The suspense! its killing me!
/dead
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The suspense! its killing me!
/dead
wondering what you plan on doing top the case
I'm planning on installing a fan and making a cover for it using some actual JD parts--prolly either a breather lid or a exhaust pipe lid.
But Ma Nature needs to cooperate be4 any of that can happen lol.
I like the progress so far. I know you already have plans in mind but I couldn't help but notice the shape of the tractor in your sig would make a great model to base a mod off of...
Love the design of it.
Is that the waxy love of crayon?
Nice man. Those leds look like theyll be awesome :)
I've kinda been toying with that idea off and on in my head for about the last day or so--the more I think about it, the more I might do it. It'd be some major bondo work (or not, depending on how I went about the top of the case).Quote:
Originally Posted by jdbnsn
I like the progress so far. I know you already have plans in mind but I couldn't help but notice the shape of the tractor in your sig would make a great model to base a mod off of...
The hardest part would be getting some curves goin on.
I do like your drawing, especially the triangle part @ the front of the case.
Going that route also brings up some very interesting tangents that one could take:
*Stealth the front
*Lettering on the side referring to the chipset
*Modding in a fan on the top to take advantage of a breather or exhaust
And that's just what I can think of off the top of my head, along with no window and kitbashing an engine (which would be really pimp, but I don't feel I've got the talent to do that...yet :p).
If you don't mind, I might use your drawing as a model per se and see what I can come up with freehand.
And then I shall go from there.
+rep for the idea, and as usual, double if I could since you got the ball rolling around inside my head.
Very rough plan, and some stuff will have to have some major creative license done on it:
Not nearly as neat as Jbd's, but I think it gets the general idea across. The breather intake will have to be put on the left side rather than the top and the exhaust will be moved to roughly where the breather is mainly--it seems to me that they are usually parallel on top of the hood, but that could cause some airflow problems.
The lettering could also prove to be....interesting. As will that window.
A little bondo, some metalwork...this could happen. I was planning on surprising my parents with it, but dad's got all the cool toys in his shop...
It'd also give me a place to do painting and whatnot.
And the plot thickens...
The fan controller is a nice touch, would be awesome if you could make the dials out of clear lights like in your sig (maybe look at childrens toy trucks to kit-bash) and throw in some clear LED's. I considered adding an exhaust pipe along the rear/side and left it out out of laziness. But after seeing yours it hit me, would be a perfect place to hide water reservoirs, and you know what else? That from grill could be made quite easily out of a watercooling rad. Good luck, this thing is gonna be sweet!
Watercooling. I find that funny as I'm doing this for my parents, and if anything were to get w/c'd, it'd be my system first.
Not a bad idea, but perhaps in a different mod.
So I was goofing around in sketchup and came up with this lil nugget:
Again, nothing like your drawing, but it was kinda fun to actually try to draw in that program.
What I wouldn't give for a copy of AutoCAD right now lol...
Finally, a somewhat decent day today. Too bad I spent some time at the dentist office:( .
De(con)struction of the case has been more or less completed! Here's some pics from the last hour or so:
Removing rivets with my Dremel
6 rivets later:
And the poor Dremel has had it--forgot to charge the battery! No problems though, I've got backup resources:
Now we're talkin!
Top removed:
And the pile starts:
Drive chasis removed:
And now for something completely different:
This is what happens when you touch a hot rivet. Instant callous!
Anyway, back to work. Here we have the mobo tray almost out:
Somewhere along the line I got the front panel off as well:
Wonder if Tiger Direct would take it back now? :p
And finally, something's gotta be done about these feet. There gonna be gone soon, as I don't think I could save em...plus they're flimsy.
We'll see what the weather is like this weekend...might be able to at least prime the skeleton.
I don't think you would need to go crazy with the bondo to build the contour you have in the sig. You could build a frame with ribs using styrene or plexi or whatever, panel it, then fill it in with small amounts of bondo and sand out the edges.
I'll do some research on this tonite, thank you for the heads up!
Edit: I've got something in mind--more details to follow, as I gotta make a trip to Pacific Steel and price some...items...;)
Been a while since I've done an update, as Mother Nature seems to only want to behave while I'm at work:eek:. If nothing else, it's given me time to plan some more and slowly start buying supplies.
The SO and I might be heading out to my parents for Saturday. If thats the case, I'm gonna probably do some quick and dirty welding on some 1/2" angle iron that I've got laying around out there--it's all part of the 'Master Plan' for this case.
I also bought some styrene to play with today, along with some cabling for the case.
And I'm still kicking around some ideas for the breather cap assembly. Once I get some dimensions from a tractor, I'll be set.
Pics (if we decide to jet out to the 'rents place) coming this weekend. Maybe.
I know what you mean about trying to pick up hot rivets. I once got a screw thread shaped burn on my finger and thumb as I went to pick up a recently Dremelled bolt shaft.
Neat work. That framing will work out well for the mod I have planned.
A quick update--took advantage (hell, I still am lol) of the nice spring weather and got the top side of my mobo painted with 1 layer of paint!
Before:
After:
More to come as the afternoon progresses I promise!
A couple more pics:
I was a bit worried about the rippling, but upon further inspection, that is a flaw in the mobo tray itself. I'm gonna let this cure for a few days, wetsand, and lay another layer or two down.
If the weather holds, I might start painting the rest of the skeleton in the morning/early afternoon before I head to work.
Hmm, see that 'after the storm' pic? See that tractor in your sig...Quote:
Originally Posted by drumthumper
Coincidence?
LOL. Was wondering if anyone would catch that. Inside front page of last Sunday's paper.Quote:
Originally Posted by xmastree
As for it being a Coincidence...I'm going to take it as a good sign!
Some more painting and de(con)struction done so far today:
I decided to pop out the PCI slot/Mobo slot cover. It's gonna get painted green (later today) and the back side of the skeleton will remain yellow.
Before:
And After:
I also decided that those crappy PCI slot covers had to go--I'll cannibalize a case for some real covers:
Whoops. Got a little carried away here. Not too worried about it, it is a truck after all, it's supposed to get abused!
And the feet on the bottom of the case have disappeared as well. I'm still trying to figure out just what in the hell I'm going to do here. I've got some ideas, but at the moment, that's all they are. I do know I'm gonna build a false bottom somewhat similar to Paul's Doom3 mod.
I take it there's more coming?
And that's one hell of a colour.
Lots more coming. Real time progress at its finest!
I just wish I had more time to spend on this project. Between work and planning a wedding, I'm surprised I've got as much done as I have!
So without further ado...
Here's the mobo tray, front and back. I'm gonna let it sit for a couple more days, then wet sand, and put yet another layer down:
And the PCI/mobo IO slot cover in all it's John Deere Green glory:
It's sittin outside soakin up some sun at the moment.
Also, I've got a bit of sanding in my not too distant future--damn paper stuck to the bottom of the skeleton:mad:
And finally, I was down at the locally owned hardware store earlier. They have lighters shaped like fire extinguishers. I'm thinking one of those is gonna get added somehow--kind of an inside joke between my dad and I. We've both had experiences with hydraulic lines giving way while operating a tractor.
Nothing like 6 foot flames shooting off of one side of an engine block to get the adrenaline running, let me tell you!
Had to do a quick mockup to see how it looks. I'm quite impressed with the end result.
I like the contrast of the rear panel + rep
Cool, it actually looks quite John Deereish!
+rep
I can't help thinking you got those the wrong way round. The John Deere scheme is predominantly green, with yellow highlights. That rear panel is the other way round. Although I guess it's out of context, so my criticism isn't fair.
Seen this?
I thought the same thing at first, but I think once it is installed on a case that is going to be green, the yellow won't be the predominate colour.Quote:
Originally Posted by xmastree
It does look good so far though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by xmastree
Bucko's on the right path here. This is the back end of the computer, so I'm taking a small liberty (for lack of a better term) by painting the PCI/mobo cover green.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bucko
The SO and I made a quick trip out to the ranch this past weekend, which allowed me to take a few pictures of a JD for reference purposes.
I wasn't able to get any pictures of the beast that dad's currently driving as it's literally sitting out in the north 40 (and you thought that was just a figure of speech. Ha!), so I snapped a few pics of an early 1990's model (I think).
Breather cap. This one didn't turn out quite as good as I hoped it would, but it's a start. For some reason I was thinking that the actual cap was much longer. This will be much easier to fabricate.
Breather and Exhaust. The exhaust manifold could also prove to be an interesting build if I wish to have it (somewhat) functional. This is one piece that I will base off the newer model tractors, as the newer ones don't have the cap at the top. Also, this picture shows the yellow stripe across the top half of the engine compartment and the font. Now I gotta start doing some searching to see if I can find something similar.
Radiator/Fan assembly cover. Yet again, a piece that might be a real headache to scratchbuild. And since I'm planning on using something in this style on the front of the computer, I might have no other choice.
And finally:
Another closeup of the lettering and the logo(for lack of a better term). A couple hours in GIMP and I should be able to come up with a decent knockoff.
I also bought some supplies to do some mockup work. And since the weather is turning to **** here (AGAIN), I'll be working on that this week.
And on a side note: This is the same tractor that I made a reference to regarding the 6 foot flames shooting out one side. This poor thing has been through hell and back a couple times, and still runs like, well, a Deere:p !
I just have to say not all John Deer equiptment has the green/yellow scheme. There is an all yellow John Deer excavator doing work on my school. Allthough I feel a tribute to John Deer should be yellow/green.
Thank you thank you thank you! You just gave me a great idea where to get the emblem for the front of the case! +rep for sure!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by MintyMadness
I agree 100%, and that's why I've gone with the classic color scheme.Quote:
Originally Posted by chaksq
And now to an update of sorts! Just some skecthup work, as I had an idea. Please bear in mind that this is just some really rough (and I can't emphasize that enough!) drawings:
First off, FEAR my MsPaint skills! Needed to get it done quick and dirty like:
Now, for the perforated screen, I'm gonna make 4 blocks total (Gonna need a screen on each side!) out of a yet to be determined material kinda like this:
Notice that the square sections are offset. I'll drill those out and use some small dowels or metal rods if I can find some small enough for the frame and then weave screen door screen through it.
I'm quite glad I finally figured out just how to go about this. I'm thinking that there's gonna be a trip out to the 'rent's place so I can fabricate these pieces in my near future, as dad has a drill press...and a band saw...and painting equipment...and a chest full of Craftsman tools...and, well you get the idea.
:banana: :banana: :banana:
But none of this will be getting done for at least another month. 19 days left till I'm married!:D
So, there ya have it. That's the plan I've been knocking around in my head for the last couple weeks. I'm doing an in-town move this weekend, hopefully everything will settle down a bit next week to where I can get some sanding done on the chasis so I can put another layer of paint down.
One thing I just thought of:
I guess that would be called the CPU duct. It was originally attached to the side panel. I'm thinking with a bit of steady handed dremel work, some hot glue, and perhaps some modder's plastic (can't think of the name brand atm) I could feasibly use this piece as the air intake for the top of the case. The diameter of the hole is 60mm.
O yea. . I Can't wait to see this one Done. I live in Hicktown, USA. :D
When your done you can sit a cowboy hat on top. Lol.
Hot air Rises. . make it the exhaust fan.Quote:
Originally Posted by DrumThumper
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eclecticos
Well yes, it will be an exhaust...but if you look at the pictures a couple pages back, there's a breather tube which feeds air into the diesel engine, hence the 'intake' moniker.
Edit--just realized I'll be running dual exhaust on the top on this beast. Maybe. I'll do some actual mockup work before I start hacking away, and if I don't like how it looks, it'll get scrapped.
I haven't forgotten about this mod. In fact, it seems like it's taking up a lot of my thinking time as of late.
I've got some really cool ideas in store for this. The original case is going to be pretty much scrapped. I'll hold onto the mobo tray and the back panel, but it's (the case) is too tall and not long enough.
I think I have figured out what to use as far as back wheels go--dual wheelbarrow tires on each side. The front, however is still eluding me. I might have to do some kitbashing/toybashing.
Ease of maintenance is another thing that I'm trying to keep in mind. Perhaps I'll make one or both of the side panels hinged a la Doom 3.
And finally, the #1 thing that's holding me back is that I want to finish up my other mods, Frankenstripe in particular, since the paintjob that THAT beast is going to get will be done in somewhat of the same style as the paintjob that THIS beast is going to be getting.
That's so weird, just an hour ago I was thinking "what ever became of the John Deere Mod?" Spooky.
If you want the honest truth, it's sitting in a rubbermaid 30 gallon tote in my bedroom closet. :pQuote:
Originally Posted by jdbnsn
I know its a little late in the game to mention this but at a store i used to work at (Tractor Supply Co.) they have John Deere tinted green and yellow paint as well as classic and vintage vinyls for restoring the old logos and such on older tractors. And if you have the cash my uncle works for a John Deere dealer and I could help you in procuring true JD Green & Yellow since the color formula is company protected. Also the old four legged John Deere logo is much better than the new one in MHO.
Haha, talk about thread rez. This one's on hold until I say so. This is one of those mods where I'm going to accept nothing less than perfection.
Snowman, I'll keep this in mind. There's both a TSC and a John Deere dealership here in Great Falls, I didn't even think to look @ TSC for supplies. I mainly go there to buy Carhartts' clothing. Next time I'm there, I'll take a look around the whole store and see what I can find.
+rep for being helpful!
Wow, how do you actually juggle so many mods at the same time? Not only at being impressed by your mods but also the numbers that wouldve gotten me lost if I do it that way.
