still has the blue painters tape on the back side to protect the back.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3514.jpg

and here is the back side with the tape removed. You can clearly see where the "light" channels are around the panels.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3518.jpg

I got some spray frosting to coat the back of the panel.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3519.jpg

Here is a shot after 1 coat of frosting. It deffinetly dulled it out and it has that frosted look, but I want it to be more, so I will add a few more coats.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3520.jpg

I noticed that the more it dried, the more it frosted. the picture was taken while it was still wet.

thats all I got done up untill last night. I added a few more coats to the frosting, so I will have to see how it turned out.

Untill next time, Peace!

[rendermandan]

ok, Another painting update:

I started to paint the other side of the case. I started with the large Rotating gear. i painted it similar to the other side of the case.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3609.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3611.jpg

Then I started on the panel.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3613.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3617.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3619.jpg

here is a shot of the fan controller.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3620.jpg

I taped off the inside of the gears to paint the gears themselves.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3621.jpg

unfortunaly I got bit by the "Bad Primer" bug again.
the Paint pulled away when I removed the painters tape.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3623.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3622.jpg

So i will have to touch up those areas.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3624.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3625.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3628.jpg

Here is the finished Panel. With flash. You can see that I removed the masking from the gears with the frosted panels.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3630.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3633.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3632.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3639.jpg

here is all the panels and parts so far that are done.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3643.jpg

Then i started on the back panel. Painting it similar to the rest of the case. I think you get the idea.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3647.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3648.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3650.jpg

And the top.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3652.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3654.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3656.jpg

The last thing I did was prime the case screws.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3651.jpg

I will have to give them some drybrush dirt when they are dry.


thats it for now. I still have the tv to do, and the front panel.

After that, final assembly and water cooling setup!

The end is near!!!!

[rendermandan]

Ask, and ye shall receive.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3669.jpg

Inside:
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3672.jpg


I painted the TV part by first taping off the screen.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3657.jpg

Here is the back panel removed and the front.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3659.jpg


http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3662.jpg

And the inside of the recessed part.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3665.jpg

The outside front
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3668.jpg

I also painted the front trim ring:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3664.jpg

and I got started on the motorized panels on the front.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3674.jpg

Thats it for now.

[rendermandan]

thanks for everyone's words of encouragment! I'm just letting everyone know that Its completed and up and running. I'm working on it as I type this. I still have to take some final pics of everthing but here are a few "teaser images" untill I get the final pics and video done.

Here it is all assembled with the flash on. I still have to glue the "Motorized Madness" logo on the side because I have to paint the back side black otherwise the light shows through and looks bad. You can also see the how I scratched the paint off the inside of the turbine tube sliding the resevoir in and out. -Very tight fit! so I will have to do some touchups there.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3804.jpg

Up and running with the lights on. -you will notice at the bottom of the turbine it appears that the led lights are only on in the front. well they are and thats because I changed out my static solid on led's to 2 led light tubes that are set to motion so it looks like things are happening inside. You will see this effect in the video.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3813.jpg

And to treat myself for finishing it, and because my current desk was too small for the case to sit on, here is a shot of my new computer desk!

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3810.jpg

Hope this teaser gets your mouths watering...

[rendermandan]

Oh, and nice desk too. Any mods planned for that?

Yep, already added some under cabinet xenon puk lights with a 3 way dimmer. although i want to add some blue leds or something somewhere, just not sure what yet.

[rendermandan]

Ladies and Gentleman, Boys and girls, and of course, Modders of all ages, After 7 1/2 months, Countless hours, and alot of money later, I give you Motorized Madness

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3847.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3848.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3844.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3893.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3830.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3873.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3879.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3884.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3905.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3907.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3903.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3912.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3910.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3909.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3862.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3886.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3888.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3936.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3890.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3896.jpg



http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3926.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3925.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3928.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3927.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3933.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3934.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3929.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3930.jpg

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h205/rendermandan/Motorized%20Madness%20Case/100_3931.jpg


And now, the long awaited videos:

ihtpv5RkQNk

1-23yva3UT8

I realize the video and lighting quality is not that good. I'll try to replace the videos when I get some better ones done.

I hope everyone likes what I have created here. I know I had a great time working on this project and I wanted to send a personal thanks out to everyone for all their words of encouragement, praise, suggestions and patience while I finished this case.

Thank you all!

Dan




Link To Original Worklog (http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10192)