Need your opinions - possible mod

[SgtM]

As some of you know, I served in the US Marine Corps for over 5 years. I want to mod a case I currently have with a Marine Corps theme. Here's some sketches. Basically, a simple paintjob, etched custom windows and a few other things I don't have sketchup items for. Not sure what to do with the inside of the case tho. The feet might have red LED's. Maybe amber lighting (CCFL) inside. I would definitely wire the power and HDD lights to the windows. I lost the drive bay covers to my 3.5 external.. might etch my Sergeant chevrons in plex and put that in there. Thoughts, ideas?

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/1.jpg

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/2.jpg

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/3.jpg

[Cevinzol]

nice theme It reminds me of the dress blue uniform. You need a white belt and cap :)
Could you get ahold of a metal version of the Eagle, globe, anchor (EGA) emblem? That could look really sweet on the front of the machine.

You need a place for a saber too. Maybe you could put a handle on the top that's a scabbard and have a removable, scaled down saber in it.

[SgtM]

Thanks for the suggestion. I have a few gold emblems. Those will be incorporated somehow. Just didn't have sketchup items for them. As far as the sword goes, I'll have to look around. I have 2 real ones, but would never cut them up, good idea tho. I could probably incorporate my medals and shooting badges in the case too. Still kicking around ideas.

[SgtM]

You spelled the slogan wrong.. ;)

(kidding)

Well you KNOW i'm all for it..

The only thing I would add is "November 25th, 1775 - (current date)"

hoo-rah

-Jeremy

Thanks bro. I also thought about putting some of the conflicts Marines have been involved in on the right side of the case. Spanish American War, WWI WWII, Viet Nam, Iwo Jima.. Maybe ditch the USMC, and put the POW MIA logo? My dad has an airbrush I could use. The "hard" part would be making a stencil. BUT, my bro in law has a plotter, and if I buy the vinyl, I'm sure he'll hook it up for me.
*cough* Nov 10 1775...

[Omega]

Iwo Jima was one of the fights in WWII, if I am not mistaken.

[SgtM]

Omega, that's right.. Actually, the flag raising on Mt Suribachi was Feb 23 1945, but that was far from the end of the battle of Iwo Jima. The battle of Midway is widely considered the turning point of WWII. History is actually much more interesting after school. I've read up on quite a bit. Partly because I had to, partly because something peaked my interest about it.

Here's another history tid bit. During WWI at the battle of Belleau Wood outside of Paris France. The Germans gave us our nickname devil dog. They were quoted as saying the Marines fought like fierce Teuful Heunden. Roughly translated, it means Devil Dog. And, the term leatherneck referres to times when we wore leather collars around our necks to 1. keep our heads up, and 2. for protection from enemy swords and other sharp blades.

There is so much more that could go into this case if I had the time, money, and painting skills.

[jdbnsn]

This may be a stupid question, but what is the significance of Nov. 10th 1775?

[SgtM]

This may be a stupid question, but what is the significance of Nov. 10th 1775?

That is when Continental Congress authorized the formation of 2 Batallions of Marines, and is considered to be the birthday of the Marine Corps. Marines, past and present celebrate it every year no matter where they are.

http://hqinet001.hqmc.usmc.mil/HD/Historical/Customes_Traditions/Birthday_Celebration.htm

Being in Philly, you should check out the historical site where Tun Tavern once stood.. That is where the first recruiting efforts were and is considered the birthplace of the Marine Corps. Yes, we were founded in a bar, and we stand true to those roots.

[jdbnsn]

Ah, thanks for the info! I was guessing that it was the beginning of the corps., but didn't know anything about it. That is a great tip about the Tun Tavern, I'll make sure to check it out! Thanks!

[Vertigo]

This might sound odd, but you might want to check out the POW MIA bike they made on American Chopper. link (http://orangecountychoppers.com/occ/onairtheme.html) They did some pretty interesting things with the theme, I especially like the POW/MIA cut out they did. Basically, they cut out the design, put mesh behind it. And did some accent painting. I always liked how that turned out.

All in all though, I think you've got a pretty good idea going here. Keep it up, anxious to see the results.

[SgtM]

Oh yeah baby!! I'm a huge fan of OCC. I DVR the American Chopper series. BTW, it's moving to TLC on Christmas day. They are having a marathon of episodes all day. I'm sure I'll think of a lot more to add if/when I get around to building this.

[DaveW]

The Scottish had some serious military, with a lot of old Historical Regiments-the biggest being the Royal Highland Fusiliers and the Black Watch. The Black watch were more 'elite' than the Fusiliers but you didn't want to mess with either. They had a grand history that went back a long way, and never, ever, got the credit they deserved.

Despite being powerful soldiers, they were constantly being sent on what many people would class as Suicide missions-things that they either weren't actually expected to accomplish or things that were 'sucker tactics' for other strikes. Basically, they used the Fusiliers as Cannon Fodder, and the Black Watch were sent into all sorts of the worst possible places.

The things is, they almost always came out on top, and although i can't recap from memory any of the stories that i've been told, i've been told some really amazing stories about the things they did.

Last year, all the regiments were lost when the English Parliament decided that it was for the best to roll them all up together in a single giant regiment with shared resources. If you're interested in Military history check out the histories of these 2 Scottish Regiments, and remember them for what they achieved.

(I'm not trying to downplay your theme...but the whole of Scotland is kinda pissed that the English government just has to wave their hands and we lose 5 historical regiments. No offense to any English folks either, i know you guys were reformed too.)

Anyway, it's important to remember those who fought and died for the world we live in today, so that no-one makes similar mistakes in the future. A mod to commemorate your time as a Marine is a great idea, and dedicating it to battles, soldiers, and lost friends is a touching tribute.

-Dave

[SgtM]

Thanks a lot for the history lesson Dave. That is some REALLY interesting stuff. I always thought the Scottish were hard asses, but I had no idea. I'm going to Google some of this later. I'm glad you like the idea.

[DaveW]

Thanks a lot for the history lesson Dave. That is some REALLY interesting stuff. I always thought the Scottish were hard asses, but I had no idea. I'm going to Google some of this later. I'm glad you like the idea.

I like commemorative cases in general, i think it's a good way to mix the future with the past. It's important that we all remember. We don't have thanksgiving in the UK, but we do have something called Remembrance Day-or sometimes it's known as Poppy Day, because everyone buys and wears a Red poppy in their jacket to remember those who died fighting for us.

-Dave

[SgtM]

I forgot to mention something Dave. I used to compete in marching band more than a few years ago. One of the bands we competed against was called the Black Watch. They even marched with pipers complete with kilts, and left the field playing Scotland The Brave. I never knew there was any history behind that, but I do now thanks to you. I would love to visit Scotland sometime, along with Ireland. I've been to Kelly Ireland once, but only got to see the airport (at night) on my way to Lithuania.

[SgtM]

Here's the case I plan on using. Sitting on top is a Maxtor 80gig ext HDD.

Specs:
Soyo motherboard with onboard sound. Yes, those are ISA slots on the bottom. The board only cost me $25.
Intel P4 socket 478 @ 2.66 ghz proc
1Gb (2x512) Kingston 333 Mhz RAM
Seagate 160 Gb HDD. The slave drive in the pic will most likely be removed in the final build.
Linksys 10/100 NIC (I don't like how the onboard NIC performs)
Sony TV tuner card.
OS: Vista Ultimate with Office 2007
BFI Technologies Nvidia Geforce 5950 Ultra (256 Mb). I have an 80mm fan sitting on the card right now because the 2 fans built into the card are broken. I need to look into fixing that.
Not sure if I'll keep both optical drives. The black one is a DVD burner. Perfect for everything I need to do ATM.
The fans will all stay, maybe just repositioned.
I would love to watercool, but just don't have the cash.

Thoughts anyone?

Pics:
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/DSCF1691.jpg

Yes, I'll need some MAJOR cable management.
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/DSCF1692.jpg

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/DSCF1690-1.jpg

[Airbozo]

I forgot to mention something Dave. I used to compete in marching band more than a few years ago. One of the bands we competed against was called the Black Watch. They even marched with pipers complete with kilts, and left the field playing Scotland The Brave. I never knew there was any history behind that, but I do now thanks to you. I would love to visit Scotland sometime, along with Ireland. I've been to Kelly Ireland once, but only got to see the airport (at night) on my way to Lithuania.

Scotland is _definitely_ a must see. Spent a month there backpacking the countryside and not a day went by that I wasn't impressed with some local sight. All of the locals treated us like family as well. Every place we went, someone bought us a round and invited us to their table for a chat.

If you liked the precision of the marching band (I also was a band geek), you will absolutely _love_ the Scotland Military Tattoo. In fact it is worth planning your trip around... http://www.edinburgh-tattoo.co.uk/tattoo-experience/webcam_gallery.html

BTW, the BEST Italian food I have ever had was in a restaurant less that 1/4 mile from the castle gates.

BACK TO YOUR TOPIC NOW! (sorry)

[SgtM]

Scotland is _definitely_ a must see. Spent a month there backpacking the countryside and not a day went by that I was impressed with some local sight. All of the locals treated us like family as well. Every place we went, someone bought us a round and invited us to their table for a chat.

If you liked the precision of the marching band (I also was a band geek), you will absolutely _love_ the Scotland Military Tattoo. In fact it is worth planning your trip around... http://www.edinburgh-tattoo.co.uk/tattoo-experience/webcam_gallery.html

BTW, the BEST Italian food I have ever had was in a restaurant less that 1/4 mile from the castle gates.

BACK TO YOUR TOPIC NOW! (sorry)

I've heard of the Tattoo.. Sounds VERY interesting. I still like all the marching band (well Drum Corps mainly) stuff. You know, Lithuania is the same way. I went there with my reservists in 98. We had a free day to go out in town and stuff. We hooked up with the local soldiers, and they showed us around. These guys wouldn't let us pay for a thing, and almost got offended when we offered. They had a big fair set up and the whole thing. It was awesome. There were a total of 12 countries participating, and each night in the barracks was like a swap meet. People trading all kinds of things. The funniest thing I couldn't get over was the fact that they sold beer in 1.5 liter plastic bottles in vending machines. Norway, on the other hand, was very Americanized.. I kept looking for souvies to bring back, but I couldn't find anything that was unique to the country. Expensive as **** too. I remember a beer was $7 US. I blew through $150 on food and a few drinks alone.

[DaveW]

Expensive as **** too. I remember a beer was $7 US. I blew through $150 on food and a few drinks alone.

To be honest, don't expect a cheap holiday in Scotland. On another note, if anyone's ever passing through Scotland, give me a call, and I'll show you around Glasgow for the day, in my little purple auto-mo-wheels.

Back on the topic, that case looks like a good starting point. I'd beware of the metal though, cos it looks very much like the metal i used in mine: it was very resistant to dremel cutting blades, but when i tried to use the jigsaw, it warped the edge. See my worklog for more info.

Looking forward to seeing what you come up with. :)

-Dave

[Omega]

Man, hearing that makes me want to go to Glasgow just ot meet the great Dave.

[Aero]

wow sgtm, I didn't know they made P4 boards with ISA slots:eek:

I also don't know how I missed this thread. I love the idea of the marine corps case. Especially since you were in the marines, makes it all that more personal.

[docturtle]

SGTM, all the info on the USMC keeps reminding me of all the stuff we have to learn to get our FMF pin (which I'm currently working on getting). I like the blood stripe. Any chance you'll put a bulldog on it anywhere or some cross rifles? I was also thinking of the frase "No Balls" :P I know you'll get it since the history of prior service. What color LED's are you going to use on the inside? Red and Gold?
It's a sweet idea. Maybe you can put a corpsman caduce on it somewhere to :P (long shot but I suppose I might be a little partial to the idea, lol)
Oh, and I'm definately subscribing to this one!

[SgtM]

SGTM, all the info on the USMC keeps reminding me of all the stuff we have to learn to get our FMF pin (which I'm currently working on getting). I like the blood stripe. Any chance you'll put a bulldog on it anywhere or some cross rifles? I was also thinking of the frase "No Balls" :P I know you'll get it since the history of prior service. What color LED's are you going to use on the inside? Red and Gold?
It's a sweet idea. Maybe you can put a corpsman caduce on it somewhere to :P (long shot but I suppose I might be a little partial to the idea, lol)
Oh, and I'm definately subscribing to this one!

Uh oh. Don't tell me the Navy is moving in here too! J/k man. Welcome. I see you're on the rock. Enjoy your time there. If you ever have any questions about the Corps, let me know.

I'm still working out some details. Lighting may be in the form of CCFL's but I would prefer LED's. Maybe red inside the case, and insert a Yellow/amber LED in the window with the Eagle Globe and Anchor etched into it, and run that off of the HDD activity lead. I know the color scheme will probably not change from what I have it. I'm definitely keeping the blood stripe on top though. I would love to be able to sculpt a mini Mt Suribachi/flag raising on the motherboard side of the case, but I know my limits. That would be out of my league. My birthday is in January, so I'm going to tell everyone that I want paint, plexi, and LED's. My dad has a cool workshop I can use to build this in. Maybe I'll take pics of it when I check on his dogs later. I can have plex frosted by my Father In Law from his work. If you didn't catch the resemblence yet, the 2 tall windows I incorporated is to represent the WTC. Kinda ambitious for my first mod, but you gotta start somewhere right?

wow sgtm, I didn't know they made P4 boards with ISA slots:eek:

I also don't know how I missed this thread. I love the idea of the marine corps case. Especially since you were in the marines, makes it all that more personal.

I got the board from my old employer. He had ordered it special for a customer that needed ISA slots too hook their cash register up to the PC or something. In the end, they didn't want it so it sat on a shelf for a year before I grabbed it for $25. Not a bad deal.

[docturtle]

I would love to be able to sculpt a mini Mt Suribachi/flag raising on the motherboard side of the case, but I know my limits. That would be out of my league.

If you are just thinking about etching it into the case then you could probably find a siloute of the flag raising and just tape that onto the case and cut out the pic? Just a thought. I'll see if I can find any pics for ya too.
*EDIT* I found a pic, I'm just going to try to make it "stencil-able". What size are you looking for?

[Omega]

If you are just thinking about etching it into the case then you could probably find a siloute of the flag raising and just tape that onto the case and cut out the pic? Just a thought. I'll see if I can find any pics for ya too.
*EDIT* I found a pic, I'm just going to try to make it "stencil-able". What size are you looking for?

Most case side panels are 12" by 18" or so, so he'd probably need anywhere from 10" by 16" to less than that.

[SgtM]

hmm.. not really sure right now. My Sketchup dimensinos are off a little. The side panels measure 17.5" width, and 16" height. So if I were to make it a window and etch it, then I would probably need like 15" width, 14" height. I saw this REALLY cool etching technique on American Chopper once that I'm going to try on some scrap.

[docturtle]

Well, here is what I made. I just took the actual pic and then edited it in paint. Not much but hopefully it'll help? Please feel free to use it. http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d142/docturtle/something%20else/iwo2.jpg
ENJOY!

[Omega]

hmm.. not really sure right now. My Sketchup dimensinos are off a little. The side panels measure 17.5" width, and 16" height. So if I were to make it a window and etch it, then I would probably need like 15" width, 14" height. I saw this REALLY cool etching technique on American Chopper once that I'm going to try on some scrap.

Eugh, yeah, that's what I meant. 18" by 16" or so. I think.

****, now I'm confused.

[DaveW]

That looks like a job for a computerised router. I think there's a couple of guys here on the boards that either have one or are building them. Tybrennis is working on one i think.

Anyway, if you ask around, you might be able to get someone to make this for you. Plexi's light and cheap to ship.

-Dave

[SgtM]

So guys.. I'm thinking of using another case for this project. I got this one free a while ago. I'm kind of torn because this one is light weight aluminum while the other one is a little beefier. I would mod the window to just a square. Obviously, it would need to be cleaned. I would try and re use the plex window, but there's that damn whole in the middle so I might just replace it and reposition a fan somewhere else. Undecided ATM.

So, which case do you like better? The silver or the black?

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/DSCF1698.jpg

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/DSCF1697.jpg

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/DSCF1696.jpg

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/DSCF1695.jpg

[DonT-FeaR]

Thanks for the suggestion. I have a few gold emblems. Those will be incorporated somehow. Just didn't have sketchup items for them. As far as the sword goes, I'll have to look around. I have 2 real ones, but would never cut them up, good idea tho. I could probably incorporate my medals and shooting badges in the case too. Still kicking around ideas.

Maybe you could put them into some sort of display in the front of the case, like a mini cabinet. ;)

[DaveW]

Aluminium will be easier to work with, but i think that silver case will limit your design ideas. It's already got too much 'pre-mod'.

-Dave

[SgtM]

I was thinking the same thing. But then again, I'm starting to be more partial to the silver case ATM. Only for the simple fact that the front is so clean as opposed to the black one which is a little busier. I'm going to play around with some etching tonight and I'll probably base my decison off of how well that goes. I have a cool idea for a custom plex fan grill, and floppy drive bay cover. ;)

[progbuddy]

It's a little plain on the side window, and the fans look a bit out-of-place. Nice USMC decal and semper fi ideas though. Just add pizzaz.

[SgtM]

Ok.. So I think the winner is the black case. The silver is just painted aluminum, but it's so flimsy it would be hard to work with it and not bend it. I also came up with a new design. This one is modeled more after the complete dress blue uniform. The red stripes on the outside will be frosted plexi with LED's in them. The 80mm fans will have red and blue LED's in them (currently running with these installed). I also thinking of trying to light the feet with red LED's. Question though. Do any of you think that if I spliced the 2 fans to run off of 1 molex that I will be ok?
Link to the dress blues:
http://edoc.pbwiki.com/f/PlateIV.gif
Pics:
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/newdesign1.jpg

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/newdesign2.jpg

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f186/sgtm_usmc/newdesign3.jpg

[SgtM]

One more thing.. the Eagle Globe and Anchor on the front is the power button. Please let me know what you all think. Thanks!

[runninkyle17]

I think the new idea looks awesome. I really like the black outside and the blue and red on the inside.

[SgtM]

Thanks runninkyle. I think the black outside and blue inside works better also. The other design was lacking in something, and I think this makes up for it. Anyone else want to chime in?