First Case Mod

[mminutel]

I have the NZXT Trinity case but it has began to look bad lately. I went for the biggest CFM fans without lights with intent to put LEDs in later. I driller a hole at the top for an exhaust which was not standard.

I would like to start with the side window. It is attached with a 90 degree angle on all corners but I dont like that look. I was thinking of putting in a new piece of plexiglass but I dont know if i want to put molding around it or just rivet it in. I am partial to the molding but some say that it makes for a sloppy look if it isnt done right.

Next, the HD bay faces the side which makes my sata cable bend at a 90 degree angle and i am not too thrilled about putting pressure on the cables. I am thinking of getting a 3.5 to 5.25 bay to move the HD up into the ATA slots. I dont think i am a good enough modder to rotate it. I am then going to take out the bottom HD slot completely because it is also blocking one of my 120mm fans.

Now for the lights. I am going to make a front panel switch control to turn on/off 2 12" CCFLs which i will place one at the top and one on the bottom of the case.

I am also going to put a fan controller up front because my fans are extremely loud.

Does anyone have any really cool mods they think I should do? If you see anything that I should do different from my current thought, please tell me. Also, anyone have some tips on cutting/drilling the plexiglass, and I am also going to have to cut a little bit of the side panel. While I am at it, i may go ahead and do a little more cable management.

[jdbnsn]

Welcome to TBCS! Sounds like you have a good idea of where to start, personally I think you would be better off using molding with the plexi. And I don't thing rivets are well tolerated by plexiglass, would probably crack. here is a link to a plexi tutorial on the forums...http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2326. Also, Tybrennis is kinda the plexi authority around here, so any specific questions about that ahould probably be sent to him and he's extremely helpful. You should post some pictures of your hard drive setup so we can see exactly what you are working with, maybe someone will have a clever solution. As for what mod to do, that's where your imagination comes in. My suggestion is browse through the forums and see how people have used their interests as subject matter in their work, then find your original idea and start hammering out some plans. Good luck!

[mminutel]

Thank You. Im from a small town where computers arent really the "cool thing" but i have a few people that I talk to that are really into them. There wont be very many people to show but i will get some self pride out of it.

The molding should be "H" Style right, the edge of the plexi should fit in one side and the other side of the molding goes into the edge of the side panel hole correct? One mod i am looking at says something about double sided tape but i think he didnt use the molding to secure it, just for looks.

You think i could get some molding cheaper at an auto supply store or should i stick with an internet retailer?

[jreffy]

It's kind of hard for me to get an idea of what you're describing without pictures. Just something to keep in mind the next time you come up with an idea. (Althought it is entirely possible that your post does include pictures and they are just blocked for me @ work)

As far as your 90 degree SATA cable problem. There are SATA cables out there that have 90 connections, in fact I went out and bought a 2nd one the other day because my motherboard only came with one and I have 2 hard drives.

The only problem you might have is that depending on how your HD is oriented in the case, the 90 degree might bend the wrong way. But that's a simple enough fix by just flipping your harddrive.

[mminutel]

http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/2618/system2od0.th.jpg (http://img120.imageshack.us/my.php?image=system2od0.jpg)

That is my current case and setup...you might be able to see what i mean about the hard drive now. My plan is to move those into the 5.25" bays and take out the HD slots because it is blocking my 120mm Silverstone fan.

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/706/sidepanel2wp5.th.jpg (http://img144.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sidepanel2wp5.jpg)

And that is my current side panel that I am wanting to remod.

If you all have any ideas to make this case look cool, please tell me. Thanks!

[DaveW]

And I don't thing rivets are well tolerated by plexiglass, would probably crack.

I used rivets in the plexi in my mod without any issues. I used a test piece at first to be sure, but they look pretty good now they're all in there. I don't think you'll have an issue.

-Dave

[slytherock]

I also used rivet, buty I place a metal spacer behind to make sure the plexi dont crack