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[Project] Copper-Framed, MDF Station

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Nice project. Looks like you are having fun at a good job.

Thanks!


Day 8

So, there were 2 PSU wire holes that I forgot to drill before I assembled this thing. I needed a hole for the CPU power cord, which ended up being a little more difficult than just drilling a couple holes with my drill and 3/4" bit...This is because copper pipe is covering where the hole needs to be. So, I had to draw out the hole (1.5" x 3/4" w/ rounded ends) and use my Dremel to make the entire cut.

Then, I had to make a hole for PCI-E connectors if I decide to get a GPU that needs external power. This was pretty simple, just used the drill and 3/4" bit, and then cleaned it up a little with the Dremel.

CPU Power Hole:
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PCI-E Power Hole (bottom left, CPU hole top right):
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The next thing I did was remove the stickers from all of the copper fittings. After I peeled them off, of course there was a lot of sticky residue left behind. So, I used Goo Gone Xtreme to easily remove that residue.

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It's starting to clean up really well. Looks good :D

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I also erased the pencil marks used for dimensioning that were drawn all over the top tier.

I'm still testing polyurethane, oil and water based, on some scrap MDF; second coat is drying.
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I decided to go ahead and see how the components fit. I just kept my SSD and HDD in the Antec 900 bay, for now. Removing the Antec 900 bay would free up some options though.

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I used an 80mm fan to check what the "System" temp was in BIOS, EasyTune, and Open Hardware Monitor. It ended up being the South Bridge, the fan reduced "System" temps by ~7C.

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I have a USB bracket, which I thought about trying to mount somewhere in the front. I also have an eSATA bracket to possibly mount somewhere; this bracket came with my UD3P and I sleeved the molex wires myself. Suggestions on how/where to mount these would be great.

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After two coats of polyurethane on some scrap MDF, I'm liking the oil-based best. The only bad thing about the oil-based, other than clean up, is that it doesn't work well on the cut edges of the MDF. The MDF just absorbs it and leaves patchy light and dark areas on the edges. So, I was thinking of getting some sort of copper strip to go around the cut edges after I've poly'ed the surfaces. What do you guys think?
 
A friend of mine and I built a dash out of MDF and hardboard once. What we did is used thinned out Fiberglass resin to harden the hardboard and MDF. You might try that. I forgot what we used to thin it, but when it set up the board was like rock and paint sat on top of the final coat. We did have to sand it before painting, but it was smooth like a good paint job on steel afterwards.
The option of copper strips would look cool as well.
 
A cheaper alternative to copper strips would be to use some 12mm aluminium angle and paint it copper colour then clear coat it would look great around the edging of the deck panels
 
Day 9-13

Over the past week, I have coated the surfaces with polyurethane. I used a total of 5 coats of satin finish, oil-based polyurethane and allowing 24 hours drying time between coats. Also, between each coat I lightly, very lightly, sanded the surfaces with 1000 grit sandpaper to remove any dust, dirt, or bugs from my garage that might have gotten stuck in it. I'm surprised how much darker the polyurethane made the MDF, I definitely didn't need a stain. Turned out good, just gotta put those standoffs back in there now...

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I still haven't decided on which copper stripping to use for the edges. The 3M copper shielding has adhesive on one side, but I'm not sure if it will be good enough to stay on the edges. I could use some super glue if it won't stay though. The 20 mil copper strip doesn't have any adhesive and is thicker than the 3M shielding, so I'll have to either use a glue or copper nails to make it stick to the edges. I'm also debating on whether or not I should put a stripping on the inside of my holes as well since the lighter MDF can be seen.
 
That looks pretty slick man! This is such a great plan for a quick bench station, all you need is a pipe cutter, very nice idea. Saves the pain of working with aluminum and special tools trying to get things looking clean.
 
Thanks. This thing could be made really quick depending on the glue used, I would say ~3 days to get it usable, maybe less. I've only had a few hours every Monday and Wednesday, so it's taken a lot longer than it should.
 
While I'm waiting on some 3M EMI shielding to test, I've been messing around with a couple of things:

First up is a power switch for the station. I used the wiring from a power switch on an old NZXT case. I just ripped the switch off and replaced it with one of my own. Oh, I sleeved the wiring of course.

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So, just waiting on some copper shielding to try out on the edges of the MDF...should be in this coming up week. Just wanted to make sure no one thought I had forgotten about this thread :D
 
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Nice sleeving job on the ATX and switch cables

Thanks, I'm really starting to like sleeving. If I can help it, I'll prolly never have an unsleeved cable in my computer again :D

Day 14

So, I finally received the 3M EMI Copper Shielding and tested it out on the edge of the MDF. I was surprised at how well the adhesive sticks to the edge; I don't think it's coming off on its own any time soon. The shielding is a little bit lighter/shinier than the pipe, but I think that may be because the pipe has had much more exposure to humidity. So, maybe the shielding will get a little darker over time. All in all, I'm happy with the shielding, it works much better than I expected.

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Well, my UD3P blew a mosfet this weekend and I've been searching the internet for info and asking around about the best LGA1336 hardware. I'm also trying to sell some stuff, for money to replace my dead UD3P and other LGA775 equipment. So, it's been kind of hectic the past few days.

The next thing up will be installing the power switch. I was just gonna use the little switch connected to the header, so I didn't plan for a power switch hole before I put polyurethane on the surface. So, do you guys think drilling a hole through the poly will mess up the finish around the hole?
 
I dont know.I dont think it will since its MDF... or just go slowly than sand if any imperfection.
btw for the power button u know u need todo 2hole in one? one bigger than one less bigger to fit the power button but still be able to push it :)
 
I guess my main concern about the drilling is that the poly may crack, I guess I could sand and put another coat if it doesn't crack too much.

Actually the power button has a "lip" around the edge, so it won't fall through or anything. I will have to make a bigger hole half way through the MDF on the bottom side so I can screw the nut on the back of the switch (there's only 1/2" of threads...).
 
I got my new i3 system in today, and had to make an unseen modification. I'm goin to cap the ends off or something, don't worry :D

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Also, the board has a built-in power switch, which is AWESOME! So, the power switch I made will now be a reset switch instead.
 
Yeah...the heatsink on the new mobo goes right where the pipe was...
 
Unfortunately, no. I made the top tier just big enough to fit my UD3P to keep the station as small as possible. So, I couldn't have moved the holes away from the pipe in any direction. Of course, right when I'm close to finishing up, my UD3P blows a mosfet and I have to get a new mobo...

It's no biggie though, unseen problems make you be creative :D
 
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