Project: Chevrolet

[AceX]

The first thing that you should know when following this project, is that, I am a complete car nut. Also note that I am a devoted Chevy guy with a certain longing for Corvettes and hot-rods. I have well over 75 1/18th scale models of various cars, but about 25-30 of them, are Corvettes. So, now that we all know where my inspriation comes from, lets get started...

I recently decided to build myself a second system because I'm a greedy little bastard :D Actually, I have alot of friends who like to come over and play on my LAN and I just never seem to have enough computers for everyone...

Well, I went out and bought a few fun things, and now I'm ready to take this case:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010100.jpg
and do a complete restoration/customization. It will include:

Abit NF8 Motherboard with AMD 3100+ Sempron Processor and 6-channel audio codec
Radeon x700 256mb AGP video card
Western Digital 120gb 7200rpm HDD
2gb DDR400 RAM
Many, many cooing fans/accessories...

I started by dissasembling the case and then using Krylon Semi-Flat black paint to give the whole thing a facelift.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010110.jpg

I painted the grills on the face aluminum. They were a pain to take off and put back on because they were attached using bent, metal tabs which were in small spaces...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010112.jpg

The next order of business, seeing as this is a Chevy car themed case, was something that I COMPLETELY ripped off of Tech-Daddy's "Boss FX-57" build. I added an aircleaner to the CPU fan If you ask me, it even looks like a carburator... a little bit...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010108.jpg

Its a pretty simple process. You just attach a fan grill to the CPU fan and run some zip ties through the middle ring. The air cleaner won't really fit otherwise.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010106.jpg

You then install the base of the air cleaner onto the grill and attach it using the zip ties.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010107.jpg
Clean and simple, just how I like it...

I went to a sign shop a few days ago and had them make me a template of the Chevy logo, often referred to as the "bow-tie" and placed it on the side of the case. I covered the entire thing in blue painters tape to add some protection for the paint (which is actually being used as a primer), but also to provide alot of contrast to the black template.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010113.jpg

When cutting into the metal, I found, that its a good idea to have LOTS of light, so I got out my artificial suns and had at it.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010114.jpg

Also, a cool little thing I found while @ OSH was this Dremel cutting kit. has EVERYTHING that you could need to cut metal, plastic, human flesh... I mean, fiberglass...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010115.jpg

So, here's the logo cut out.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010119.jpg
Looks good, now for filing.

While working on the project last night, my dad sort of got into it and helped me out. We decided that just having a little logo here and there, and having chrome parts and sleeving wasn't enough... No, we needed an engine. Not just any engine, but an engine that started a revolution. I give you, my very-small-block Chevy engine:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010124.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010125.jpg

I set it next to the case to see how it might fit, and wouldn't ya know, it does, but JUST barely...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010120.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010121.jpg

It's held down using four, very small machine screws, which provide, surprisingly, alot of support to the thing. I do however want to find some very small washers for the screws as I have a tendency to over build things and want to make sure that when I tilt the case on its side, that that thing isn't going anywhere... Oh yeah, the engine actually turns over and spins, just like a real engine, and those fans infront of said engine, will, I'm hoping, make the engine turn via the fan.

The last thing I did was install ym shiny new PSU. A 600watt unit with a nice chrome finish and shiny, steel wiring all of which is now hidden in the top 5-1/2" drive bay.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010123.jpg

I will have more pics, progress, and finally clean this little log up tommorrow, but I have to rush off to work in a little while, so I wanted to get pics up and ge the party started :D

[Kenyan]

that is a one sweet case, and the air filter, defiantely looks like the carb. Will be cool to see when it is finished.

Does the fan on the little engine spin? If not, you should try to make it spin :D

[Tech-Daddy]

Looking *very* nice bro...
;)

I'm watching you!

[chris_kalan]

Awesome!! I love the engine...if only it was functional...how hot would that be!!

[chris_kalan]

Quick note...it would be cool if you could actually cut a small portion from one side to house a fan actually inside the engine...that way it is actually functional!

[AceX]

Teh fan on the engine will, in theory, spin, assuming of course that the fans can push enough air into the case to do it. I'm going to pick up a black faced optical drive tommorrow and then finally install the mobo and everything else.

[Xato]

This is definately going to turn out as a very hot rod... er, mod =P
Anyway, i agree with the masses, if you could mount that fan on the end of the engine, it would be o so cool.
Whether or not you'd be willing to cut into that model is up to you however.

[AceX]

Eh... model is kind of expensive to be screwing around with. I think that I'll leave it the way it is and just use it as a cool effect. It would be cool if it were functional, but then again, how much air will that thing really move...

Will post new pics and do that clean up of the log in a few hours. Right now, I've got to go get an optical drive and another LED fan. BTW, where can I pick up some of that new 2-way mirror acrylic from www.acryan.com ?

[chris_kalan]

As expensive as it may be....you're a modder man!! You gotta do what you gotta do!! LOL... hey, if you're uncomfortable with it, all the power for you to do what you can.

The mod looks great!! Keep it up!

[AceX]

Ok, got off of work about an hour ago and got to playing again.

So, I went to Fry's today to try and find the last of my LED fans, but to no avail... What I DID find however, truly takes the cake. Ladies and (mostly) gentlemen, I give you, my cup holder/cigarette lighter combo:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010136.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010137.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010138.jpg

It was right next to where my fan was supposed to be... It was like I was ment to find this thing. Now all I need are two slightly longer screws than what I have, and she'll fit like a glove...

Also, I went ahead and finished *crosses fingers* all the sleeving and wiring for the case. Here's some more pics:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010131.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010134.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010129.jpg

One last thing, I noticed that I didn't post this ealier, it's another window, this one is right where the model engine is at.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010122.jpg

Yes, I am still filing it... I'm a perfectionist... mostly... (lazy perfectionist?) I promise more pics and an update tommorrow whent he mobo is goin' in and the last little tweaks and touch-ups will happen.

[chris_kalan]

That is amazing!! Progress is looking good!!

[AceX]

I got done finishing some sanding on the panels and decided that I'm just going to strip them and start over as far as the paint is concerned.

I installed the mobo and finished the wiring. It makes a dam loud beep when it starts up, so I'm going to see what I can do about that... Wiring looks soooo good... Also, went to the sign-shop today and am having them make me a vynil of the new Chevy slogan "An American Revolution" and it will appear just as it does in their commercials and ads.

One last detail: On the model engine, I'm going to be running clear tubing into the waterpump and thermostat housing. The light from the fans should reflacet off of it, making for a cool effect and a little more detail.

[AceX]

Sorry I ahven't updated, been busy. I did get the thing 90% done. I'm debating as to whether or not I should wait for AC Ryan 2-way mirror acrylic to become avaiable, or just go grab some plexi and have fun...

I do have a few more pics and mods, but they must come at a later time as I have to help the police find a friend of mine that went missing yesterday. Yeah... that was an interesting phone call...

[AceX]

Ok, I'm back, and I'm updating/finishing this thing, kinda...

All major components have been installed and are waiting for power and the last of the wiring.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010142.jpg

Last night, it occured to me that I have no exhaust fan(s). I needed to find a way to rectify the situation without taking three steps backward by cutting holes into the case again... I found a solution. I bought three 40mm fans and grabbed the spare bay cover from my new Cooler Master Centurion case which is a black mesh and then bent the small amount of mesh at the top that was curled over. The new fans fit nice and snug, with no extra attachments.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010145.jpg

I had a few vynils made for me, including a bunch of little 3/4" Chevy logos. I placed one on each fan. They are still visible through the mesh, making for a cool little effect.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010146.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010153.jpg

The three little fans in the top bay can suck nearly 90cfm combined. These things are loud, but I'm usually wearing headphones or playing loud music when I'm at my computer, so no biggee.

And now, a few pics of the "completed system." I still need to go get RAM for it, a video card, another red LED fan, and a CCFL that will be mounted from the top of the case, letting the light shine down onto everything in the case. also, things have been cleaned up just a little since this photo was taken.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010157.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010153.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010154.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010156.jpg

Thanks for all the support you guys. Alot of great ideas, alot of support and encouragement. I have yet yo install the acrylic and a few other small things, but those are probably weeks away from now, so until then, thanks.

[jptrvlr]

thats cool man, its you own unique vision and its still got your own touches. the small stuff like the lights, etc. its cool. need to do a porsche version next with a rear wing that raises to direct air into the case. lol. nice work.

jp

[Sh0ck]

AWESOME! Nice job. So... you cut the engine window when it was already painted, so you just sprayed over it after you cut it?

[Nawl]

NICE WORK :eek: !!!!

[AceX]

AWESOME! Nice job. So... you cut the engine window when it was already painted, so you just sprayed over it after you cut it?

Yeah. I ended up strippign off all of the paint again and sanding the exterior panels with 600 grit sand paper. Made for a better finish I think. There are still a few small flaws in the paint, but they aren't really anything to worry about.

[chris_kalan]

It really is beautiful. Just out of curiousity, how much did the engine cost you and where did you get it from?

[AceX]

Ya know, I don't remeber how much it cost. If I had to guess, I'd say $30 with tax. I got it while in Reno. I went to the Summit Racing warehouse and they had them there in a display case.

[chris_kalan]

That's it?? And you didn't want to mod it...shame on you. Lol jks jks...

[OvRiDe]

Nice job Ace.. Looks GREAT!!

[Frogon]

This is probably one of the best "themed" cases I've seen in a long long time. And those were the ones that won contests.... Amazing job dude.

[AceX]

Thanks again guys, the comments mean alot to me. Right now, I'm just putting my final touch on the case, which is a polished aluminum license plate from with the Chevy logo embezzelled (sp?) on it and a light to shine down on the license plate, which is a deep red with black and white checkered flags, almost like the old El Camino badges. I'm just trying to figure out the best way to wire it up. I think I'll use the cigarrette lighter wiring... I'll have a few mor pics yet to come. As always, I promise not to dissapoint...

[abnoea]

wow... really nice...

[MrSlacker]

A few questions. Are you going to put plexy where your chevy logo is and hole for the motor? And i would try to make the cables neater.

[AceX]

Right now, I'm looking into the new two-way mirrior acrylic from AC Ryan. I'm going to use it on the cut out areas (logo and engine viewing window). Basically, the idea is that when the computer is off, there will be a mirror and when the system is powered up and the CCFLs come on and LED fans kick on, there will be a mirror. I think that the reflactive surface would contrast very well with the black and also make for a really cool effect.

I decided to rearrange a few of the power cables, making the window cut outs look less cluttered than they are in these pictures. It actually looks alot better. It's little details like knowing how much of the mechanical construction to show, and how much to hide that makes this case what it is. It's not the Chevy logo cut into the side, or the model engine inside that make this case what it is, its the little things like the exhaust fans, the new PCI bay covers, the chrome sleeving, all of these little details are what truly sets a good build apart from a great build.

Could I have done thigns better? In a word, yes. Sure, I could have stripped the chasis, powder coated the frame, done a crazy candy paint job and given her some bigger and better components, but I decided not to. I want to show what 2 weeks worth of spare time and a little effort put towards the details can do.

My next project will be the refurbishing and customization of an old IBM 1600 Desktop that I found downstairs last night. I'm not sure what I am going to do with it quite yet, but since there aren't too many people doing desktop style cases, I think that I can have some fun and have alot of room for being unique.

Stay tuned.

[adreamtraveler]

nice man lol very slick :D love the little engine lol great work!!

[AceX]

I'm sorry I haven't updated at all. I've been kinda busy. I wired up and mounted a lighted license plate frame and a license plate with two checkered flags on wednesday. It lookes pretty dam good IMO. I did scratch the paint though :/ I need to touch it up with a brush later on before I post pics.

My dad and I are tlaking about the next case already. Got some killer ideas floating around. We'll see which ones turn out...

[montmorency]

lol nice. An American Revolution. i love it.

[AceX]

As promised, I do not dissappoint :D

OK, first things first. I added another fan into the mix. This one is equipped with Blue LEDs instead of red because I have 4 Blue LED fans lying around... I actually kind of like the new two tone look more than I thought I would.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010166.jpg

It pushes air straight into the air cleaner, acting as a sort of ram-air induction would on a hood scoop.

While I was at Fry's a few days agao buying the memory, I saw this interesting little heat speader amde by ThermalTake. A cool little piece. It has 5 blue LED's the light up The ThermalTake name and 8 different lighting modes/patterns. It can eb had for a mere $18 and is a decent piece. Definitely adds some flavor into the mix.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010168.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010169.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010171.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010172.jpg

The light was a little too well concetrated in certain areas, neglecting in others, so I grabbed some clear 3/8" tubing that I had and sanded it using 220 grit paper, then cut it in half, making a half-pipe shape and placed it ontop of the LED assembly, sandehiching it with the metal with "ThermalTake written on it. Looks alright... Could be better, but it works. I was looking into having a place here in Sacto laser cut "Chevrolet" into a small piece of metal to replace the ThermalTake piece, but its dammed expensive...

Also, there's a switch used to cycle through the different light modes, which I decided to custom mount in my unused 3 1/2" drive bay.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010176.jpg

On the opposite side of my pimp-ness windows, I put a lighted, chrome license plate frame with the Chevy logo embezzlled (sp?) on it and put a dark red plate with checkered flags for extra bling. I wired it into the cigarette lighter, which would probably never be used anyway...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010174.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010175.jpg

It gives off the PERFECT amount of light. Just enough to illuminate the side of the case and show a little on the ground infront and in the back, and is by no means over powering, even in a completely dark room.

Finally, I got my acrylic panel with my special tiniting. Oh how I have longed for this piece! It's attached via automotive window tape (the stuff used to by shops when caulking is not an option). There is about a 1/8" gap between the "window" and the metal. I think it just makes it cooler.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010182.jpg

The way that this "tint" or mirror works is that the side with the most light will be reflected, hence the mirror when the system is shut down, but when the system fires up and the lights come on, that's when the show begins.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010183.jpg

Not a very good pic, but it shows you that the lights inside are doing thier job well. When everything in the box turns on, the mirror becomes a window, allowing you to see everything inside. Pimpness :D

I installed a blue 6" CCFL on the underside of the powersupply, which is the ideal spot for the subtle light effect that I wanted, plus it sort of hides it :D

Until I get some better pics,

AceX

[abnoea]

wow, love the liscense plate... very nice

[Mr_Happy]

Im just wondering, im in search of a new case coz i really hate my current one and its not really a good one for first time modding. So im wondering, what case did you use for your mod, it looks pretty sweet:p .

Great mod by the way, lots of good ideas such as the 40mm fans in the drive bay.

[AceX]

I used my old case that I bought about 3 years ago when I built my first system from scratch. It's called "Supercase" and was made by a company called "Kel" I believe. It's a decent case. It's served me very well. Very sturdy construction. My only beef with it is that it had a very early version of those plastic locking pieces that hold your drives. It was a POS and bright green to boot.

EDIT: My dad and I decided that we are going to do a Corvette themed case now. We might be building it for the VP of the largest Corvette club in America also. My only worry is the budget. That will determine which of my ideas will make it onto the case.

[Rankenphile]

Very cool execution, the mirror/window is a great idea. The license plate turned out fabulous, too!

Nice work.

[TheGreatSatan]

The next order of business, seeing as this is a Chevy car themed case, was something that I COMPLETELY ripped off of Tech-Daddy's "Boss FX-57" build.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ace95835/P1010108.jpg

Why did you even use this when it can't be seen in the window?