I am entirely new to case modding as wish to make a stargate atlantis city mod

[ChevronX]

I am entirely new to case modding as wish to make a stargate atlantis city mod!

I have just watched the Mars City case mod video, and have seen alot of addons. Such as the base etc? How are they made and where could you get addons and paints and that from.

I am in New Zealand. So most of the stuff I expect to order from online.

Any suggestions and help is greatly appreciated.

[Rankenphile]

the best advice I can give is plan, plan, plan and ask questions.

The old adage of "measure twice, cut once" is a true one. Do your homework, make sure that you are entirely confident in every step you take long before you get out the dremel, and when in doubt ask someone. We're all glad to help.

Oh, and the most important thing - have fun!

[ChevronX]

Thanks, this is honestly the warmest reception I have been given on forums over the year.

I will start the planning and finding out what I need and let you guys know how it is going. Hopefully this works. As I am entirly new to the whole case modding thing.

I quit the Atlantis City idea for now, as it will probably be a bit too much and have decided to go with with an Ancient Control Pedestal.

http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/9791/completesnapshotandcoloaf1.png

[simon275]

Welcome to the forums

You can check out my thread on modding supplies in Australia as a lot of these companies have stores in NZ.

http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5806

Yeah that Pedestal doesn't look to hard mainly just sheet metal, aluminium angle and blue plexi would do the job. But it is your mod though.

Also where in kiwi land you from?

[ChevronX]

North Island - Huntly

Thanks for the information. Yes, it seems simple by looking at the image compared to a case mod of Atlantis. Yet being new to the whole thing at the moment it seems a bit complicated.

[Bucko]

Welcome ChevronX!

We'll try not to hold the fact you are a sheep shagger against you. :p

[ChevronX]

I will try not to hold the fact that you are convicts against you:p

[Bucko]

touche'! :D :D

All I can suggest around here is spend a lot of time reading different work logs.
It's amazing the things you'll see and how to do them.

[ChevronX]

Thanks alot :-)

[ChevronX]

Hey guys; I just had a thought. Does anyone have any ideas about a good airflow scheme for this case design? I dont really want to run into problems. I surpose I should draw up a concept sketch but first I want to hear any of your ideas ars you are the experts here!

[Ticien]

I'm no expert, but if youre going with a themed case such as that, I would say watercool it. you'll have to use less fans and you have more control over where to put them.

[ChevronX]

Thanks I will look into watercooling kits now

[.Maleficus.]

I know lots have said welcome, but I like to say it to as many new people as I can, so Welcome!

As for airflow, what case are you looking at (if any)? Or will this be scratch built? If you're thinking of putting it in a case, a silver Lian-Li case would be great for this. You could retain the normality of a regular computer, and still keep the theme of your mod going. But if you are scratch building it, it depends on the designs you have come up with. You might think about cannibalizing an old computer for some mounting hardware, and drive cages. That will save you a lot of time fabbing it from scratch.

[ChevronX]

Thanks alot for your welcome

Yes it is going to be custom built. You can see more on the previous page.

Just adding a drawing I did. Im going to learn to put it in a more digital format. and try to arrange stuff on the page. Any comments and suggestions are welcome.

Drawing image located here:

http://img169.imageshack.us/img169/2452/casedesignbx2.png

[.Maleficus.]

You may want to resize that picture, for the sake of those running smaller screen resolutions or those on dial-up internet. Right now I'm having a hard time seeing what it is because it's so big.

[chaksq]

Thats a huge picture, even on a high resolution.

I love the idea of a StarGate mod. I am a huge fan of the series. I hope this turns out well.

[Ichbin]

lol, welcome!!!!

1.resize the huge ass pitcha
2.Don't forget to do the dew

I would agree with the water cooling.


Your picture was very confusing...what was it supposed to be of?

[Gohan]

Welcome to TBCS

I also agree with the watercooling

I don't get the the picture

[Aero]

Hello ChevronX, welcome to TBCS.

And welcome to the relem of case modding. I'm not sure how much you already know, but I would recommend reading my guides, the first offers tips on designing your case and the second is a good introduction to the materials that case modders use.

Part 1- Design (http://thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2403) Part 2- Materials (http://thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2438)

Now, I saw you asked about the Mars City case from Crimson Sky, specifically the base. The base was scratch built from sheets of styrene (a plastic used in making models). These were held together with super glue, and this base was then covered with rocks made of auto body filler. The molds can be purchased from most local hobby stores that carry model trains, or look around online.

As for the watercooling, you will want to ask yourself what the PC will be used for. If you plan on taking it around to LAN's and such, watercooling may not be the best choice. The constant moving gives the chance that a tube may come loose, one drop and *fizzle*. I would say air cooling is a safe bet, especially if your new to modding. But, if your upto the challenge and take the time to do it right, watercooling will allow you to cool the system much more efficiently.

Finally, I understand the picture. (you guys who don't should look at his post on the first page and see what 2 things look the same :p. ie)the center console) Looks like a good start, keep it up.

[ChevronX]

Thanks alot for your help; Aero!

Yes; as you can see I am new to the whole modding experiance and I never thought about the watercooling escaping the tubes if it got moved around a bit.

I would like to apologies alot for having that huge image. Sorry guys. Instead I now have a link to it.

A friend of mine is going to help me put the design into AutoCAD. Which will help with measurements and stuff. I want to be fully prepared for creating it as I am new and want to learn as much as I can, so I can get the mod created as best as possible.

Thanks for your help and keep the ideas and thoughts comming. Any improvements or suggestions are of course welcome.

Again; sorry about the HUGE image. Especially to those dialup users.

[Aero]

no problem Chevron, anymore questions feel free to ask, thats what we're here for:up:

Also, heres the pic resized and as a jpeg:

http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/5652/casedesignbx2copynn6.jpg

and here it is again, edited in photo shop to make it easier to see (I got bored :p)

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/6271/casedesignbx2copyxr0.jpg

[ChevronX]

Thanks lol

The photoshop one makes how horrible my drawing is

[ChevronX]

Hey guys; I recently got my hands on an application called AutoCAD 2008.

I want to create a virtual copy of the case design. For measurements and things like that. Does anyone know any relevant tutorials for this application?

[ChevronX]

Here is a concept image I created (http://www.chevronx.com/files/images/ConceptImg1.JPG)

[ChevronX]

http://chevronx.com/comput3r-case-creation-atlantean-control-panel/

Made my own webpage for it.

[.Maleficus.]

You are very lucky for having such a powerful tool. (http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/autoindex?siteID=123112&id=2253423) Enjoy the tuts.

[ChevronX]

Awesome, thanks

[ChevronX]

Anyone know if its possible to make a 3D model to measurements in Sketchup, for the unique shapes I have in the case design.

[simon275]

Anyone know if its possible to make a 3D model to measurements in Sketchup, for the unique shapes I have in the case design.

http://sketchup.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=36232

[ChevronX]

Awesome; many thanks

[ChevronX]

Time to bring back an old post. Sorry about not replying and let it drag away just was busy for months (World of Warcraft :-( )

Just started using Sketchup to create the case design so if you see anything wrong that need adjusting in the pictures and something I am missing in doing a Sketchup Case Design please let me know.

Also the touchscreen is suppose to be slanted towards the back so you can easily rest your hand on it but havn't figured out how to do this.

http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/1826/atlanteancasemodpg6.th.png (http://img444.imageshack.us/my.php?image=atlanteancasemodpg6.png)
http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/7240/atlanteancasemod2ag7.th.png (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=atlanteancasemod2ag7.png)
http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/908/atlanteancasemod3ni6.th.png (http://img91.imageshack.us/my.php?image=atlanteancasemod3ni6.png)
http://img501.imageshack.us/img501/6331/atlanteancasemod4ac1.th.png (http://img501.imageshack.us/my.php?image=atlanteancasemod4ac1.png)
http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/7548/atlanteancasemod5pb0.th.png (http://img120.imageshack.us/my.php?image=atlanteancasemod5pb0.png)
http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/1623/atlanteancasemod7cm6.th.png (http://img141.imageshack.us/my.php?image=atlanteancasemod7cm6.png)
http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/5903/atlanteancasemod6hz4.th.png (http://img444.imageshack.us/my.php?image=atlanteancasemod6hz4.png)
http://img524.imageshack.us/img524/5302/atlanteancasemod9ce9.th.png (http://img524.imageshack.us/my.php?image=atlanteancasemod9ce9.png)
http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/4990/atlanteancasemod10si4.th.png (http://img167.imageshack.us/my.php?image=atlanteancasemod10si4.png)

[Talon]

Mate, as far as AutoCAD goes, you can ask me any questions - Im a draftsman so I use it every day, all day lol..... So many lines :)

[Bopher]

Looks good to me. Can't wait to see this one going again. Now you just need to figure out how to get it to come out of the floor by waving your hand over it.

[ChevronX]

Yeh that would be awesome.

What do you guys think about the placement of parts?

[halcyonforever]

yeah I am finding sketchup is pretty good for that, just use the tape measure tool to mark your dimensions then draw the shape to fit.

I've been pretty frustrated with it, because it is just so different than the 3d program I learned on and I can't seem to find the right controls for anything.

[Fuganater]

Looking good so far. Are you thinking about making a real model yet? You can always use that craft cardboard you find at like Micheal's or Pat Cattans.