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View Full Version : The 15-minute Lumberjack case



Rmcgrath
12-11-2005, 11:20 PM
OK-first, some explanation.
I purposely bought my computer's guts individually and without a case, first because it was considerably cheaper and second because later on I planned to build my own case from scratch- I had hoped to be able to run my rig as a test bed for the time it took to build a case. However, my parents didn't like my beautiful electronics open for all to see all over their office desk. So they provided me with an ultimatum: get it in a case or suffer the consequences.

Me being a lazy person and all, thought I could save a lot of time and hassle if I threw together some crappy construction that would fall more or less within the definition of 'computer case'. And so, I present to you all the 15-minute lumberjack case, a sleek and stylish answer to the high fashions of the twenty-first century.

I took the measurements from the bigger components, went to my basement (which, coincidentally, doubles as a woodshop) and in some 15 minutes built this epitome of cool using some OSB, wood glue, jigsaw, drill, staple gun and axe. Thus; the lumberjack case.

The absolute best part about the lumberjack case, in addition to its having saved my digital life, is the 'ducting'. With only one wall, all of the hot components can vent with ease, and the entire room in which the computer is placed functions as a sort of gaseous heatsink.

For example, on a single AMD stock fan, I got a stable 2.6 Ghz overclock on my Sempron 2600+. The overclocking on my 1024 MB of crappy Samsung RAM made my BF2 very happy. CPU temperature topped out at about 37 C.

I had thought that dust would be a problem in a case without walls, but apart from a thin film near the fan there was very little. I actually found that there was less dust on the CPU HS/F than on my computers with real cases.

I'm sad that I couldn't get any pictures of the thing running, especially at night, (the power supply has a fancy blue LED. Yay.) but here be the beast itself. Yes, that is string holding up the video card. Yes. those wires hanging out the bottom are important. No, I didn't make this up.

The holes in the back of the one wall are the out-vents for the power supply.
And the wierd wire thing on the top is my power-on switch. I used to turn on my computer with a paperclip, but decided this could be dangerous if I connected the wrong pins, and so I made a power 'button'. You push down the top wire so it touches the bottom wire. Pretty state-of-the-art.

http://img220.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pb1300291pg.jpg


http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pb1300283uo.jpg


http://img475.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pb1300301sj.jpg


http://img475.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pb1300314tw.jpg


Yep. She's a beauty all right.

Rankenphile
12-11-2005, 11:28 PM
I love it. :D

Overconfidence
12-11-2005, 11:31 PM
Funny, that looks just like the case my friend had.

;)

OvRiDe
12-11-2005, 11:52 PM
At first look all I can can say... CCFL's you gotta have some and it would be perfect...

I also love the "distressed" look you did on the back and sides.. gives it a nice cozy feel to it..

Azrael
12-12-2005, 12:13 AM
Bwahahahaha! I'm loving it. Chipboard is now another material on my list on '**** that you can use for anything'.

A friend of mine who made duct tape shoes, gloves and wallet is making a duct tape case.

adreamtraveler
12-12-2005, 02:36 AM
hahahaaa....man that is so ghetto...lol but i'm loving it...the fact that you used an axe as one of the tools it took to make this is just awesome...lol (for some reason i feel that this would be one of those cheesy times where people start to stand up one by one and begin clapping hahaa)

wingman358
12-12-2005, 04:46 PM
There should be a section on TBCS for these types of cases...

A friend of mine and I put a computer in his desk drawer a while back:
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/1561/0101050115225wg.jpg
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/4875/0101050115480sa.jpg
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/3374/0101050116072ep.jpg

We also put the same computer (along with another computer) in a cardboard box with a chimney (a cardboard tube) and a real glass window. I don't think I've got any pix though :/

Rmcgrath
12-12-2005, 08:28 PM
Do you have any better shots of the set up in those pictures? They're kind of grainy and such.

Rankenphile
12-12-2005, 10:21 PM
There should be a section on TBCS for these types of cases...

A friend of mine and I put a computer in his desk drawer a while back:
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/1561/0101050115225wg.jpg
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/4875/0101050115480sa.jpg
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/3374/0101050116072ep.jpg

We also put the same computer (along with another computer) in a cardboard box with a chimney (a cardboard tube) and a real glass window. I don't think I've got any pix though :/

ROFL, the duct tape is a beautiful touch.

It's not a bad idea, though, putting a computer in a desk drawer - I was actually brainstorming that very idea earlier today. With a slot-load DVD drive, it could be done very low-profile. You could even put the USB ports and such routed into the desk surface...

It's... similar... to an idea I have for a full scratch-built mega-mod I'm still planning that I might get to start next summer, if the hosue we're remodelling is done by then.

OvRiDe
12-12-2005, 11:31 PM
ROFL, the duct tape is a beautiful touch.

Otherwise known as 200mph tape in the racing world ;)

wingman358
12-12-2005, 11:44 PM
ROFL, the duct tape is a beautiful touch.

It's not a bad idea, though, putting a computer in a desk drawer - I was actually brainstorming that very idea earlier today. With a slot-load DVD drive, it could be done very low-profile. You could even put the USB ports and such routed into the desk surface...

It's... similar... to an idea I have for a full scratch-built mega-mod I'm still planning that I might get to start next summer, if the hosue we're remodelling is done by then.

Rank, I agree, it's a good idea (which is why we wanted to do it) but that's a total half-ass job that we did and it ended up not even working. It was a pain in the ass cause it took about 2 hours to fit the drawers back in the desk and hook up all the wires. It turns out my buddy had put the RAM in backwards. I'm not quite sure how he managed that... but anyways, we found that out after disassembling the whole thing.

Rmcgrath, sorry about the picture quality, they're from my cellphone's camera. I would take some good quality pictures if the desk wasn't destroyed, and my friend not living there anymore.

Maybe we'll make a Desk Drawer Computer II at his new house....

adreamtraveler
12-13-2005, 02:43 PM
It turns out my buddy had put the RAM in backwards. I'm not quite sure how he managed that...

wow, lol that's a good question....how did he manage that? lol..love the duct tape though...ah so many uses but so little time to try them al out :p

crazybillybob
12-13-2005, 05:53 PM
My favorite part of your 15min case is the power switch.... A loop ov wire and a Screw...Nice touch.:D

How's the temps on that?:rolleyes:

Rmcgrath
12-19-2005, 02:38 AM
Sorry about the delay in replying.
The temps on what?
At a stable 2.6 Ghz, under load (enjoying a relaxing round of BF2's Zatar Wetlands)
CPU- 38 C
Motherboard- 37 C
GPU- 40 C
GPU Ambient- 35 C
HDD- 41 C

Temps recorded with EVEREST home edition. There was also something called "auxiliary" that was clearly on some serious drugs and was jumping from 9 C to 58 C every two seconds. Since I'm not even sure what that sensor's supposed to be measuring, I can't run a diagonistic or replace it.


Yet another plus of this case is the fact that you can just reach out and feel the heatsink to check temp, though I don't recommend to the hand/eye coordinationnally-challenged this since I wasn't looking at where I was reaching the other day and put my fingers on the CPU fan doing 3500 RPM. I bled. Those fan blades are plastic; I was not expecting grevious bodily harm from some stock hardware that costs about 8$ retail.

Anyways; I think those are what you asked for, if not I'm sorry.

That is all.