Weekend mod.

[Drac998]

Weekend Mod!

Hey guys, here’s a little mod I did this afternoon. A simple yet effective fan bay for a 120mm fan.

I took my 5.25 bay covers 3 in total and used an epoxy adhesive to glue them together.
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture001.jpg

Letting the epoxy dry for about 20 mins I took the clamps off and began masking and measuring.
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture002.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture005.jpg

Used a blank DVD to help me draw out a circle I could follow.
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture006.jpg

Comparison of the fan to the now 1 5.25 drive bay
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture004.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture003.jpg

After measuring and masking I took a trip downstairs where I could start cutting, sanding and filing. Rough cut out.
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture007.jpg

Some sanding and filing.
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture008.jpg

Securing the fan with some good ol’ hot glue.
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture009.jpg

In the case and running.
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture012.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture013.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture014.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s190/dr4xxx/Picture015.jpg

Overall I am very pleased with how it came out, and once I get my hands on some molding trim that will fit and a little paint, that will give it a very nice and finished look.

Thanx for stopping by.

[AKA_RA]

nicely done

[chaksq]

Simple, effective, looks good. You going to add any kind of grill.

[DaveW]

A grill would make that look twice as sweet. Thanks for sharing the pics though, a nice little worklog to show rookies how we think around problems! +Rep for it.

-Dave

[azminisk8r]

haha man you stole my mod lol im bored today so ill make a cool grill outta wood

[Mitternacht]

I'd hate to be the one to say it, but those cuts look kinda rough. Do you have any die grinder bits, or sandpaper to even it?

But don't get me worong, overall I like the idea and creativity of it.

[mellojoe]

Definately need a fan grill. YIKES!

No seriously, it looks good. I did one with 2 bays and an 80mm fan.... left the grill off. The dog's tail got REALLLLLLLLL close one time. I put a grill on real quick after that.

LOL!

[itsjustacompaq]

i think bondoing the gaps and painting the inside of it would make it look much better. im guessing the paint is supposed to look bubbly and bumpy. if not, repaint the case, i dont think it looks good.
great job with the creativity, though!

[Drac998]

Thanks for the contructive comments guys.

I really do agree with the roughness on the hole, I will take a grinding and sanding disc to it and clean it up. also this weekend the wife will be away for a function that I don't have to go to, means I'll have a good 20 hours to do light bondo work and a basic paint job.

As for the fan grill.... I really like the look of it right now. I may down the line put something in, but for now I'm gonna leave it.

[Omega]

I've been meaning to do this (especially since I have flat 5.25 bays) for a while.

Looks good. I think I'll do it in April once I have time.

[SSGM4DCOW]

nice
a simple yet effective way to fit a fan into a comp

[intergalacticman]

thats genius stuff
but the edges look a little raw so i would put molding around them

[Bartik333]

Sorry, bud it's very terrible.

[chaksq]

Your first post is trahing someone else, shame, shame. This forum is about expression. If you feel an improvement can be made say so but don't post only to trash someone's work. -rep

[mellojoe]

One of the things I have found is that you need to cut the hole a little smaller.... if you use a CD as a guide, then you need to make sure you cut inside the lines by a little. it helps the look and helps the mounting points a ton.

The CD is the same size as the fan housing, but there is a gap between the housing and the edge of the fan blade (1/16"?). If you cut inside the lines by a full 1/16" all the way around it makes your life a little easier.

When I did mine, I actually used the fan guard as the guide. I made my mark using the INSIDE of the outermost ring of the fan guard. This way the outermost ring acts like molding to hide any cutting mistakes.

[SgtM]

Sorry, bud it's very terrible.


Your first post is trahing someone else, shame, shame. This forum is about expression. If you feel an improvement can be made say so but don't post only to trash someone's work. -rep

I agree with chaksq. Browse around. We just don't do that here, and we don't rely on the mods to keep everything civilized. Everyone just kinda does it.

Anyway, enough with that ****. I hope you enjoy your stay here at TBCS, it really is a great place.

Drac998 - I agree with everyone else, the cuts are a little rough, maybe try cleaning up with some sandpaper/files. I think some mesh in front of that fan would look wicked. I hope to get around to cutting my window this weekend, then you guys can laugh at my first time cutting metal.

+ rep for being creative.

[Drew]

Almost a freebie mod, +rep.

Like pointed out a lot already, it's a bit ruff, but a good lickle worklog all the same.

Would have helped me out a bit if you'd have posted earlier though... I've just spooned up a similar mod by being a n00b. Ah well.

[Drac998]

Stuff works out. Anyone wanting to see more about this, please visit the worklog section of the forum.