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View Full Version : Orthanc - will rebuild someday



artoodeeto
10-29-2009, 03:43 PM
So a number of years ago I tried my hand at building a model of Orthanc, and in its heyday it housed 2 computers (how's THAT for redefining "tower" case? :banana: LOL). I only got as far as an 8-foot tall plywood shell - I didn't and still don't have necessary tools to cut wood in perfectly straight lines, and I had many misalignment issues that derailed my plan of sculpting the 3 unique exterior panels, then molding them and casting copies of them to go all the way around the outside.

the case was heavy, unwieldy (even though it separated into 2 sections for ease of carrying), and altogether impractical. When I revisit this design after my sandcrawler is done, I'm toying with the idea of doing a rocky base, and housing most of the computer in that. My original design had the computer in the tower itself, with the m/b and CD drives on drawer slides for ease of access. This necessitated using plywood to mount them on, thick and strong, and necessitated a fairly large scale. If I house most of the parts in the base, and just do things like power button, DVD drive in the tower itself, then I can get away with thinner, lighter weight materials and work in a bit smaller scale, but will likely retain most of the original height since the base would be taller.

aaaand....I just realized I don't have any photos of it on my work computer. dangit. I'll post some tonight or tomorrow after I get my sandcrawler hooked up again (just moved).

found a pic -
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt53/artoodeeto/Orthanc/orthanc1.jpg

That's my original sandcrawler in the background, which means this photo was taken in...2002 probably.

billygoat333
10-30-2009, 01:34 AM
holy hell that thing is tall!

artoodeeto
10-30-2009, 12:22 PM
yeah...it was... LOL I posted some more pics of it on photobucket:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt53/artoodeeto/Orthanc/DSCF0001.jpg
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt53/artoodeeto/Orthanc/DSCF0006.jpg
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt53/artoodeeto/Orthanc/DSCF0008.jpg
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt53/artoodeeto/Orthanc/DSCF0009.jpg
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt53/artoodeeto/Orthanc/tower2.jpg
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt53/artoodeeto/Orthanc/DSCF0002.jpg

x88x
10-30-2009, 03:55 PM
Awesome idea. Here's a thought, for the new one, make the tower house HDDs or a reservoir, or something. That way it still serves a functional purpose in the case.

artoodeeto
10-30-2009, 05:03 PM
yeah exactly. likely in the new one I'll have a solid state hdd (LOVE my OCZ Vertex!!!!) and a laptop size optical drive in the tower itself somewhere, right about armrest height for ease of access. And, those parts are lightweight, so I wouldn't need thick slabs of plywood to stably hold it all. Another idea that's on the back burner is having some opening panels that would reveal storage compartments, like for the keyboard, mouse, etc. for when I need to move the case.
I dunno how long it'll be before I revisit it...my girlfriend wants me to build her a case when I'm done with the crawler, but she wants something "pretty" like Bag End or Rivendell... LOL....sadly Orthanc doesn't qualify as "pretty." Oh well...

x88x
10-30-2009, 05:33 PM
Oooh, and you could put the whole thing on a low-speed RC platform :D That way if you need to move it, no need to worry about carrying it...plus, that would just be epic; Orthanc driving across the room :D

artoodeeto
10-30-2009, 05:48 PM
duuudee.....NOW you're talking LMAO!!!

Remy
10-31-2009, 06:23 PM
Oooh, and you could put the whole thing on a low-speed RC platform :D That way if you need to move it, no need to worry about carrying it...plus, that would just be epic; Orthanc driving across the room :D

Artoo... You have to do this. RC Computer case FTW!!

mDust
11-01-2009, 01:19 PM
I like where this discussion is going. ;) Better get started on it Artoo...looks like you're going to be busy amusing us!