Most of the intial posts are merely copied from the original thread found on bit-tech.net, but I will try to keep both updated as closely as possible. Thanks for the invite Craig! Nice place you have here

Intro and explanation:


Original Fact-finding thread
The planning thread

Names:

Right now, I don't have one. I need some input here. A few ideas on the table:

• October One or "O1" - At least one personal reference here, but the abbr "O1" (not zero 1) is also my last initial, my first case, etc, etc... Too bad it won't be the completion date
• Uranium - The densest of all naturally occurring elements (or so I think). Obvious radioactive theme though, which I want to avoid.
• Rookie - My first build. It has a certain ring to it.
• Any good suggestion someone throws out there

Initial Design:

I wanted it small. As small as possible. If you peeked at the planning thread you can see I might have wanted it a little too small. Comparisons to the game of Tetris were apt:





Yeah...even big 38mm thick fans weren't going to be as efficient stacking the rads like that. However, two rads side-by-side:



Hmm... let me sit on that idea and try something else:





OK, so, technically this would work. The design is such that the entire case lid can slide off, the airflow is top to bottom, and the case is still relatively small - 11.6"x11.6"x14.7 inches if memory serves. Only trouble is that any system maintenance would be difficult with the rads directly over the board like that. Maybe if we orient the board the way normal cases are made and combine the 2 ideas. No, that wouldn't work, the computer wouldn't be strong enough without getting all kinds of complicated...

Or, would it?



It should be painfully obvious that I am pretty new to Sketchup . That said, I have intentionally left out any further detail to the final case look. This way I can reveal it as I go (and modify the design in case I screw up ).

So, thanks for stopping in and having a read. I hope you enjoy. Please be sure to let the comments fly, good, bad, or indifferent.

So, I finally took all my little plans to our local metal company. Fortunately, they didn't laugh too hard, which I took as a good sign . It felt quite odd to walk out the next day with 8 precision cut pieces of aluminum and one square tube. Odd, but good.

So after an evening in the workspace I have borrowed from friends, I came to the conclusion that I has messed up It was a bad feeling, but even so, I think I have a few pics, somewhere. Basically, I got distracted, didn't draw the cut lines on my aluminum for the back tabs and sliced them right off the motherboard tray. So, it was back to the metal company. I also wasn't too happy with the performance of the bending brake I had purchased (Harbor Freight Tools can be like that). After my first 2 bends, I realized that the brake, which makes you use clamps, was "walking" off the material as I applied force. So, seeking to improve my situation I modified the tool with my favorite tool purchase of this build - the 10" Craftsman Drill Press:



Drilled those pilot holes out (I love the drill press) and inserted bolts instead of using c-clamps:



So, after another round of measuring, marking, and drilling, I was ready to bend again:





After filing, the result wasn't even too bad




So, it was time to make the frame, and attach it to the motherboard tray. This went fairly slowly as I had to refile all the cuts made by the miter saw. However, it wasn't too long before it was done and I had the backplate attached to the frame:


(Obligatory foot shot, this was intentional )




I am sure the bit-tech readers have already seen the problem, well, the biggest one:



Now, after the hours of work it took to get to this point, it was a bit frustrating to see this. However, I have seen this whole project as a learning example from the start. With that in mind, and against the advice of friends (that really want to see me with a working 2009-spec gaming rig ) it was time to rebuy materials...

So, armed with the knowledge that I needed to be more precise than my primitive bending skills would allow, I switched up a bit of the design and swapped all the tabs for heavy L-brackets:




No need in photographing the reassembly, it was straightforward. Cut, mark, clamp, drill, tap and repeat:







To be honest, it's STILL not perfect, but I am moving forward. There may be a v.2 in the future with knowledge I won't gain by going 1 step forward, 2 steps back...

Here's an idea of the scale:



With around an hour left in my available time yesterday, I decided to start on what I consider the most daunting part of the build, the backpanel. Originally, I had thought I might try cutting my own, but as I thought about it, I realized that I should probably utilize the motherboard tray I had purchased in the spring...from a Lian-li v350





3mm (.125" here in the USA) is awfully thick stuff LOL.

Speaking of thicknesses, most of the pieces of the case are 2mm (.08") thick. The square tube framework is 3/4"x3/4" with a .125" wall - allowing for good tapping . The front and back panel are the .125" thick variety, simply for max strength.

Comments?

Haha, thanks man! I'm glad to have you here. You are officially the first poster outside of the Admin forum. If you notice any usability issues, please let me know. We may have some tweaking to do, but hopefully things are smooth!

Regarding this project, I've loved the concept since it was first brought up at bit-tech. I'm so glad that you've finally started it. And what a start it is! Looking forward to more!

First worklog and it's a good project too. I like this

john

You guys are going to make me blush

I think what I will do, since this will have to be mirrored from bit-tech, is copy the main posts from there and add any SFF oriented stuff after. Unless thats a problem?


Anytime. I am glad I finally started it as well - its quite therapeutic and so far away from work, even though I am working hard at it. Don't know why it took so long for me to get at it.

As far as I can see, the site and forum look great and I haven't noticed anything. If I see anything strange I will let you know.


I am humbled yet again - your work is extremely clean so I hope to live up to that standard myself.


Now, onto the work:

So last night I had a few hours to finish up the cut for the I/O panel. Sorry I don't have pics of the disassembly of the Lian-Li microATX tray - a rare part

Cut and filed, but not quite finished:


How close is too close? This is a threaded hole that attaches the bottom of the I/O panel to the motherboard tray case piece.



A look from the back of the case. You can tell where I am going to need to countersink bolts below the I/O panel a bit more:




Inside. I had to notch that lower small L-bracket. This part will be replaced/modded a bit more as I need to resolve a small issue with the I/O panel mount:





Another shot for scale. Note that this orientation would be the case on it's side:

I love the countersunk bolts. Most people opt for cap socket bolts, which do look nice, but there's something a little more 'finished' with the countersinks.

Jumping ahead a little... How are you plan on finishing the aluminum? Paint? Anodizing?

When I see modeling techniques like this (sketchup etc) I am really amazed.

Subscribed

Thanks. I need to work a little on the technique. It's much easier to get it consistent with the drill press, but I am finding I have a ton of cleanup work to do after. Currently, I have been using a bit made for wood and PVC, but have one on order that is HSS.

As far as finish, its going black (and not coming back) - either anodized or power-coated satin black. I am definitely not into gloss . Think a very small Murdermod when done



Thank you, but I am a total noob at sketchup. Things like curves elude me . The best thing about modeling in the Sketchup, etc is that you get the dimensions nailed down beforehand to see if your idea is even feasible. What you see in the post above is version 14.

Also, note the name change. Thanks!

I would love to see anodized. That would be absolutely killer. It all comes down to the aluminum though. I'm not sure I have the patience to pull off the perfect finish it would require...

craig (or anyone that cares to weigh in) - I looked into what it takes to anodize, but I know I need to surface prep for powdercoating anyway. Is the difference the polish that needs to be done for anodizing?

Also, I feel like these forums are getting something of secondhand info, so the next update will be here first. Bit-tech can take their turn waiting

And now, the actual work:
The story is that I have spent some time revising my case. The original design called for the motherboard tray and what I will call the radiator tray to sit back to back like 2 letter "L"s. (This was back when I thought I could bend the 2mm thick aluminum with precision ) Since I switched to L-brackets to join everything together in lieu of the bent tabs, I also realized I could simplify my design by using a single thick piece of aluminum rather than joining the floors of the 2 L's with a thin sheet. With this in mind, I tried to modify the existing motherboard tray by cutting off the bottom.



Pretty much fail, but since I knew I was going to have yet another trip to my friendly metal supply store, I felt I could try. I may be able to resurrect this piece for the radiator side anyway

I had to backpedal and re-do some work. You will notice that bolts that were countersunk before, are no longer. They will be again - I am waiting for the arrival of a new HSS countersinking bit.



Another revision was to change the L-bracket at the front of the case for a piece of the 3/4" square tube.



The reason is two-fold. One, this area of the case will be pretty visible when open and the tube hides the screws very effectively. The more important reason has to do with some internal parts arrangement that will be highlighted later.

Next, I spent a good deal of time tinkering with the back motherboard side bracket. The issue is that this is the area the PSU lives in. It will be flush with the back of the case, so I didn't want the thickness of the L to interfere with that.



This little bracket (which I had other pics of that weren't in focus :wallbash:) is another double duty part. It holds the edge of the case together, but also serves as additional support for the PSU.

(This is the case flipped over, bottoms up)



This is an old PSU of course, but check out the room I am going to squeeze the motherboard and cooling into :eeek: :





This little part took quite a lot of time.

Next, I moved to the radiator side to finish fixing the bottom to the case.







Here is how the case sits today:



BTW, this little guy is going to be strong. Even now, without the extra bracing from the drive shelf and the radiator support, this thing doesn't flex or bend at all. Love it!

Fantastic update! I don't recall if I asked this before... but how much experience do you have with metal work? What you have done so far is top notch. I know you've been hard on yourself, but the end result looks great. I think you could safely kick this box down a flight of stairs, and have it survive without a scratch. The addition of the square tube adds quite a lot of strength, both physically and aesthetically.

Regarding the anodizing, yes, the biggest difference is the surface prep. For both powdercoating and anodizing you want a smooth, defect free surface anyway. However, polishing beforehand is usually recommended for the anodizing. You'll see every single surface flaw otherwise. Think of anodizing as more of a dyeing process. You basically recolor the existing aluminum. It will be the same before as after with the exception of the color. With a powdercoat, you are adding a layer of powder that gets baked (obviously). This layer adds to the thickness of the aluminum, and in doing so can hide small defects, swirls and sanding marks (assuming they are light as well). Does that clarify things a bit?

It does, perfectly. As close as some of the tolerances are, powder-coating may not even work then. Last night I could press-fit the bottom into the case.

How do you know my metal work is any good? My camera absolutely blows in the low-light

I have no prior experience with metal work. Everything you see here is gleaned mainly from reading forums, the internet, and just diving in. This may explain why that is the 4th piece of metal that is the motherboard tray . The only thing I wish was a bit better in this version is the square tube cuts weren't perfect 45 degs. Both the miter saw for the previous cuts and the miter box/hacksaw combo used on this one wanted to "walk" down the metal. Its close, but not dead-on.

It WAS gratifying to see that bottom panel line up exactly right though. Much happier with that concept

Lol, well, if the camera is hiding the flaws, keep using the camera... I just keep thinking of how much you're learning the first time through. As you work on this, you'll learn from any mistakes you make, and be even better the next time around. So, if it looks this good now, I can't wait to see what's next.

I agree well done so far on the metalworking.

One other bit on anodizing is metal looks good "Brushed" first(basically fine grooves going in 1 direction, caused by sanding or using a metal brush)

Because anodizing is such a thin coat the surface needs to be flawless.

Thanks guys

Decision, decisions. I will put the finish on the backburner right now - quite a ways to go before I get there.

It might be a bit before an update, I have a busy weekend coming up. Next up is the motherboard mounting, so I want to take my time.

Wow, this looks really good. Why didn't you choose to mount the rads externally though? Appearance?

No offense to anyone, but I think exterior rad mounting is rather, well, lazy Besides, in this design the rads and their mount add case stability/durability.

first time poster here. big fan of craigbru and E.E.L. Ambiense. nice site too.

looking great so far shomann. i often make parts 2 or 3 times as well before finally getting them right. metal is hard to do. acrylic you just tell the laser to do it for you, boring! good idea on the mobo/psu orientations. i had the same idea myself for my sff build coming up, so it must be a good one. good luck!

Welcome, and thanks for the compliments! I hope you'll find this a great place to be. It's only going to get bigger!