Project - Air Cube v2

Thanks for comments m8s :).

Ahh I seem to be picking up momentum again, another day another update and I caught a little sun woohoo :)

Now the front extension is out the way, I started working on the sides and top panel, as I said a load of updates ago I was unable to bend accurately with the cheap metal folder I have at 1.5mm so had to come up with an alternative, well here it is :).

Sides joined up to the top panel so sides and top slide off together as 1 piece, it was flimsy and tricky to get it on at 1st, but I put another angle bar underneath on both sides to keep it square so it all goes on a lot easier now :).

Also the mesh I made I put a little countersink in all the holes so it will be a little easier to polish because I'm put off sanding it and there was some rough bits that needed sorting from when the drill went a bit crazy.

I tend to start off really slow and start getting really productive the later it gets, I wrapped it up at 10:30pm

So all that is left to be done what I can think of right now is filing and sanding the top pointy corners, power/reset switch holes on the front, vents on the left side so the hdd fan can get fresh air, and a window or 3 and last but not least a lengthy polishing task.

I tried wet sanding a piece of scrap from 80 grit then 240 then 800 then 1200 then 2000 grit, it got ultra smooth but when I used the metal prep stuff it got quite messy leaving dark grey dust ground into the metal and took some really hard work to get it clear, probably spent an hour getting it semi clear so I'm not so sure I want to polish the exterior now unless I settle for a dulled mirror effect by not doing any sanding so would get a mirror effect like the 1st sample test I showed, but I know for cirtain I will be polishing the interior and the corner angle bars, that alone would look cool with windows so all the parts get reflected eh :), so possibly going to be painting the exterior panels not 100% sure yet.

Man this looks really really sweet, very nice design, nice size and I can't wait to see the polish ;).

I think the polish on the inside is a nice idea, should give you a cool effect. If you don't want to polish the exterior (would be a dust and fingerprint magnet anyway) you could always spray it with a black or white enamel or get it powdercoated, I am liking the white idea.

:), Thanks boy 4rm oz, here is another update.

OK today I started using a tripod, wish I used it from the start, every picture is coming out nice and clear now.

Here it is just before I started.

I got the the top bits that stick up filed and sanded smooth, got the switch holes made and caught more sun :).

And found that I will need to make a mount for the dvd drives 7.2mm high

Looking good man! Getting close eh?

i keep thinking its plexi :P
i know its alumi tho.. lol i like it alot!

Getting there, no doubt. Will you be painting or otherwise decorating the front panels on the DVD drives?

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Originally Posted by blueonblack

Getting there, no doubt. Will you be painting or otherwise decorating the front panels on the DVD drives?

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Yea, you should make some alu covers for the drives or pick up some Lian Li ones.

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Originally Posted by blueonblack

Getting there, no doubt. Will you be painting or otherwise decorating the front panels on the DVD drives?

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To be honest I have not give that any thought until you said about it :), I will have a go at making my own bezels but if it turns out poor then I will paint the bezels.

Thanks for feedback all :D.

Today I marked, cut, filed and sanded the left side panel, a basic window hole and a grill for the hdd fan.
I was thinking of having a window on both sides and the top but I remembered that I want a reflection thing going on through the main window so no need.

I started using my dremel and got 1 of the slots done and the dremel was toasty, so I put the dremel mandrel in my dads new rotary air tool and got the whole lot done and then done the curved bits with the dremel.

Air powered rotary tool? mmm Me jealous drool

well that worked splendidly

Nice, I want to get myself one of those air powered rotary tools. The grills turned out very well, nice job.

Thanks for comments m8s :), the rotary air tool was about £20 cheaper than my dremel brand new, the tool stays cool but the compressor sure gets hot but is safe.

And the polishing of the frame begins :).
1st time using the power buffer so had to practice a little and seem to have the hang of it now, it gets hot so I'm going to have to take regular breaks every 3 or 4 bars I do.
4 stage process, involving the green machine shown on 1st post, 1st sand any rough bits smooth, then use mop 1 and polish 1, then 2, then 3 and then I have a nice smooth decent polished frame, going to take a while to get done and will post an update once the whole frame is polished and not before.

Here is a few pics of the 1st bits done.

There is only 2 more structoral bits to make, a dual dvd drive holder for inside the case and case feet, I need to order a bit more aluminium thou for what I have in mind, but I can order a good sized flat bar while I'm at it for making custom sized bending pieces, the hdd cages are not going to be fixed to the case so I don't need to worry about them yet, they are going to sit on thick acoustic foam so no hdd vibes at all :).

Also because the countersunk rivets are pretty garbage and the current bolts have a tendancy to lose the socket easily I decided to order some good quality High tensile countersunk bolts and going to add washer springs and have the dome nuts ordered for the top bolts that stick out.

:o

:D
Got the base done.

I just love how it can all be taken apart with ease and can just take the bars off 1 by 1, so glad I chose to use nuts & bolts this time.

I did not polish every single piece, only the pieces that would be seen.

On this pic with the back panel on, I had wet sanded the panel to be ultra smooth using 600 grit, 1200 grit, 2000 grit then I used the metal prep and mirror finish polishes and well it is a very poor look I think.

So decided to do it properly with the power buffer, I will be lucky to get 1 panel done per day as it overheats regular this pic only got to stage 2 of 3 of buffing but already shows a glimpse of what to expect, shame I can't make a cooling mod for it, it has no vent holes so could only cool the case which I doubt would make a difference.

(whistles) Lookin sweet!

Dude, love the polish, looks great.

yeah agree with the two above

:D Thanks for comments.

The dremel cooler I made, I modified again by bending and riveting the scrap from the window cut out so it could be used on the grinder and just plonked a weight on it and was nice and firmly in place, kept it nice and cool all day, was able to get all the inside panels done today, I borrowed a full face respirator for doing the polishing and still got covered in dust, had a fred flintstone beard of dust so I dread to know what it would do to you without a good respirator, it doesn't wash off skin easy neither, I doubt I will do polishing again unless I get a very good respirator and overalls etc, it is just plain nasty what it covers you in.

The filter was white before this shot so it must have kept most of it out.

The lower area I did not do completely as it would not be seen, the back panel was easily the hardest to do and still did not get it quite to the finish I wanted but it will do.

Looks to me like it was definitely worth it ;).

/\ hellz yeah

Thanks for comments m8s :)
Changed the pics to naked metal :).

Just a few more mid day pics, these will be the last pics and update before I paint the exterior panels, I was going to do them white but I would not mind doing a camo paint job, difficult to decide desert, forrest, snow or urban, forrest camo would go well with the fans, desert I'm not to sure about, but overall I think urban or snow camo would look awesome with the polish.

Really looks very cool mate, can't wait to see the sides with the plastic off. Did you decide if you were going to polish the sides or paint them?

Doh!, why did I not think of taking the plastic off for this latest shoot :redface: :facepalm:, I should delete the last pics and get the plastic off and re do the pics :up:.

Snow camo or urban camo paint job, I don't know yet :?.

That is gonna be sweet, personally I am partial to urban camo but the snow camo with the blues and dark grays will look very cool (pardon the pun :D) with the polished alu. Really depends what look you are after, if you want something that is darker, more earthy go the urban, if you want something with a bit more colour, a but warmer, go the snow camo.

Decided = Urban :banana: and changed pics to naked alu :D.

Much better with the plastic off ;).

does that look like a duck to anyelse? lol looks wicked tho!

Excellent framework, and overall design. +Rep
The fan guard, and PSU vents are perfect.

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Originally Posted by DonT-FeaR

does that look like a duck to anyelse? lol looks wicked tho!

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LOL others have said this too and a 3 eyed monster head lol :D.

Thanks for good comments m8s and oooh an extra bar I see :D thanks.

I have changed my mind on the paint job quite a few times over the past few days so I'm just going to clean the case up where needed and wait until I have enough money for an ok air brush and some good paint, I really shouldn't rush the finish after the effort I've put in so far, besides maybe if I get rid of the blemishes and scratches by sanding it could look pretty good without paint, I'll have to put something on the polished side so it doesn't get messed up while I sand it, not risking wet sanding as it wil surely mess the polish up.

I still have to make a dvd drive piece so they can be secured to the case at the proper height, I'll make that today and get the psu stand set. And I'll have a try at making my own dvd bezels to give the front extension a nice uniform finish.

Sounds good mate. The outside will look good regardless of how you do it.

I sanded the panels ready for painting the other day and been deciding since which colour to paint it and got the feet made from a square tube cut to size and put them on the front and back so it goes along the width of the case, Nice and sturdy and it has a good gap between the surface and the case so I can easily pick it up now :).

Damn yellow lights lol, makes pictures look awful, must get white lights.

I got 30mm allen head countersunk bolts for the fans and they fit with the mesh panel perfect :).

There is a hairline beam of light coming through the top, the reason for the other hairline of light to the left is because I forgot to bolt up the top left one for the pics, I will be fixing an angle bar along the top to keep the top middle panel rigid for when I remove it and to block the hairline gap, I think I'll add a couple more bolts for the side panels too for extra rigidity for when I add and remove it, this is just with using 1 of the 2 cathodes they are sooo bright :).

This final shot is with the light from my monitor

And these are the colours I have picked out for deciding which one, I think it will be either olympic gold metalic or matisse blue, I might flip a coin for which one to go for :).

Next update will be the paint finish :).

I actually like the Glacier Blue but if I were to choose out of those other two it would be Matisse Blue.

looking wicked,, no idea with the color thing

I think any of the colours would have looked great, but wanted something somewhat less in your face and to be honest the very mild gold I think will look very well matched with the polish rather than a striking contrast.

Olympic gold is what I have gone for and will be painting it tomorrow after I make a hole for the cathode switch in the front panel.
The gent in the shop said he could do it with 1 can because of his 50 years experience, I believe him so I got 2 cans each of grey primer, olympic gold, clear coat and cost £26, he also told me of a good technique to really reduce wasted paint and some good tips, most helpful knowledgeable clerk I have ever dealt with, if he was not helpful & more of a corp shop I would have bought way too much and got no tips :).

1 of the gold paint tins was damaged, so I'm thinking of setting it up as is and get around to painting it at a later date when I have a spray gun and air brush gear, spray cans irritate me having to shake forever etc.

I'll have a picture update or 2 tomorrow :) I primed the panels today with 2 400ml cans for 5 panels and 3 angle bars, the technique the man told me about is good, but I did it a little different because I did not hang them up, I did them up against a board, the method he said to try was make a box out of the panels in an arch type way and do slowish long sweeping strokes, but I just did 2 at a time it was easier to set up, but I can see how it is a good method if it was set up correctly.

Also got a hole for mounting the cathode switch underneath the extension so the ugly switch will not be visible but very accessible.

Tomorrow I'm going back to the paint shop and possibly getting 3 x Glacier blue just to be safe for the main colour and something like the matisse blue for a faint haze over the glacier, or a completely unplanned colour that catches my eye :D and of course a couple of layers of clear which I already have for protection.

Also the man said screwed up paper kitchen towel is best instead of wet sanding, because even with 2000 grit it can easily be scratched, so I'll give it a try and hopefully it will work ok, I'm not going to ignore a man with a lifes experience (50 years doing and dealing paint) on something like this.

lol must be fait that the gold cans was damaged hehe :D.

Sounds good mate, I can't wait to see how it turns out.

Primed.

Colours I chose, Haze Blue was closest I could get to glacier blue, the matisse blue is going to be used for a quick haze spray.

All the paint on the panels are good except for the most prominent one being the front panel, I was stupid and did not take the front extension off when I painted it and do it seperately, oh well something had to go wrong but I'll put up with it, I'm glad I'm not too much of a perfectionist else it would take far too long to do

I'll hit it with a couple of coats of clear tomorrow :) and will clean up my current parts and add this little beauty for my main hdd on sunday :) and take some finished pics, then enjoy my new case :).

Colour looks great mate, and lucky you for getting an SSD.

nice mate!