PC In Disguise

Hey guys, this is my first project post (second overall lol). This is my very first true modding project, so don't read this expecting to see an absolute masterpiece at the end. The theme for this first project is Transformers. I'm absolutely in love with Transformers so don't knock it lol. In the next posts, I will include pictures as well as progress reports, so if you have nothing better to do and want to see a closer to reality, none godly, modding project, then come check this thread out every so often.

Best regards,
purdy (a.k.a. lone_wulf)

Will your case be able to do actual transformations? Because that would be really cool!

Hey Coyote, no my mod won't be able to actually transform, like I said before this is more of a realistic mod, in other words nothing spectacular. As for your inquiry Aero, the plan is to take a little Aspire X-Qpack sff case and mod it to look like Optimus Prime in the sense of the coloring as well as hopefully putting parts together on the front of the case to make it look like his face. Oh btw, I'm back from The States so once I figure out how to get my own saved pictures from my comp onto this site, I'll be sure to have some new progress reports. Well, I have to get ready for work, so talk to y'all later (I spent too much time down there lol). Chow!

Best regards,
purdy (a.k.a. lone_wulf)

Here are some pics of what the case currently looks like. Even though I love the window appliquees, the'yre just not enough, which is why I started this mod.

My biggest inspiration for the whole design scheme/colors is this picture of Optimus Prime which is also one of the appliquees; so expect to see lots of red.

Lol I like the small cube, well rectangular, shape it is so I'm going to keep it like that. If you take a look at the picture of Optimus Prime, take a look at the cubes he has for shoulders. That's what I'm basing the design scheme off of. I'm a major nub when it comes to sketches so I might just do some quick concept crap in MSPaint, just to give readers a better understanding of what transformations I have in mind. (No pun intended......What, nvm, pun intended) :P

Haha, I know all too well who that is. Thank you very much, I probably will need your help some time. BTW everyone, sorry for not having many updates/progress reports, I was cutting a plastic baseball helmet with an old rusty saw (which totally isn't the right tool to use) and, well, you guessed it, the helmet moved and I cut through my thumb; so unfortunately, not much progress has been made. So far! DUN DUN DUN. Lol, I'm out.

BTW, here's that helmet I was talkin about, BEFORE I started cutting it. My next progress report will show what I've done to it in terms of cutting.

As well now my thumb is healed (almost) and I'm using proper equipment .

Wow, I actually cut the helmet. I'm surprised I haven't quit and started something else by now like most people that were reading this thread/log lol. Anyways here are some pics of what I cut.

I plan on cutting and attaching the ear pieces that were cut off back on to the helmet, but I can assure you it will look a little better than this.

I just quit my job, so I should have a little more time before school starts to get some work done. I bought some Plaster Paris stuff to help mould everything together, so once I see if that stuff will do the trick, then we'll go from there. Until then, I'm out.

Well I'm sure lots, if not most of you have started wondering what the hell this case is going to look like by the end of the project. Well here's some real quick concept art on what I hope the case will transform into, except, well.... better. BTW, this concept art isn't for the faint of heart, seeing as though I am an MSPaint pro.

This is what the case currently looks like.

And this is a slightly less realistic concept of what the case should look like after the project is done. For the smoke stacks at the back, I plan on putting a light tube inside of each so then light will come out of the holes. If you notice, there is an elevation change (*look at the sides of the top window*); I think you all know what that means.... a sh**load of putty!

Here is a closeup view of the front when Optimus' face isn't sitting on the front. I moved the drives to the bottom of the case by cutting holes at the bottom and replaced the drive bay slots with an lcd screen. Also there is no more temperature gauge or power button. The power button will be located on Optimus' forehead, however, I have no idea where the temp. reader will go (*taking suggestions/ideas/opinions*).

Anyways, I'm going for supper then working on the case, will try to have more progress reports shortly. Until then, I'm out.

Hey guys, 'tis me again. I just came to the conclusion that do I really need that little gauge? I mean if I have an lcd screen on the comp why can't I just display temp from there lol? Sorry about this pointless and retarded post, I'm just waiting for my test rig (*an old school Windows 3.1 machine*) to dry, so I can see how this plaster paris stuff works and to see if it would be worth using. I'll have more details including some pics of Optimus' helmet with stuff attached to it. Until then, I'm out. Oh one more thing, I need looking for lcd screens that can fit into two drive bays, so if you guys could send me links for them and such, that would be great. Thanks a lot.

Well, that Plaster Paris stuff that I had bought ended up being total crap. I touched it and it shattered. Oh well. Good news is that I actually did find that Bondo stuff that everyone was talking about. Of course no one ever told me that Bondo was the name of the company and not the specific product, OR that it's an automotive product. No wonder no one at Home Depot knew what I was talking about. I find it really hard to work with because instead of just the regular putty, I am using this Bondo-hair stuff where it's like strands of fiberglass. Whatever, it seems to be working; although I think I'm going to need A LOT more than what I had purchased for 20 bucks Canadian. I'll have some pics of the helmet with some of the Bondo on it in just a moment. Until then, I'm out.

Here are those pics of the helmet with that weird Bondo stuff. Unfortunately, I'm new to it, so some parts will have to be redone because there wasn't enough hardening gel put in it so it's permanently sticky. Other than that, it looks super ugly, but it's coming along nicely. Also, just recently I discovered a problem with my schematic in the sense that there isn't enough width on the case to put both drive bays side by side. If anyone could give me some tips on how I could make it work I would be delighted; even if you don't have any sollutions, please leave a message on this thread, it's getting lonely being the only one posting. Well, I'm going to go cry lol, so I'm out.

*Note the yellow quesadilla maker in the background. That thing kicks major nalgas!*

Hey guys, just thought I'd check in again. The helmet is coming along quite ugly, but nicely. It turns out I was using the wrong kind of Bondo. If any of you ever wonder which stuff to use, BUY THE CHEAPER STUFF!!!! That's definitely the stuff to use. Anyways, I added the final addition to the helmet itself, however I do need to add more Bondo and sand it all down before I go on to anything else. Also, I would like to note that my plans have changed a bit since my crappy concept art. I'm still pondering about how I'm going to make my optical drives fit (The case isn't wide enough for them to sit side by side); however, that is down the road. Also, because I want the helmet to slide and move, I am no longer going to have the power button inside the helmet itself. Instead, I will keep the button where it is on the case, but I will change the button itself to look like the Autobots logo. Yes, I know, I'm a slacker lol. Anyways, I have to go to sleep so I can wake up for tennis in the morning, so until then, I'm out. Oh btw, KEEP POSTING!!!! Even if it's hate mail, I don't care, I just don't want to be the only one reading this damn thread! Lol, goodnight.

I knew those pizza boxes would come in handy for things other than grease fires!

Future button.

Wow, you took the words right out of my mouth! This post was going to be about the "moving" part of the helmet. Unfortunately, the drives must be moved because I am putting a screen where they are right now. As for the helmet moving part, does anyone have any ideas of what I can do with that? My plan right now is to have a military button, that, when switched, will make the helmet move up from the front of the case to the top of the case, so you can watch the screen. I want to find some sort of conveyor belt or motorized sliders that I can attach to the case that the helmet would fit and slide on so when you flick the switch on, the helmet would be lifted up and over the case and when switched off, would lower back down. If anyone can help me with this, that would be great! Think of a forklift type mechanism. I'll be waiting for you readers to respond ;) but until then, I'm out.

Oh btw, I finally got The Bible (a.k.a. Mr. Capello's amazing extreme modding book). *Sigh*, if only I would have read this BEFORE starting my project. Oh well!

Hey guys, sorry about not updating it in a bit (my goal is an almost daily update). I went to the Ben Lee concert the other night and I'm still pretty drained from it, so I put my project on hold for the past couple of days. I'm at a loss right now because I don't want to get too far into the project, because, well.... I can't. I can't continue planning out the case until I have a sollution to the motorized slider problem. So basically all I can do now is to continue working on the helmet; but even that's going to be tricky because of the sliders. I'm still looking for help with finding sliders or some sort of forklift device that can lift the helmet, so if anyone can help me with that, it would be much appreciated. Should have more updates on the helmet, but until then, I'm out.

what about an old cd drive?

you can use the motor and sliders etcfrom it

I never even thought of that, thanks so much for the idea. The only problem would be the weight issue more than anything. I haven't even finished with the Bondo on the helmet, and already it weighs inbetween 2 and 5 pounds (approx.)
Do you think that would be an issue for the motor and sliders from the cd rom drive, and also, would I be able to program both motors to start at the same time, so the two parts of the helmet would move in unison? (I forgot to mention that the helmet will consist of two parts/pieces, thus needing two sets of sliders.)

Hi everyone, sorry for not updating. I have some bad news lol, I kind of got poisoned from the Bondo. I ended up inhaling too much of it while I was sanding and I'm still feeling the effects a couple days later. So here's a word of advice for you youngsters: WEAR PROTECTION!!!! I sawed my finger because I didn't wear gloves (and didn't use the right tools lol) and I semi-poisoned myself because I wasn't wearing a mask. All you modders out there, learn from my mistakes. I will continue the project once I am feeling better; but until then, I'm out.

Thanks very much guys. Until I can keep going on my project, I'll post what i've done on the day that I got sick. Stupid me, should've just Bondo'd the parts that needed to be attached to the helmet, instead I Bondo'd the entire thing. It turned out much worse than I had expected, even after hours of sanding. Here are some pics after all the Bondo had been put on.

:eek: What's that? Does it look like the helmet's broken? It sure does. I happen to have a phobia of wasps and with the weather being the way it is in The 'Peg this year, there are nothin but those pissed off bees flying around. Short story even shorter, I got chased by one and well, I dropped the helmet. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise because it gives me a reason for having such a roughed up helmet. As I had said before to Drakena (my g/f), the new paint scheme for the project is going to be a roughed up, a$$-kicked Optimus. Now it (hopefully) won't look like a crappy sanding job but rather a battle torn case. Well until I get better and I start painting it, I'm out.

Ouch!

You know what, I'm going to keep the helmet the way it is and make it look as good as possible. Maybe down the road, I might build and "updated helmet" that will actually look good, but I warned all of you before that if you're looking for a masterpiece project, you've come to the wrong thread. I got bored during summer and I wanted something to do, so I started this project. It isn't my life, it isn't my number 1 priority. I don't have much motivation and drive for many things, so I'm pretty proud that it's even come this far. When the project is all done, I think you guys will be pretty surprised on how it turns out. I know that so far I'm pretty surprised! Here are some pictures of before and after the grey paint went on. Again, there is still much painting and addons to be done to the helmet.

With a pound of tape on, before the grey.

After the grey (the taped worked so well it actually stripped quite a bit of the blue, adding to even more hand painting hours I'm going to have to put in.

ONCE AGAIN: if you are not happy with my project or have ideas and suggestions or just comments, please leave a post!

Today, I constructed the bottom half of the helmet know as the mask. Tomorrow I hope to Bondo it up and then sometime paint it. Here are some pics.

Finished helmet (looks much nicer in person)

Pre-Bondo'd mask

Picture of the two parts together

Another pic of the two parts together (my personal fav;) )

Hey again! Well I finally splurged on myself and broke down and bought a palm sander. The difference is basically night and day on my project. It was so rough before that I couldn't possibly even sand it. After I bought the sander, the thing smoothed out amazingly! It actually looks like someone professional did it, whereas before it looked like a blind kindergartner made it. Because the Bondo job was so bad there were holes everywhere after the sanding. I was terrified, "You've gotta be kiddin' me, I have to put more of that stuff on it!". Then, EUREKA!!!!! When I started the project, I had bought stuff called Plaster Paris. It wasn't made for super heavy duty stuff like what I was doing, but rather hand impressions and small stuff. It was also used for.... filling holes. This was perfect; I knew it would come in handy some day! I thought I could just fill the holes with it and sand the rest down to the Bondo, because the stuff was so brittle last time I used it. This time however, it was harder than the Bondo! So anyways, now I'm just sanding it and adding more as I need. The helmet kind of reminds me of those old Greco-Roman sculptures now, except not as good lol. Wow, I typed a lot of useless crap, so I'm out.

Oh, a quick update. For those of you that heard I had poisoned myself, I definitly learnt my lesson. I made sure I wore proper equipment by buying masks so I can't inhale any hazardous material anymore. *Party poopers*

BTW I still haven't fully recovered from the poisoning lol.

Here's a quick pic I took after the plaster had dried. Even though this picture was taken before I started sanding it, it still looks a lot better then what the helmet used to look like. More updates soon. Until then, I'm out.

Well I've painted the blue on the helmet and some silver. More detailing work to do. Picked up some nice chrome paint for the front. More pics after I detail it. Until then, I'm out.

Hey guys. I know this has nothing to do with my project but I want to show everyone. Just in time for school (which started today), I recieved my Tron track jacket to match my Tron shoes. Man I love 'em (and the movie)! Oh BTW that's probably going to be the theme for my next modding project. (I've had plans for a Tron project for quite some time now). Anyways, tomorrow I hope to have time to add the details on the top part of the helmet so I can get started on putting Bondo on the bottom half. Anyways, I'm out.

That's my girlfriend Robyn. I love her!

I promised you guys that some time during the weekend or shortly after I would have some updates and pics. Well, I started detailing today and it turned out quit nicely. Here are the before pics. (They kind of remind me of the movie Tron lol!)

Oh btw, the tape I'm using is hockey tape lmao. Gotta love Canada's favourite sport! (DYK that hockey isn't the most played sport in Canada?)

Oh, and here are the after pics. It turned out quite nicely, and although I'm not completely done, I'm satisfied enough to start working on the other half of the helmet, the face mask.

Eureka! I've been inspired by Dgephri's Bloodmoon project; I'm so amazed by the two front fans that I am now going to try to incorporate two front fans into my own case. BTW, everyone check out project Bloodmoon by Dgephri, it's nice!

After taking a much needed break and getting into the routines of school again, it's time to start working on the project again. I was trying to decide what to do next, whether I should start planning and cutting holes on the front for the fans or to finish up the helmet and start the bottom half of the mask. I decided to go with the latter, so I could get all of that Bondo work done and out of the way. I will have to make minor modifications to the face mask (cut some holes in it and add a grill for proper ventilations from the fans.) and then I can start working with the putty.

All of this talking reminds me of a question that I have been wanting to ask for quite some time now. Seeing as thought I will have so much extra electronics and lighting on/in this case, I was wondering if it would be possible to somehow incorporate a second power supply into the project, just to power all the gadgets and secondary items in the case. This would be a great time for every single person who reads this thread to post their opinion, thoughts, ideas, and suggestions on this little dilema or anything about the project for that matter. I hope to have pictures of the Bondo work to the bottom half of the helmet soon (once I start working on it lol). Until then, I'm out.

Wow, yet another setback. I got super mad on saturday (no idea how), and I decided to punch a wall. The wall had nothing but metal studs in it and I swear I heard the ring of the metal when my hand connected with the wall. Long story short, my hand is puffed up like mad, I can't move my pinky, and I am very sore (I also happen to be a big baby lol). Whatever, I still hope to Bondo-up the face mask sometime this week; so more reports soon. Until then, I'm out.

The knuckle of my pinky is the size of the knuckle of my middle finger

My one knuckle has completely disappeared

Hey guys, quick update with my injury (I had injured my hand in like page 6 or 7 lol) . I finally went to the doctor (over a week later) and it turns out I broke some bones in my hand. Tomorrow morning I'm going to the hospital to get an xray and a cast. I've been told that since it's already been a week that my hand might have started to heal already which means it'll need to be "reset" before a cast can be put on. I'm not a big fan of that because that method will include a rubber mallet, a doctor swinging hard, and a very unhappy and swearing patient. I've broken a bone before, but I refused to go to the doctor for that, so now my nose is a little crooked. (I took a hockey puck to the face. Gotta love Canada's sport, eh?) Anyways, I have to get a good night sleep because after the hospital I have to start fasting for a blood test. So more updates soon, but until then, I'm out.

Update: So this morning I went to the hospital where they took some x-rays and put on a nice, hot-pink cast (which makes it look like they amputated two of my fingers).

Oh, and I got this sweet RAZR to match the cast lol.

Oh, quick update. My brother was kind enough to lend me some money (on his friggin' birthday for all that matter!); so I used the cash to buy some metal grating for the project. I hope to glue it onto the inside of the windows of the case to add a more mechanical/industrial look and effect as well as hopefully to highlight the appliques. I don't want to get any Bondo on the cast because it needs to look nice for a formal event (Phantom of the Opera to be precise), so for now I'll just keep on planning the project out and dream about the finished product. While I'm not moving forward with the project at the moment, now would be a great time for some comments, opinions, as well as suggestions from the readers. Thanks for sticking with me through thick and thin, I will have more updates soon. However, until then, I'm out.

Best regards,
purdy (a.k.a. lone_wulf)

BTW, here's that metal grate I was talking about puttin inside my case. Once again, I would like to hear from you guys, especially now that the project is on hiatus.

Hey everyone; so sorry for not updating in a while. I realised that there was no point modding with my cast so I took a break (my cast comes off tuesday so I'm excited about being able to wash my hand!). I was ready to go again and something "unexpected" happened. My friend came over to my house in tears (a 6'5'' giant who I've never seen cry, EVER), telling my mom and I the story of what happened to him. Long story short, his dad choked him until he passed out; he woke up a little later lying in his street without proper clothing, without shoes and without his very much needed glasses. He was locked out of his house and hurt. He stayed the night at my place, then the next morning after his parents had gone to work, we went over to his place and got some clothes, glasses and shoes. So for the week he was staying over at my place then on the weekend (this was last weekend btw) he stayed at another friends house. Last saturday, I was at the arena watching arena-cross when his former bodybuilder 6'2'', 260 pound dad came over to my house and beat my dad to a pulp. My dad spent the night in the hospital. He went home with a broken nose, a swollen temple (thanks to a sucker-punch), a black eye, some bruised ribs (witha nice foot imprint on the chest), and a little shaken. Overall he was hit seven times. We've been continually getting phone calls and threats from his parents, so we've been staying at different houses the past couple of nights. Finally, yesterday, the man was arrested which gave us some peace of mind, although we still take a baseball bat with us sometimes. Like I had said before, my cast comes off on tuesday, so I'll be right back with my mod, but until then, I'm out.

Best regards,
purdy (a.k.a. lone_wulf)

Wow.That's all I can say. I haven't posted since 11-10-2006. To say the least, it is good seein' the old forum again. It's been a good half a year since I even thought about PPCID (Project PC In Disguise).

I've been through a lot while attempting to tackle this far too complicated project. I've sawed through my thumb, I've spent in the hundreds of dollars, I've broken my hand, I've smelt my hand after the cast came off, I got a job at Canada's largest electronics chain, quit said job after 6 months, gone through the experience of my dad getting the sh*t beaten out of him by the father of a kid my family tried to help, I've continued to follow the courtroom news of the assault case. All of this and much much more, while still trying to pass high school, keep a 2 year relationship going, struggling with a long going battle with depression, and most importantly attempting to just be a 17 year old kid from the middle of Canada. Ah, the memories....

(So, with all of this stuff happening, PPCID has taken a backseat to life for the past like forever)

Anyways, seeing as though quite possibly the greatest summer action flick has just launched (I don't even need to tell you what it is, but here's a hint... "CHEE CHOO CHEE"), there is no better time then now to announce my return to the world of modding and the best forum on the face of the earth. The purdster is back, and better then ever, with a new plan to this project that will have it in the finished galleries in no time... well not no time knowing me, but let's just say it'll be done before year's end, how 'bout that? More updates, including the revised or should I say TRANSFORMED "Project PC In Disguise" within the next couple of days. Until then, I'm out.

Damn it's good to be back!

Best regards,
purdy

(P.S. I saw the advance screening of TF on monday and I'm still experiencing robogasms from the movie. Until I update the thread with new plans, I'd like to hear from you guys that have seen the movie what your take on it was.)