Custom Case Building 101 (basics)

Captain Slug · Jun 16, 2004

orionnt said:
Is there anywhere to buy just a motherboard tray? withour having to rip apart a case or buy a case just for the tray?

That I know of? No. And when they have been offered they were usually more expensive than simply buying a $10 donor case from eBay or pricewatch listings.

-maddog- · May 1, 2005

Is there anyway to easily build a sphere shaped case?

Captain Slug · May 1, 2005

-maddog- said:
Is there anyway to easily build a sphere shaped case?

Good grief, no. Curves are never "easy". The only semi-easy way to make curves would be with fiberglass, but that require a form to work from and a frame to support it from the inside after it's hardened..

bri1 · Nov 20, 2005

nice stuff must have taken a while

gvblake22 · Nov 29, 2005

What do you suggest using to attach the side panels of the case to each other? In other words, how do you get the top panel to attach to the side panels and the front panel?
I was thinking using 1" aluminum L channel would work well :shug:

Very nice guide by the way. Lots of great, useful information!

Son1990 · Nov 29, 2005

gvblake22 said:
What do you suggest using to attach the side panels of the case to each other? In other words, how do you get the top panel to attach to the side panels and the front panel?
I was thinking using 1" aluminum L channel would work well :shug:

Very nice guide by the way. Lots of great, useful information!

Lots of people find it easier to use L-channeled acyrlic or Alumminum to hold panels or sides togeather but of couse there are Alternatives.

mATXvs
External Watercooling Enclosure
Rhune [NMP]

Those work logs above show how some people choose to hold sides togeather. The second one, uses L channel like you said. The easiest is eaither that or do what Captain Slug did in Rhune, and join two peices togeather to form an L-channel like bracket and then screw it into the side of the case. Of course if you have thick enough acylic/lexan/etc. you can drill through the sides like seen in Electron Chasers log.

Captain Slug · Nov 29, 2005

Note: Making the brackets for Ruhe was not easy and required some very small cuts and very accurate applications of solvent. I don't recommend attempting them for a first project.

If you simply add drilled/tapped corner tabs to the inside edge of the top and bottom sheets you can screw the other panels in place. I did mine inside-out for visual effect and it ended up being a difficult and slow process.

Son1990 · Nov 30, 2005

Captain Slug said:
If you simply add drilled/tapped corner tabs to the inside edge of the top and bottom sheets you can screw the other panels in place. I did mine inside-out for visual effect and it ended up being a difficult and slow process.

Yes. Such as drilled/tapped acrylic squares.

gvblake22 · Dec 16, 2005

Son1990 said:
Yes. Such as drilled/tapped acrylic squares.

Yeah, I think I'll probably end up getting some of these and drilling/tapping some 6/32 thread holes for thumb screws

http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=136&

Son1990 · Dec 16, 2005

I have experinced extreme ease with the 1 inches cubes. You are welcome to try the size that you desire.

ReD.SkY · Feb 11, 2006

i shall add ths information to my large bank of knowledge

SiliconSlick · Jun 13, 2006

finding parts.

because basic case designs rarely change (not the aesthetic stuff but the internal stuff) try looking on the nature strip or sidewalk for old cases that have been thrown out and are just lying there. (you can even get working components)

ASync · Dec 3, 2007

Just wondering y do we place all m/bs vertical rather than horizontal [_] is there a reason behind this?

gvblake22 · Dec 3, 2007

ASync said:
Just wondering y do we place all m/bs vertical rather than horizontal [_] is there a reason behind this?

ALL motherboards are not vertical, it is just more common because it takes up less space on your desk. It's not too hard to build taller to keep the width smaller (and thus a smaller footprint), but creating a space for a case that's almost two feet wide is not usually very convenient. There are a lot of cases though that are oriented horizontally (mostly HTPC style cases).

Otherwise, there is no particular reason for the vertical motherboard orientation other than for space reasons. The computer hardware can work in both vertical and horizontal orientations just fine.

Custom Case Building 101 (basics)

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