I finally got hold of a case last month, that a computer tech friend of mine (Gino R.) was frankly going to throw into the trash bin. He told me that the owner had gotten fed up with changing the psu which is of the mico-Atx variety and that are really hard to find here in Mexico vs Atxs which you can get anywhere. The hardware was junk by now (Athlon XP) so that too went out. So, as someone said "one guys junk is another guy's treasure". I toted it back home and this is it:

BEFORE/ANTES:



AFTER/DESPUES:











I placed my recently arrived mini-Itx mobo inside to see what it llooked like and this was it, either the mini-Itx is really small or the case if really big! The mobo is a Zotac 9300i-e which is a socket 775 and takes DDR2 ram, but the distinguishing factor is that it also includes a pc-express 2.0 16 bit slot for an external video card. It has all else buit-in: wi-fi, 7.1 sound, lan, etc.





Of course it was all scratched and dented (the previous owner would hit it with a broomstick when it would lock up, probably from excess heat). It will however be the prime-material for a hot mod, hehe!

Saludos and Cheers

Checking around the net, this happens to be an Actek Kendal and costs around $720mn or $55.38 usd, including a pretty sorry 500w micro-Atx psu.



The highlight of the this case is a strip of acrylic that lit up with a couple of blue leds on each end of it.










When I got it, one of the leds was knocked off its base and just hanging inside the case, leaving only half of the acrylic strip lit, probably from on of the multiple interventions the case (burnt psus, overheating, etc.).


To begin, I would change the fixed lights in favor of something with movement (I like a lot), be it something secuencial or flashing.

http://www.steren.com.mx/catalogo/image ... /K-320.JPG

Analyzing the case front, now I see why it would overheat. The front has no fans at all and the front cover is practically solid with no entrance of fresh air. The only way the case could breath from the front is if the access door to the dvd burner/usb ports were left open, something that most people would not normally do. There is even nothing in the floor (solid plate) so if the door were shut, the only air it could suck was the tiny slit left by the door and the frame, duhhh!!! A clear case of form (looks) over function (breathing).

To remedy this I will take of the door (one of the plastic pins that held it in place was broken anyways) and turn it into a grill. I was thinking of using a piece of orange phosphorescent acrylic I got not too long ago for around $1.15 usd.






I think I will lean on a lot of acrylic like Chozen did on his Dragon and who competed in CM and NMC mod contests.



Why you say? Cause it it is relatively cheap, of high visual impact and you don't need a lot of expensive tools to work it.

Cheers and Saludos

Great score there PaPang, looking forward to seeing what you have in store for it!!

Interesting... camping!!!

need to see this one.... jajajja same case, I don't wanna do something similar
jajajajajjajaj

Well Jolly and Mas, it is a project in the working in which I am trying out several new techniques and was sort of a tutorial back home on these, but its as good as any to mod for the anniversary! Specially with the $$ limit.

Well, it is the same case but I am planning on some unusual stuff, tag along and I would like to see your project and see it finished, emphasis on "finished" this time, hehe.

Come on guy, you know we have till April but you don't have to wait till the end to get on your horse, do it now!

Cheers and Saludos

with caps FINISHED

oh com'n on Shiryu
this time

FINISHED

uppss
was talkin about me

When I went with Cesar, my acrylic and similar supplier (he has a sign and publicity business which specializes in acrylics, styrenes, foams, etc.), he surprised me with a "spring cleaning". This forced me to forage through what little he had left which included this:




From left to right: translucent red, then another piece of phosphorescent orange (no other colors, damn!), in front of that "opalina" or frosted, next to that smoked, then mirror finish and finally translucent dark blue. Total cost: $120mn ($9.20 usd) a real bargain considering! Now this is what he calls "scrap" and most of it was already charged in previous jobs.

From the piece of I already had of phospho orange, I consulted him what to do in order to make a "grill" and he ended up shredding it into 2cm.X23cm. strips. When he is backed up with work, he is not too patient:



The cost of this was $30mn ($2.30usd) and he did it in around 5 min.! Well lets see what I do with this. Since I am going to use a lot of phosphorescent acrylic we will call this project "phosphor", short for that long name, heheh.

The rest will be paint, a 200mm led fan, a led kit and some other doodads. Hmmm now to see what I am going to do with all that acrylic, hmmm....

Saludos and Cheers

copy paste copy paste copy paste it will take a hour to translate

Looks like you are moving along there and doing a great job

True Mike, that is exactly what I am doing! The darn translation is what takes up so much time cuz I am really further ahead in the project by atleast a week.

Think you can whack something out with what little time you have? You know, the more the merrier, hehe! Take care bro.


Cheers and Saludos

Welcome to the party bud!

Im interested to see what ya have for us this time.

Nothing too fancy UFC, specially with the expense cap, hehe! Glad to see ya' again! This is just to show the guys back home that I can still mod cases cuz they were saying that I just made scratch builds (ain't that a lie!). With a scratch build I would've blown a hole through the ceiling expense wise, haha.

Now this is as generic and cheap as they get compared to your Dell you're chopping up. The sheet metal is so thin that it got wavy just cutting a window with the sabre saw! Sigh....now to use up more of my precious cutting wheels and of course, it is much slower.

Lets show the guys we still have it and make their darn jaws drop, hahah. We can still mod cases!


Cheers and Saludos

Well this is a pain, sanding the edges and then polishing them. First with a grit 80, then a 280 and finally 600. After this a automotive rubbing compound with a rag till it shines.



Just to fix 10 slats took me almost 4 hours and my fingers were aching. There has to be an easier way! When are they going to come with home lazer or water cutters!





I place a piece of masking tape on each end to cut the desired curve through it. The masking serves as a guide to know how far to cut and does not leave a stain like a Sharpie does. I do not cut through the tape but around it.

The rough shape is cut with a Dremel and the rest is sanding and polishing like above.



The first one took me 20 min, but the rest should be easier (I hope).

Saludos and Cheers.

Probable tools to use: a band sander and an orbital sander with a bonnet.



Working on the grill, I needed separators for the slats.







First I marked/scratched a line with a sharp ice pick for the pieces, then over a dowel (a pencil does the job too) I press down on one edge and it snaps off clean.

Now to round of the ends:






I first place a bunch together and tape them together. All have their making tape markers and at the end is the sample. Using another orbital sander, a Ryobi finsihing sander with grit 120 sandpaper, it took me around 5 min. or less to round of all the ends. Same goes for the other end-much faster!

A desk top I rescued from my brother-in-law's and the space to put it. I still have a window A/C waiting repair sitting there.



The desktop measures 60cm. X 1.5m. and the space to fit it measures 1.45 X 3.1m. In that space too is the water heater, a sink, the cat litter box and a bunch of junk. For the meanwhile, I cleared a space in a corner for my "workbench" and set it on top of a bunch of cat sand containers, the reason it is so low. I plan to reinforce the top (it is only 2 pine wood boards glued together with no further support) and hinge it to the wall to make it foldable. My new work shop!

Back to the case face plate, I decided to take off the flimsy door since one the plastic hinges was broken anyways. I cut out a piece of smoke acrylic as a "floor" using the door to mark it. Now I have a flat base for another smaller grill the size of the dvd burner that would have gone in the hollow behind the plate. I will also open up for the usb ports and sound plugs.







Time to open my expense and time card:
Man Hours Used: 13 hours
$ Invested: -0-
---------
Acc. Man Hours: 22 hours
Acc. $ Invested: $150mn=$11.53usd

Saludos and Cheers.