Project Server Red

[Olen]

This is my first case mod so I doubt anything will be too spectacular though there will be a lot of functional modding involved. If you think of anything you think would be a cool addition do say...

I wanted a server so I spent a while grabbing bargains where I saw them and also got some old kit of a friend. The result:

Tyan Thunder s2462
2 Athlon MP 2600+
Harddrives (a whole bunch - I'll use a 40gig IDE to boot off and for the server itself and two 40gig SCSI drives for storage adding more as needed)
1GB (I think) ecc reg drr memory
64Mb nVidea graphics card

The case. To start with I was going to make my own from scratch but a collage a friend works at was chucking an old server out so I grabbed that. As it turns out this was a mistake.

The only nice thing I can say about it is that it has potential. Clearly someone in the 90s was deranged and went out their way to make it hideos.
Unfortunately that potential becomes more difficult as the door is flimsy but It cant really be ditched due to the jutting screws and drives. It would also be rather complex to make a new one... A challange.

Did someone drive a truck into this?

Here's it stripped down. It had a weird mobo - not anything like ATX but not AT either. A one off I guess, its power supply was neither though it switched at the PSU not the mobo. The SCSI drives were in a weird enclosure and usless formation. So in short, no ATX PSU mountings, no harddrive caddy, non-ATX mobo tray.... Half the modding will be to make the things go together.

It did have the biggest PCI card on earth measuring in at 16" with a 5" fold over...

So. Primary thoughts. I was thinking either uber clean sharp look or industrial look (nothing like opposite extremes) and seeing as its battered to hell I know what I'm going for. That front door will have to stay but I have big plans for it. Red. Underused colour, dark red with black and red LEDs.

But first things to do - drill new holes in mobo tray (won't be able to get the pillar drill near this so I think it will end up being an insert tray, sort out a way to mount the psu and drives. I'll keep you posted.

[Luke122]

Red. Underused colour, dark red with black and red LEDs.

Cool! I've never seen a black LED before! **<---SARCASM. **

Red and black looks sweet together, but you always seem to see Black with Red, rather than Red with black. I say go for it.

[Olen]

Sorry that wasn't clear. Dark red with black as the colour scheme, red LEDs. You couldn't, by definition, have black LEDs (though you get UV ones). Might put some silver in too seeing as I have a can of silver lying around...

[alphastryk]

wouldn't a black LED be just a normal diode then?... therefore not and LED... therefore... *head explodes*

seriously though, it look like a very useful case which is badly in need of some modding to make it look better. go for it!

[Olen]

Well... I was right. Hand drilling holes accuritely into steel with a blunt drill is almost impossible. So I won't be using that mobo tray. Its so thick! The whole thing is made from 1.5mm steel. Why? With the components in it weighed 33Kg, mostly case I think.

So anyway, haveing made a predictable hash of that one I pinched the side off another old case and marked it out with a deal more ease. Its fits nicely under the pillar drill

Action shot.

This one is ok. I might do another but then I might not as it will almost do.
The old tray is covered with bits of metal poking out. I didn't mess around.

One big success was drilling ATX PSU mountings into it with a good deal of success. I've decided to use epoxy to put an old hraddrive caddy in.

So thats all today. I'll hit the front door tomorrow - weather permitting.

[chaksq]

My guess is the form factor is an LPX. I can't tell without seeing the motherboard though. Did it use a riser card?

LPX was a loosely defined motherboard standard in the 90s it was not clearly defined and therefore few LPX boards were compatible with each other.

[Olen]

Another update. Weather is awful but I got some cutting and bondo on the front panel. My fake dremmel is dead and its too flimsy to jigsaw so I did all the cutting with a padsaw (I wander how many folk here have used one - there's a reason they're not common...)

I don't have any pics of it early on but basically I cut a 120mm circle at the bottom (and sanded a little bigger) and an oblong up the middle. I also glued in some of the scrap over the drive enclosure.

Flowerpots make handy forms to pack bondo round for a blowhole:

And another shot:

The bondo had to be applied front and back because of the large gap between the door and the chassis. This makes the fan look like its at the end of a very deep hole (and it indeed is).

After I'd bondoed a curvy blowhole I filled in where the front bay was and sanded taking me from this:

whuurg ugly...

To this:

Looks better now

The bottom circle will be a blowhole, the middle bit will be a window (the case is so massive that I can keep this area clear to see in) and the little holes at the side will be LAN1, LAN2 and HDD status LEDs.

I have also put two holes in a little above for two toggle switches - both work each way one is returning - so pull it up to turn on, push down to reset, the other is non returning and will be used to swtich whatever seems like a good idea (fan speed maybe and lights?). Its mainly aesthetic.

Next I'll sort out the inside and the side of it.

Any comments?

[Computer-Geek]

Wow nice job I think you should bondo over the vent holes and make the front smooth

I never thought a flowerpot could be useful lol. I like the window idea.

[Ironcat]

I love the flowerpot idea but I am a little confused as to the final result... do you have any more photos showing how you did it?

To be more specific, I can't figure out how you went from red flowerpot connected to your front with bondo to awesome blowhole.

Did you chop a hole, insert flowerpot, and then remove it when bondo was set up or what?

[Olen]

Vent holes: no, oh no... I considered it, then a better idea came to me, if I pull it off it could look nice. The keyhole is a bam but its needed really as under the door will look rubbish.

Sorry no more photos, I kindof forgot and just did it. I also work the bondo with my fingers (yes its bad for you but my hands don't seem to mind anything) so I didn't want to touch anything.

I did all the cutting with a padsaw ... I don't have any pics of it early on but basically I cut a 120mm circle at the bottom ... Flowerpots make handy forms

Its fairly simple. I marked a circle where I wanted the hole to be. Cut out the hole. Inserted a flower pot through the hole then worked the bondo against it. I wanted it very even, smooth and circular so pushing the bondo against a flowerpot side worked well. When the bondo was almost set I bent the flowerpot in (its flexible) and worked all the way round pulling that bit from the bondo so it was loose then dropped it out then inserted it from the other side to work up the blowhole there. The flowerpot was never connected, it just helped shape things. If you look at the top picture you can see the table though the holes in its bottom.

Hope that clarifies things.

awesome blowhole

Thanks. Its a really easy method.

Maybe another update later.