Nuclear UPS mod

[Cannibal23]

http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p46/elgichbin/NuclearUPS.jpg


Hi everybody. i figured i would mod one of my UPS's. i want to give it a Nuclear radio active sort of look. so here we go again!!

ok so here is what we start with... pretty lame box eh

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod006.jpg

so then i took out the batteries... btw be carefull with these they could really mess you up.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod003.jpg

then i carefully ripped the guts out of the UPS.. Look at the size of that transformer.. thats a heavy mofo.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod004.jpg

[Cannibal23]

ok so now were left with just the empty frame... heres what it looks like

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod002.jpg

pretty boring eh... well well fix that.

there is a plate in the middle seperating the back from the front of the ups. had to take it out and cut a notch in the right side of it for my lighting. heres a snap of it

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod009.jpg

i also painted the front metal plate yellow. ignore the socks ok...
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod013.jpg

[Cannibal23]

also in the above posted photo you might notice that i already did some paint work on the outer panel. basicly i painted it black, masked it off and then painted it yellow.... i also painted the plastic front panel but later decided that i wasnt happy with it so it had to change. i also put some bondo on the metal front plate of the ups before painting it. can you tell me what feature is now missing??
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod012.jpg

i also decided i wanted my buttons yellow
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod014.jpg

and heres the front panel. the case badge really didnt want to come off so i had to drill the back side of it and pop it up. then fill the whole with bondo... yay bondo.. man that stuff stinks. also there is a little groove in the lower part of the front panel that i wanted filled. heres a comparison... ya i know it looks ugly

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod015.jpg

[Cannibal23]

with the help of some of the TBCS members, and some engineers at my work, we started trying to figure out how i was going to power my lighting system.. after some serious discussion and evaluating the diffrent potential problems of each solution i decided to abandon the solution provided to me by the engineers at my work and go with something simple ( Thanks Outlaw )

heres what we came up with due to lack of 12volt supply
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod008.jpg

yep its a 12 volt ac dc adaptor... how simple is that eh... engineers and their complicated ways.... anyways. heres how it looks in the case. you can also see where the ccfl tube and inverter are going to lay.
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod010.jpg

wait!!! how am i going to plug that into the wall you ask?? heres how!!
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod007.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod011.jpg

hows that for a solution eh. i just connect it to where the power cord comes into the ups and take my 110 from there..

[Cannibal23]

so then i painted part of the frame a beautiful radio active snot green color... yes very charming..

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod019.jpg

hey.. remember this junk ?
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod005.jpg

well i installed it again here it is
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod020.jpg

here is a view from the top so you can see where the cathode tube is. dont worry i wont be using that one its the wrong color
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod021.jpg

then i took the tape off the outer shell took it in the shower and did some wet sanding. its still got droplets of water on it so the paint job looks pretty lame but here it is anyways.
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod022.jpg

[Cannibal23]

batteries are in just havent posted that. left is to mod out the front panel. cut a design in it and wire up 2 diffrent led lighting systems based on weather its on ac or dc power. essentually im hoping just to tap into the existing circuts on the pcb that runs the led's and buttons for the front panel for this. other then that order the correct cathode tubes online and install them. that should be about it. if it wasnt for the xmas holliday i would be able to give you a realistic time line but shipping is probably retarded right now. this mod hasnt taken me very long wich im happy about.

[Cannibal23]

thanks for the reps guys. glad your all likeing this so far. will need to make some measurements and print off a template at work on monday moring. that will most likely be my next update, but who knows maybe i will get some drunken inspiration at the bar tonight

[Cannibal23]

weeee im full of rum like a good bf2 pireats mod player should be (see the gameing thread) ya shameless plug but .. whatcha gonna do... i plan to make measurements and a template for monday and maybe i get some cutouts done on the front panel and we will see how she looks. really love the fact that so many great TBCS modders are checking this project out even though its not super hard core like TGS namesake is.

[Cannibal23]

nice butterfly knife, though i haven't seen the blade style, i've always wanted one.

sorry dude i didnt see this part of the post. ya its one the my tools that i use all the time. very handy for cutting tape. i had that one mailed to me from Brazil the last time i went there.

[Cannibal23]

ok here is some more updates. did some work on the front panel today. here is the design and the tools i used

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod029.jpg

in order to get the plex that im going to mount at surface level i had to get rid of some bits of plastic that are there to provide strength to the panel. here i am part way through
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod030.jpg

and here it is more complete. and the tool i used to get rid of it all. not sure if thats what this bit was designed for but either way it seemd to do a good job of it
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod031.jpg

and here is what it looks like from the front. ya i know its still ugly but its not done yet either.
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod032.jpg

[Cannibal23]

hmm having some issues with the pre existing paint on that front panel... guess i will sand it down and try again. thats what i get for getting ahead of myself i guess. better planning = not having to redo stuff.

[Cannibal23]

made yet another bone head mistake last night. will attempt to fix it and post snaps tonight. i think i need more sleep.. seems lately im making some really stupid mistakes. not unfixable ones mind you but just time consuming. on a lighter note i ordered the right colored cathode tubes today so those should be available for me to install probably some time in the next few days. im going to see if i can fit another one in the battery compartment but it may require a little modding of the cathode tube itself. we will see

[Cannibal23]

minor update here. was having some serious issues with painting and bondo. very annoying but i think i have it mostly sorted out.

i cut out the window for the front and then trimmed it down to fit.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod033.jpg

did a little more painting and sanding on the front panel here it is so far.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod034.jpg

on the front panel the top corners kind of well.... umm fell of.. the plastic was already cracked and is really old so it is a little brittle. i tried filling this in with bondo but found that it didnt hold well enough. instead i used devcon epoxy putty (its in the mod wiki check it out)

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod035.jpg

i took my dremel and a sanding drum to the hardend putty. the left over lumps were preventing a proper fit on the main body of the ups. heres a slightly closer shot.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod036.jpg

again sorry about the slow updates. i know this one wasnt super exciteing but between 2 jobs and waiting for paint to dry before realising you need to resand the lousy thing good oppertunities have been few and far between. im expecting the new cathode tube to arrive any day now. glad everyone is enjoying this mod so far.

[Cannibal23]

ok we have a touch more progress going on.

i went to go get some led's for the front lighting. i wasnt happy with the leds that i was being shown and the sales guy convinced me to get a led pod. basicly its 5 led's togeather with a resistor already in place. it works on 12v ac or 12v dc. this little guy lights up the wall across the room its insane. a little much for what i needed. unfortunately this device draws too much current and causes my cathode tube to baiscly not light up. going to need another solution. heres what it looks like anyways

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod038.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod037.jpg

my cathode tubes came in (YAY!) so i installed them last night. the one for the main body of the ups fit with no problem. however the one that is to light up the bottom compartment with the batteries didnt fit. so i did what modders do..... i modified it!

here is the before photo with the tool i used.
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod039.jpg

and after i modified it, i compared it to a normal one. the pennies are there just so you can see the edge. its tricky taking photos of something thats clear..

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod041.jpg

so i lit them up to test them after instalation. to verify that i didnt break the one in the battery compartment. it required a little bit of force to slide it in there.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod042.jpg

and then with the lights off

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod044.jpg

after all that i decided to put the cover on and see what it looks like so far

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod046.jpg

and then i turned the camera flash off as well as the lights. looks decent so far.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod048.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod049.jpg

cant wait to get the front lighting up and running and finish off the front panel.

[Cannibal23]

To take good close up photos, look for a button on your camera with a picture of a flower.. that's for the macro mode. It allows your camera to focus on items that are very close. :)

Build looks great though!

thanks for the tip. i will take a peek at the buttons on my cheapy camera tonight. hope it has that. blurry photos are annoying.

seeing as everyone seemed to enjoy this mod so much i may just mod out my other ups when im done this. still have the swirl mod to finish off its almost complete. basicly just put it down cause this was a more interesting project. will likely finish it in short order of finishing this mod. come summer time i might have to mod out my modbox (the big red tool box with wheels that im doing all my work on now).

one funny thing to be said about modding a ups so far..... least you have somwhere to plug in your soldering iron and power tools =)

[Cannibal23]

well here is an update. in an attempt to make the led pod work for my front lighting i decided to replace the ac dc adaptor with one that can supply more miliamps. this one is rated for 2 amps. think it was from a laptop

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod050.jpg

then i got a slot screwdriver and cracked the thing open. this is whats inside
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod051.jpg

so i went forward and removed the input jack and output cable with the help of my trusty little de-soldering iron. looks like this
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod052.jpg

after that i also detatched the wires from the old ac dc adaptor and wired them into the new one. seeing as there is likely to be some more work done in here i havent sealed it up completely... just a little tape
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod053.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod054.jpg

unfortunately to my shock and supprise a 2 amp adaptor still isnt enough to power both the cold cathode tubes and the led pod...... if i only had my darned multimeter i could find out the draw of that pod. whatever it is it must be massive. ordered a 4 inch white cathode tube for the front lighting... screw the leds too much trouble

[Cannibal23]

ok its update time. i switched the power supplies again. this getting 12 volts issue has been basicly a prombelmatic thing since i started. inside the ups is not like a computer there is no 12 volt line. i tried an ac adaptor but it wasnt really strong enough. i tried a bigger ac adaptor from a laptop, but it seems it has died.

so i made a decision today. "screw it lets mod a pc power supply and shove it in there somehow". so here we go

here is my victim
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod055.jpg

so i took it out of the box wow thats alot of wires that i wont be needing.
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod056.jpg

dont think i will need this voltage switch on it either
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod057.jpg

so i took the switch out and hardwired it togeather on the appropreate setting
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod060.jpg

so how will i make this thing turn on? well remember if you hold the green wire on your atx p1 connector to any ground the unit turns on. so i just wired it that way permanantly
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod059.jpg

i desoldered all the wires i didnt want to use, and attached ones that i wanted instead
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod058.jpg

took the leads that i already soldered to the power connector togeather with the power supplies input leads.
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod061.jpg

then i chopped the crap out of the power supply box so it would be just a bottom plate.
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod064.jpg

then i took some powerfull magnets and attached them so it will not move arround once its inside the unit
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod063.jpg

after all that i plugged everything in and made sure it worked
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod066.jpg

now i just have to figure out a way to cool it a little

[Cannibal23]

i opted not to go for water cooling here. instead i made a little stand for the fan that came in the power supply. i made 4 little plexiglass legs. lucky for me the plastic the fan is made of is compatible with the glue used to fix plexiglass togeather.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod067.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/upsmod068.jpg

[Cannibal23]

ok im back home and i will be trying to finish this this weekend. not much really left to do so it shouldent take long. thanks for all of you who have been patient in waiting for an update.

[Cannibal23]

ok so i did a little work reassembling this one. havent fully decided what to do with the front. it looks a little bland. let me know what you think

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/Picture001.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/Picture003.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/Picture005.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/Picture007.jpg

[Cannibal23]

and some night shots with the front panel installed

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/Picture010.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e255/Cannibal23/upsmod/Picture008.jpg



Link To Original Worklog (http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=12331)