Just revisiting your last update. I think the HDD coolers look very nice in the silver, I don't think you should paint them red.
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Just revisiting your last update. I think the HDD coolers look very nice in the silver, I don't think you should paint them red.
Thanks, I had thought about leaving them silver. they kind of go with all the silver washers I have everwhere. However I plan on anodizing some more things. In addition to the back pci panel, I plan to anodize the silver metal bracket that holds down the cpu waterblock. Its steel, so I will have to paint it. I also plan on doing the heat spreaders on my OCZ ram. I haven't gotten them yet, but they are ordered. So, I'm not sure what I'm going to do just yet. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by The boy 4rm oz
Ah ok, hope all your painting turns out.
I have a small project log over on Bit-Tech where I am building a case for my H2O cooled Jetway C7. I have been following this log since forever and have a couple questions that might make my project better.
1.) Has the epoxy you used really held the alum. angles to the CF well? Langer is sponsoring the CF panels for my log and I'm working on a couple new ideas after reading your log.
2.) With the Krylon paint did you use the 'reflective base' paint on the alum. or just the top coat? I see you used several coats and mentioned it tends to flake and scratch. Was the alum. that went against the CF painted or left bare metal?
john hanlon jhanlon303 on several forums
my log on BT:
http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?t=159236
Yes we made MOTM on Bit-Tech.
Glad to see you finally surfaced John.
Glad to see you are following my worklog, And welcome to TBCS, by the way.Quote:
Originally Posted by whills303
To answer your questions,
1. In regards to the epoxy holding to the CF and Aluminum. I am using 2 hour ultra strong epoxy. Not the 5 minute stuff. the shorter the curing time, the less strong the bond is. So the longest I could find was 2 hour. -As for adheasion, If you scuff the surface of both the aluminum and CF. it holds pretty good. I've been using 60 grit sand paper to scuff the surface, as well as a dremel grinding bit on the aluminum. It gives the expoy somethign to bite too. I've only had a couple brackets break off. but that was because of a dumb move I made. I set the case its side and basically pryed the piece off.
2. In regards to the krylon paint. I did not use the "Silver" base coat since the aluminum was already shiny silver. -The can's instructions state to use the base coat for non shiny or non metal surfaces. So I figured I didn't need it. And yes, it does scratch off easily. Someone recommened using a clear coat over it. -And yes the side that goes against the aluminum is bare aluminum. If any overspray got on that side, the sandpaper and grinder took care of that. I don't think it would hold very well if it were painted, since the paint leaves the surface very smooth.
Hope that helps you out. -You should consider posting your worklog over here as well as Bit-Tech. We are always interested in anyones work.
Later,
+Rep and PM coming your way!
Looking great man, really liking how the HDD's look is the sides, very nice.
Thanks again you guys.
TGS, -PM sent back. :)
Here's a small update for you.
I had to make a few support brackets to hold the hard drives against the back side of the panel. So I cut a few aluminum angles and painted them.
I'm going to use some felt pads to press against the hard drive. I don't want to have any vibrations transfered into the case.
Then using some clear 3M Double sided tape. (which does work good by the way). I attached them to the motherboard tray.
I also got my shipment from Newegg. Take a look at the goodies!
Now, if this isn't a kick in the ass. It fits. -Barely.
You can see there is no clearance.
-the problem is, I had to remove some bolts to get it to fit. -When I designed this case, I made the length for the video card long enough for the card, however, I did not figure in for bolt heads that stick out 1/8". So What am I to do????
Well, I did some major surgury and moved the back wall of the interior box forward about 1/4". This gave the video card some more breathing room as I see there are vents on the end of it. It took me about 5 hours to complete. but its done. I didn't take any pics because the result is exactly the same as where it started, its just 1/4" shorter.
I did do some modifications to the CPU water block and Memory though.
I'm using a Swiftech GTZ block.
I pulled the steel chromed bracket off so I could paint it.
And here it is all put back together. The red will match the rest of the case.
I also worked on the Memory. 4gb of OCZ DD3 2000 chips.
I taped them off.
and here is how they turned out.
Not too bad...
Tomorrow, I'm going to be dropping my PCI backplate and hard drive cooler frames off at a Plating company. They are going to do some True anodizing on them in red.
I am truly impressed with your engineering abilities, especially since I have been struggling to put together a simple square box I can't imagine trying to get all of those angles to mesh! Awesome work as always Dan!
Oh man, that memory looks sweet! Great job with the painting, im really looking forward to seeing this finished.
most excellent!! :D
Nice work with the RAM and the CPU block bracket, they look much better.
that is some absolutely beautiful carbon fiber.
I couldn't see a wrinkle anywhere on the carbon.
OMG those sticks of ram and that cpu bracket look super sexy. I'm loving this mod. +Rep for the attention to detail.
So i noticed the double sided tape.
I want to introduce to you my close personal friend.
3M VHB.
Here is my precious roll of the industrial grade stuff SKU:808
No bull shat this stuff is simply amazing. It's holding my cpu fan onto my heatsink by only contacting two sides. the bond now (5 days later) is strong enough to hold the heatsink itself (over a pound) by just holding the fan.
If you need it to stick and never come apart again. use that stuff. I've repaired Cars with it.
Thanks you guys.
Here is the double sided tape I'm using.
http://www.officesupplieslane.com/mmm4010.html
It has a pull strength of 2 pounds. I think that is per square inch.
They use a version of the 3M VHB Tape to hold glass panels to Aluminum Frames In Sky Scrapers! Odds are it's also holding the plastic (rubber feeling) molding on your car too!
It's Great stuff If you can get your hands on some!
But Render,
I used the same stuff you've got on parts in my R2 Mod... He's still running and the haven't fallen off (it's been like 2+ years...lots of trips and plenty of vibration) also using it to hold the plex in Pack n Play! It will do you well and it's easier to get a hold of the VHB.
yea that stuff is great the red stuff is the "civi" stuff. You can order rolls direct from 3m. but there huge and set you back a couple bills for sure.Quote:
Originally Posted by rendermandan
You know that stuff is thermally conductive?
you continue to impress me and its starting to piss me off at how awsome this is lol nice work man
Well, sorry I haven't been very active on the boards with this lately. I've been working on it alot. I just haven't had the time to post anything worth while yet. I'll try and do an update at work. That is unless I get swamped.
Oh, got some video for you by the way. :yellow_green:
And before anyone gives me the obligitory.
:pics:
Ha Ha, I beat you to it... LOL
Looking forward to the video mate.
oh im waiting on my seat... not the edge cuz that hurts on this chair
Ok guys, As promised, here is an update. Most of it deals with the mess of wiring I've been organizing. But there are a few other Gems in it. LOL
I figured I'd better test the psu to make sure its working before I go voiding its warranty. So I plugged the beast in for a few minutes. I did not have the cpu installed but the motherboard still powered up and all the fans work!
Here are the stock motherboard start buttons and other controls for an open case.
So with the PSU in good shape, I temporarily installed the MB to see where to drill the holes for the wires.
These holes are for the Sata cables, USB headers and Power/reset switches.
This hole is for the 8 pin power connector.
This is the back panel of the interior box. One large hole for the Power cable and two for the Pci Express connectors on the GPU.
All of these holes will of course have rubber grommets on them.
The holes for the sata conectors are kinda interesting shaped as you can see in this picture. The hole is just large enough for the cable. there are actually 2 connectors there. A 90 deg. on bottom, and a straight one on top.
The holes have a slot in them that allows the connector to come through, and then rotate the cable 90 degrees. The rubber grommet covers up the view of the slot, as well as the motherboard. -How's that for wire managment?
I figured now is a good time to run the water tubing. That way I know not to get the power wires in the way. Here is the layout.
This picture is with the flash. -For some reason it turns the red translucent tubing, opaque.
Here it is with the flash off. -This is more accuratly what it looks like.
Next, I had to get power to the PSU from the back connector. -Remember this from a while ago? -You will notice I added a small adapter plug and switch. -That will come into play later. :)
The stock power cable was a heafty 14 ga. 3 wire cable. -I ran to my local hardware store, and all they had was 12ga. 3 wire. -So I think it will do.
You can see the size of the stock wire vs. the 12 ga. power wire.
I soldered the wire directly to the psu's power connector and covered each with heat shrink.
Then I sleaved it and soldered it to the rear connector.
Here you can see the power cord snake through to the back of the case.
Ok, now that that is out of the way, I can start on modding the PSU.
Remember this shot. Its about 50 pounds of extra copper. -Ok, maybe not 50, but its alot!
a few screws later, and the Warranty is voided.
Then 24 snips from the wire cutters, -OH SH-T what have I done?
Well, I had to cut the 24 pin power cable for two reasons. First, it was too long, and second, I had to run the cable through that large hole I drilled in the back panel.
I got it measured for the right length. and then soldered and heat shrinked each color back together.
Of course I reused the sleaving too. -You can see how much shorter it is now.
This is how tight it fits.
And here is a shot in the case.
I did the same for the 8 pin wire cable. -Here you can see how I routed it around the radiator. I figured it was the best place to cause less clutter.
I also did the 2 pci express connectors for the video card.
And here is how they look finished.
Here is what I'm left with on the psu.
I've got the SATA power connectors to 3 drives to do, and all the 4 pin molex connections to make. -FUN!
Ok, enough of the boring wireing, Now for the fun stuff. :)
-My friend Gediminas (CustomElectronicsMan) Stopped by to do the final programming on the servo controller that he made.
Here is a shot of the temporary board. I'm going to have a custom board made in a few weeks that will replace this. But for now, it will do.
Here is Gediminas at work programming the Micro Controller.
Here is how it will work. -Remember that small power connector next to the large connector on the back of the case? Well, it provides a constant 6v power to the servo controller. This will allow the servo to move even after the case has turned off. This also provides power to light up the red Bulgin power switch. It will pulse when the computer is shut off. Then when the power switch is pressed, it goes solid and stays that way untill it shuts down. Also, as the power is turned on, it sends a signal to the controller to open the top fan and lcd temperature sensor. It will remain open while the computer is on, and then close automatically when the power goes off. -but not untill the power is completly off in the case.
The issues I had with Motorized Madness where it was controlled through startup scripts at windows login caused too much of a headache, so I went the simple route this time.
Here are some videos for your pleasure. -Sorry about the crappy quality.
The first is of the pulsating power switch.
The second video shows the Panel opening. You can see the switch pulse before the power is hit.
The third video shows the panel closing when the power is cut. I noticed the switches light comes back on after its done closing, so we fixed that so it stays on now, and then goes back to pulsing after its done moving.
I also have some news regarding the Anodizing I had done on the pci panel and hard drive fan frames. They called and said the parts were done. So I drove downtown today to pick them up only to find that they didn't do a very good job. The fan parts looked great, however the guy thought the PCI panel would only be seen from the outside, so they did a crappy job of holding it when they dipped it. there was a large area on it that looked like it was not anodized. It would have shown really bad and looked like crap. They are going to redo it for me.
Well, that's it for now. I'll take some better video with a digital camcorder later on when its done.
Later,
You have made some excellent progress Dan. The cable management is impeccable and your PSU mods look great, very well executed.
The vids are fantastic. I love the pulsing light when the system is turned off, a very nice touch.
Do you intend on using red fluid in the W/C? If so I would have thought it be best to use clear tube with a few UV LEDs to lightly illuminate the tubing.
Thanks!
Good point with the clear tubing and UV led's. And yes, I will be using Blood red UV reactive coolant. However, I actually don't like the look of the uv glow. Its more of a bright florescent pink than a real deep red. Besides, almost all of the tubing will be concealed under the case. so you won't see it anyway.
This is the coolant I will be using.
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catal...ducts_id=24047
Ah Fluid XP, one of the best red coolants around (as is Fesser). Still I think it would look better through clear tubing but as you said the pics don't do the red tubing any justice.
wwooooooowwwwww!!! I think am in Luv...!!! just amazing....!!! the best part is I luv to see video cuz you can really notice what you have done...!!! woowww man... keep it up!!! one finest build you got there...!!!
Nice work man, it really does look great. Definately one of the best around.
That is awesome work Dan! The cables look great too, I've done the power supply job before and know how tedious it can be so my hat's off to you.
Just a quick request:
When you get the "real" anodized parts back could you do a couple shots of how they compare to the red paint? The paint is awesome so far and the contrast with the CF is astounding.
john
No problem John, Here you go.Quote:
Originally Posted by jhanlon303
Here are the 3 parts I had anodized. The two hard drive fan housings and the pci back panel.
A little closer shot.
Here is a shot with a scrap piece of aluminum that I painted with the anodizing. You can see how easily that stuff scratches and shows imperfections.
If you ignore the "yellow bright area from the flash" you can see the color matches almost perfectly!
The hard drive fans came red. but they didn't look so good agains the red anodizing, so I game them a shot with some paint.
And here is one of the fans back together. Not to bad!
And here they both are. You can see there is a gap at the top of the frame, so I had to cover that up.
Of course with a piece of CF.
And here is what they look like in the case. -I still have to make a larger CF cover for the top.
Sorry, this shot came out a little blurry.
Next I installed the back panel.
Here you can see I installed some Chromed pci vent covers. -Not sure if I should paint them black or leave them chromed. What do you think?
Oh, I also ordered some red anodized screws for the covers a long time ago.
Here is a shot with the motherboard installed.
One other interesting thing. Asus isntalled some kind of "heat reducing" chip directly on the opposite side of where the cpu bracket is. Here you can see that it sticks up from the bottom of the board quite a bit. The issue I am having is the back plate for the water cooling will rest against this chip. -First off, it will put un-needed pressure on the chip. It will also block any air getting to the chip. So does anyone know if this will be a problem? I hope not.
-Not sure if anyone noticed but I don't have a fan controller. Well, I've been planning all along to have a windows controlled fan controller. Gediminas has been working on the electronics side of it. And here is a shot for the custom PCB I'm going to have made up. Let me know if anyone else would be interested as its not that much money to order a few more. The main cost is in the setup charge.
And here is a screen shot of the custom windows interface. -It runs basically the same as the Lighting controller that I made for XPS Ground effects. It uses pulse width Modulation to control the fans. -It controlls 6 different fans and will hopefully read out their speeds in real time.
It will also read out the speed of my water pump.
I've also been working on more boring wiring, so I didnt' take any more pics of the same stuff over and over again. But I'm almost done. All I have left is to wire and sleave all the fan wires. Then I can start on the outside of the case. -Wait till you see what I have in store to light up all the panels on the outside of the case. -FYI, it will use 300 red leds. Yes that is NOT a typo!!!
Looking great Dan, the anodized pieces of aluminum look absolutely great, they look even better against the CF. The fans look pretty great also. The 300 LED idea for the outside sounds pretty sweet aswell. +rep for all the work.
lookin awesome! how much for one of those PCB's? and would it come assembled ready to install? and what about the software to go with it? Thanks!!
We are finalizing the design on it today and hopefully ordering it soon.Quote:
Originally Posted by SXRguyinMA
Not sure how much yet. I think its an extra $15 us to order an additional bare board. And Yes, we would install and solder it all for you ready to go. We have to order some parts and get the software up and running first though. So Is still in the development stage, but I don't think it will be a problem. The two guys that are helping me, really know what they are doing. I have to give them the credit. It was just my idea, but they are making it happen.
I'll get back to you with a price that would include the assembled board, and software.
Thanks!
Let me know about that too.
How much did it cost to get those parts anodized red? And where did you get it done, locally or an online service? Also, is it durable, significantly better than the red paint you were using?
I am considering anodizing the aluminum angles on my HTPC project, to protect them and add some color to the design.
I had them anodized at a plating company locally. Anodizing is a controlled errosion process that chemically etches the color into the metal so the finish is very durable. I even took an exacto knife and made a small scratch on the back side of the fan housings to see how well it woudl hold up. The part scratched but the color of the scratch was the same so it hardly showed. It holds up much better than the paint. The piant really is just a coating and it scratches off and flakes off pretty easily. I used the paint on all the aluminum that really won't even show. The parts that show and get the most abuse is what I did the real stuff on.Quote:
Originally Posted by Vital
They can do almost any color you want and it is pretty cheap. I had all 3 pieces done for $20 us.
Just a word of caution. tell them what sides of your piece show. that way they know not to hold the piece on an area where you need it anodized. otherwise you will see a spot where the bracket was.
Great to know that it isn't too pricey. Will look for plating companies in my area.
well, apparently using PWM to change the fan speeds is screwing up the pulse signal for the rpm sensor. So we are going back to the drawing board. we will have to regulate the voltage through the microcontroller. So it may be a little bit longer on the controller.
