A really big box for my toys...

magick_man said:

just what i was thinking..
do you have some dimensions you might want to share with the group, so we can see just how big this monster is going to be.
~Magick_Man~

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The approximate dimensions were in the first post, about 2'x 2'x 4' tall. I wanted to do as little cutting as possible. A 'store bought' rack would only allow me 1 system per layer, whereas I could get as many as 8! Bwahaahaa! Oooo wait I got carried away

warlock110 said:

i'm more worried about cooling the box, that's gonna be one big heater if you ask me. might as well install an air conditioner in there.

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All the hottest parts are being watercooled like the CPU & chipsets. Since I don't plan to OC anything, it should be ok. average temp inside the box should run close to about 45c to 48c A little warm, but not really anything to worry about. My Main rig is H2O cooled and is in a sealed space with only 1 80mm case fan. (even the PSU is sealed in) Temps for the CPU have been about 32-38 under load and system temp runs at 48c constantly. The air is warm but the system runs 24/7 like this for over a year! no problems

NsOmNiA91130 said:

How frigging rich ARE you!?!?!

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Rich is only a state of being, I guess I am not then. There is a lot o lunch money in my computers, and this project is going to be expensive. I just shop the bargains, getting the most I can, for the least ca$h possible.

warlock110 said:

i'm more worried about cooling the box, that's gonna be one big heater if you ask me. might as well install an air conditioner in there.

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Lol... I was thinking box fans, but hey, AC sounds good.

I got really all carried away this morning! Nearly assembled the whole thing before 9am, I better stop and recheck what I have done. I even assembled a mobo tray to test, and WooHooo! Its gonna be sweet!
I only got one pic at the moment:

http://members.cox.net/lwcma3/scpics/mobotray.jpeg

Methinks they will be 56k killers, so many of the pics after this one will be just links and the rest that are posted will be the most significant, I think.... Hmmm.... Oops daydreamin again.....
This pic is of the motherboard tray. 9" by 18" Made of that Home Depot Security door Expanded Mesh and framed with the Inside Corner Plastic trim used for hardboard paneling. This particular trim seems to be Very Difficult to find. These trays hold an ATX Motherboard perfectly (with the standoffs, of course) and if I want to compact the entire setup, then one can be mounted on top and one underneath.
In the background you can see the nearly completed insides of the box. There are eight levels and 2 "sides" to each Level. With a "Center shaft" area in between. The Tray will slide into the C-channel aluminum like a tray/drawer. This should make it easy to remove individual layers and avoid disruption of the other systems. I'm thinking something like a Motherboard Hot Swap

Very cool mobo tray, I like that, I think I'll steal that idea and use it somewhere down the line, excellent cooling solution, props dude!

that's a real good idea for mobo tray, i wonder why those computer case company never though of doing it, it would save them quite a few bucks too going with mesh instesad of solid aluminum/steel.

Brundle Fly said:

Very cool mobo tray, I like that, I think I'll steal that idea and use it somewhere down the line, excellent cooling solution, props dude!

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Super thanks, feel free to use the ideas if any work for you!

warlock110 said:

that's a real good idea for mobo tray, i wonder why those computer case company never though of doing it, it would save them quite a few bucks too going with mesh instesad of solid aluminum/steel.

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Even though the mesh is extremely strong it can still be damaged quicker than a solid steel tray. But since I know what I have and how to solve the problems, This is the greatest idea. (pats self on back)

Edit: A real bummer tonight, I burnt out a circuit breaker to the room my rig is in, took out some electrical line with it. I am unable to download the pics until I Rewire the electric tomorrow, I guess I'll have to give my comps an exclusive 30amp line. Seems that 20 amp circuit is not enough to run a TV, 2 computers, media adaptors, UPS, Lights, VCR, DVD, and the wifes hair dryer

http://members.cox.net/lwcma/pic/breakerburn.jpg

if it rusts inside (how?) and locks, i guess it can burn. Darn hair dryers

i want to see this thing finished, it is going to rawk.
i like that mobo tray too.
i am awaiting more pics.

~Magick_Man~

Found just what i wanted in the alley just before I had to go to work.. WINDOWS!. Yeah Baby, Glass Windows! what I wanted, and free. Tomorrow i'll have to do a little glass cutting, maybe a little tinting, and start on frames for the glass. Add a pinch of the Mesh, Led's and .....

This morning I had to run new power lines for my comps. What a job, now the electric is primo! 30amps and clean!.
Now that I have power I just had to check the fit of the motherboard tray again:

http://sc.lwcma.com/mobotray02.jpg

As you can see, the tray fits just perfectly! I just couldn't wait, had to throw on some motherboard and harddrive to see
how it will look. Check it out:

http://sc.lwcma.com/mobotray03.jpg

Yeah, its going to work just fine..

You can see in the pictures that the aluminum c-channel has been glued to the hardboard side. I did this with the silicone aquarium sealer. each alum channel has been glued at 5in intervals, giving more than enough room for the motherboard after being mounted to the tray to slide in. The C-channel glued to the uprights in the center have been reinforced by the 5in hardwood square dowels. reason for this is that aluminum does not seem to bond to aluminum with the sealer. after all the parts have been fitted and glued in this manner, I will get out my trusty drill set a few holes and fasten the aluminum/aluminum joints with proper 4-32 nuts & bolts. best part of using this silicone sealer as glue is that I can fit and refit if necessary until I am satisfied, then I can bolt the final product in with no worry of it being wrong. the added bonus is the sound absorbtion properties of the silicone helps to keep noise down.

The tray mounts have been set up in the center so a single PSU can power 2 motherboards. 8" pieces of 1/2 aluminum angle have been fastened to the channel to help hold the psu in place, but that isnt going to happen yet....

cool(what else can i say?)...im in such awe that i can barely type...tell me your gonna fold with this baby...please...

are those ISA slots?

Hey, are you going to use a rad from a car or a fridge or something? Id do taht and bolt a box fan on it, and with that room make up some trippin res with maybe the tornado lamp effect just for show

threeme2189 said:

cool(what else can i say?)...im in such awe that i can barely type...tell me your gonna fold with this baby...please...

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Fold? Oh yea,.. When I am not doing anything else

MadSkillzMan said:

are those ISA slots?

Hey, are you going to use a rad from a car or a fridge or something? Id do taht and bolt a box fan on it, and with that room make up some trippin res with maybe the tornado lamp effect just for show

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Those are ISA, That motherboard is going to be used for the Firewall/DHCP server using Smoothwall. A necessary thing, since many cluster systems can't be considered secure.

...as well as for a radiator? well, it's different but everyone will have to wait to see...

Ok, back to the show.
Finished the basic "Insides" and now have a full front pic to show the initial size of this thing. Oh Yea baby, 16 layers on 8 levels!
btw: the diagonal bar across the back is only a temporary measure to insure that the box remains square. everyonce in a while it needs to be loosened and the box re-squared, I think change has something to do with the temp in the room, and humidity. but not a problem.
but now the wife is TiCkEd says "!!! where the H--- are you going to put it" I can only Grin

http://sc.lwcma.com/sc03.jpg

to make it easy to move, it is being held up by these:

http://sc.lwcma.com/sc02.jpg

You better as hell have a monitor and some tape in that damn thing...

Now that the silicone is almost dry, I have to begin the very tedious and time consuming task of drilling and bolting every joint where aluminum contacts aluminum. This will give the box considerable stability. All the locations that look like what is marked will get this treatment. I am undecided as to whether or not the wood glued to the aluminum should be screwed tight as well:
http://sc.lwcma.com/sc04.jpg

freakin awesome, keep it up, cant wait to see more

Not much to report on today. I was working on cutting out 16 pieces of the mesh for the motherboard trays. Then I will be working on cutting the plastic trim (this time a little neater) for those trays.

NsOmNiA91130 said:

You better as hell have a monitor and some tape in that damn thing...

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The best part if this project is that I will not need a monitor to use it
It is going to be network controlled from my main rig

Hmm.... This project is very interesting - definitely something you don't see everyday. I have a suggestion for cooling that might help you out a lot - that system looks perfect for a chimney! There has been a decently large discussion in a thread about it and that rackmount would be perfect for utilizing one!! It would be able to move a ton of air and do it very quietly. Just thought that I should suggest it since that thing looks prime for it. Here is the link to the thread:
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=362782&goto=newpost

Oh man that looks sweet. I just built a ghetto k'nex case that only can hold 3 comps :/....So far its just music server and im going to be adding a smoothwall to it very very soon here.

That board llooks very similiar to mine....Is it a pII 350 mhz in there?