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pc1972
12-01-2005, 01:31 AM
I am about to start my first mod and I need to know where I can get some metal for my case for the fan grills. Does anybody have any ideas?

Rankenphile
12-01-2005, 02:13 AM
You mean the mesh?

pc1972
12-01-2005, 09:22 AM
Well.......I don't know. But I saw in a magazine they cut it out of metal. I am doing a star wars symbols theme and two of the symbols I am putting on the top of the case (the rebellion and the empire). I believe it was in Maximum PC Extreme PC Mod. But it didn't look like mesh.

onelegout
12-01-2005, 09:48 AM
most DIY stores sell thin sheets of aluminium, im sure that would work fine!
I just use mesh for mine though :P

wingman358
12-01-2005, 09:10 PM
PC1972, you can get some pretty low-priced sheets of aluminum at Home Depot or maybe Lowes (not sure). The sheet aluminum would work perfectly fine for your needs.

Malatory
12-02-2005, 12:00 AM
I know you can get Aluminum at lowes and Ace hardware ... If all else fails www.mcmaster.com should have it and can sent it to you.

adreamtraveler
12-02-2005, 12:13 AM
I know you can get Aluminum at lowes and Ace hardware ... If all else fails www.mcmaster.com should have it and can sent it to you.

Wow GREAT LINK...thanks Malatory!

Malatory
12-02-2005, 12:16 AM
Wow GREAT LINK...thanks Malatory!

I really can't take the credit for that link.. Other pointed me to them and from the experiance I have from ordering from them. Makes it worth to post. :D

pc1972
12-03-2005, 12:57 AM
I have checked on what you guys have said and all of it is good stuff. Now in the Maximum PC guide to modding it says that I can cut aluminum and metal with a jigsaw. Is that really possible for a beginner and how much work is it after the cut?

p.s. Thanks to all for the help. Keep it coming.

Xato
12-03-2005, 01:21 AM
Jigsaws will generally cut metal fairly rough, so you will have to file the edges down a bit. When cutting metal with your jigsaw, just take it slow, and use a good quality metal cutting blades.

Its not too difficult to do either, just get a piece of scrap metal, and practice a few squigles and corners first.

Another tip for using a jigsaw... Mask your material! I didnt do this on one of my mods, and scratched the hell out of my metal with the bottom of the saw, takes ages to get those scratched out too.

Malatory
12-03-2005, 01:25 AM
I will 2nd the Good quality Metal Cutting Blades.

other thing is making sure the metal doesn't jump (comes from not pushing down on the jig saw).

Xato
12-03-2005, 01:37 AM
oh yeh, thats a good one. To help with that, do your cuts close to the edge of the table, or support the metal with a piece of wood or something. It all really depends on your setup, but as long as you support the metal, push down, and take it slow, you'll be fine.

And dont forget your goggles! Last thing you want is metal shavings in your eye, painfull as all hell i hear.

pc1972
12-03-2005, 03:25 AM
Again, I cannot thank all of you guys enough for the help and advice. There really is a "community" among the modders. Gotta say I am nervous as heck cutting into this tower. I have a Thermaltake Xaser II that I found through pricewatch. Only $47 so I'm not "too" worried about the cost of messing up.

The only other problem I think that I am going to run into right now is that the case (I believe) was used and there are some DEEP scratches on it. Any clues for filling that in?

By the way I am not lazy I do research, but it never hurts to have a lot of input.

Rankenphile
12-03-2005, 02:31 PM
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/chicane-uk/thegoggles.gif

As for the scratches, you have a couple options - you cna use a surface treatment, like Bondo, to smooth over the areas, or you can sand down the rest of the area to meet the scratch.

digital_exhaust
12-06-2005, 10:04 PM
Rankenphile is right.. skim it with bondo. As for ctting thin steel or alum, an effective way of doing this is to "sandwich" or clamp the piece between two pieces of thin plywood... transfer your pattern onto the wood and cut away..

pc1972
12-07-2005, 12:51 AM
What about the blade...do they break often? I know that I should have a couple of spares on hand but do I need a lot of spares?

crazybillybob
12-07-2005, 10:52 AM
Jig saw blades come in packs of 3 to 5 blades (based on mfg). When your first starting make sure you have a few extras (2pks should last a while!) My first case we went through about 2 blades (note: I had been using jig saws most of my life at that point, just never on metal so your results may very!) The worst feeling is it's 2am and your almost done with a very complicated window cut out and you break your last blade 2" from the end! BED TIME !!
I use the dremel and small pin files to clean up the cuts, Once you get good you'll only need a little clean up, to knock the burrs off, but you first case....Clean up will be a big job! Malt's advice on masking the metal is a great one, saves a boat load of clean up time, plus masking tape gives you a smooth surface to draw the pattern on (some of the wrinkle coats these Mfg. use eat markers / pencils for breakfast!).

WEAR SAFTEY GOOGLES!!!! Take it from me you DON'T EVER want to get steel in your Eye....3hrs in the Emergency Room, an eye patch (and extreme light sensitivity!!) for 4 days and you Eye doc gets to use a dremel on your eye to remove the "Rust Rings" :eek: (they can cause Allot of problems if not treated!).....It sucks....Been there Done that...Got the Scar to prove it!8)

Working with metal and a Jig saw is easy if you take your time, and you can make some very organic shapes (not square!).

Good Luck,
Crazybillybob

pc1972
12-08-2005, 10:52 AM
I heard from a friend that using a dremel would work also. Any experience with this. He said to get the router attachment and that it should work fine. I bought a carbid cutter (No. 9903). I was thinking of trying it.

I know what you mean about the goggles. I got sand in my eye and scratched my eyeball. Hurt like heck for weeks. Don't even want to think about metal and rust.

adreamtraveler
12-08-2005, 01:12 PM
WEAR SAFTEY GOOGLES!!!! Take it from me you DON'T EVER want to get steel in your Eye....3hrs in the Emergency Room, an eye patch (and extreme light sensitivity!!) for 4 days and you Eye doc gets to use a dremel on your eye to remove the "Rust Rings" :eek: (they can cause Allot of problems if not treated!).....It sucks....Been there Done that...Got the Scar to prove it!8)

OUCH!! :eek: did it affect your vision at all?

crazybillybob
12-08-2005, 03:18 PM
OUCH!! :eek: did it affect your vision at all?


No, it didn't. The Scar is just on the colored bit of my eye, Had it been a hair further in it would have, -- says the Eye Docs (ended up see 2 diffrent ones for this).

As for the Dremel with the spiral cutt bit. I never had allot of luck with it on metal. It works great on plastic cases but not so well on metal. Jigsaw is faster and give you better control cutting metal. Just my $0.02 though.

Crazybillybob

pc1972
12-08-2005, 04:38 PM
I guess that I just need to try the jigsaw. It is just that I have never cut "metal" with anything besides a torch. Hard to believe that it can be done with relative ease.

Malatory
12-08-2005, 07:45 PM
I guess that I just need to try the jigsaw. It is just that I have never cut "metal" with anything besides a torch. Hard to believe that it can be done with relative ease.

We all have said try it 1st on something else as for a beginner with new tools they might think something else.

using a Drimel you can use the Cut off disk and get some nice cuts but it will take longer to do. If the wheel grabs and you hand swings across the case because of that .. you now have a scrach to patch up that you made.

Remimber there are lots of tools that can do the same Job, its just taking your time and let it cut the metal and dont force it.

case I did last year.
http://dragonfly.bodybydk.com/drgnfly_final1.jpg

http://dragonfly.bodybydk.com/drgnfly_final2.jpg

That was done with a dremel and the cut off wheels.