First mod, need your guys' advice.

[ultraturtle0]

First of all, hey everyone! First post on this site.

I have a few ideas for my first mod.

1. I'm going to paint an old steel case glossy white, to give it a sterile, almost "Applelike" look to it.

2. I'm going to cut out a dragon on the top, with its claws clutching a large circle hole, for a fan.

3. I'm not sure what to do with the side panel yet, but I'll probably cut out some sort of tribal design.

4. The front will have another, more simple dragon design cut out of it, with sanded plexiglass to give it a foggy effect.

5. Not final yet, but I was thinking 2-3 red led fans with a red cold cathode in the bottom.

6. Also not final, but I thought two clear pillars running up the front would look snazzy, with red leds at the bottom.

So that's my basic gameplan. What do you guys think? Too ambitious for a first mod? Too cliche?

I'll try to get pics of the case in a few days, but tell me what you think.

[tybrenis]

That sounds pretty cool! You have some very creative ideas, I like the dragon clutching the fan idea.

I don't think its too ambitious at all. If you have access to the proper tools, as long as you take your time and read up before starting anything, no mod is too ambitious. Just don't be too ambitious to hurry up and finish it - the best mods take a LOT of time. Too many mods of mine have fallen thanks to haste.

[.Maleficus.]

Sounds pretty cool. Too ambitious? I don't think it is, I think for a first mod it will have a good mix of challenge and ease that will be good to start. Too cliche? Who cares if it's cliche, it's your computer, do what you think will be cool.

Good luck and welcome to the boards!

Maleficus

[ultraturtle0]

Cool, thanks a lot guys. I'll create a worklog to reference if I need any more help.

Also, how long would a mod like this take if I worked for about an hour each day?

[tybrenis]

It all depends on your tools and workspeed. If you have all the right tools and a fully capable shop it could move quickly. More than likely, that's not the case. Then it could go a lot slower. It all depends.

Before you start working plan out EVERY detail. More than once have I almost finished something and when I go to put the last part in or something, I find it doesn't work because of lack of planning.

[moOmL]

First of all, hey everyone! First post on this site.

I have a few ideas for my first mod.

1. I'm going to paint an old steel case glossy white, to give it a sterile, almost "Applelike" look to it.

2. I'm going to cut out a dragon on the top, with its claws clutching a large circle hole, for a fan.

3. I'm not sure what to do with the side panel yet, but I'll probably cut out some sort of tribal design.

4. The front will have another, more simple dragon design cut out of it, with sanded plexiglass to give it a foggy effect.

5. Not final yet, but I was thinking 2-3 red led fans with a red cold cathode in the bottom.

6. Also not final, but I thought two clear pillars running up the front would look snazzy, with red leds at the bottom.

So that's my basic gameplan. What do you guys think? Too ambitious for a first mod? Too cliche?

I'll try to get pics of the case in a few days, but tell me what you think.


I have a couple suggestions. I think you should have only one dragon as a focus point on the case. I like the idea of the dragon on top "holding" a fan. Maybe keep it a little more simple on the front. I think the pillars you mentioned would be good enough.

I also think it would be cool to have the red lights with the frosted plexi like you said and then maybe cut some eye holes for the dragon and put some red LEDs in there.

A tribal design on the side would be pretty tough to draw and especially cut. If your handy with tools.... (and actually have the tools) then it shouldn't be a problem, but cutting through metal isn't very easy or fun.

I really like your ideas. Can't wait to see your worklog! :up:

[ultraturtle0]

Dang this modding stuff is addictive. And this is only the second day. :banana:

I think I may have gone overboard on the top dragon design... Is this even feasable? I own a Rotozip brand cutter, if it makes any difference.
http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k100/ultraturtle0/ComputerModProject005.jpg
(The circular part in the middle is where the fan goes, I'll add wings later unless this isn't probable.)

Case pics:
http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k100/ultraturtle0/ComputerModProject003.jpg
http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k100/ultraturtle0/ComputerModProject002.jpg
http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k100/ultraturtle0/ComputerModProject001-1.jpg

I also had an idea for the front: instead of another dragon, I thought I'd create two crossbars by cutting out the front bottom and using bondo (Is that suitable?) to round them out into bars, then putting modders' mesh in the four quarters, with possibly a fan behind. I suppose my question is: Would you need to apply Bondo to the whole front of the case in order for it to look decent? Or would the paint job have a smooth transition from steel to fiberglass?

PS: Apologies for the bad pics, I just took some willy-nilly a few minutes ago.

Edit: After re-reading that last paragraph, I hope people have some vague idea about what I'm talking about...