Advise

I am looking to build a PC for LAN parties out of a good alluminum breifcase and am having a hard time finding one that will still be stable after being cut up.
Has anyone else made one out of these before that can point me in the right direction??

Thanks!

if you cant find a strong one, just reinforce it. Its aluminum, so there shouldnt be a problem making aluminum supports on the inside.

my 2 cents
Charlie
and Happy Holidays

Good point.
I think I'm going with this oen for now unless I find another one or someone else knows of a better one.
King Size

Thanks Thunderbolt

you know what I was thinking of doing? Putting a fullsize comp (microATX) in the bottom and a flat screen in the lid. extend the back connectors to the keyboard surface (above the keyboard) for quick connections. this would almost eliminate cutting. have the power cables wound up in a compartment inside.

use a shuttle microatx board, they make some of the best small boards

A few years ago I helped my friend build a case for his mixing board. We took a cheap steal briefcase and laid about a 1/4 inch of fiberglass in it. It made the case very sturdy without adding much weight to it. Its easy to cut and drill through, plus you can sand and paint it.

I like the laptop looking idea and the idea of using a smaller board wou;d be nice also.
However this is going to be an overclocked gaming system for LAN parties and using all full size componants. I'm planning on using an AMD Athlon XP 2200+, SK7 with Tornado, Antec Truepower 480watt, MSI 128Mb Ti4200, and on a Soyo Dragon KT333 with 1Gig PC2700 RAM. Basicly most of the old parts from Christine when she is fully upgraded.
The thought of hauling around my Cheiftec Tower was not looking good to me.

These have been done a number of times and are rather ineffective because they usually aren't much lighter or smaller than a regular case. It's also rather difficult to find a briefcase in the right size range that doesn't cost a fortune and isn't flimsy.

The only benefit seems to be the premade handle. Ironically it may be easier to build a custom briefcase type shell instead of trying to modify a regular briefcase. If you need help doing that, I'm available.

You might check out some of these DJ LP Cases. There are lots more available on the web if ya do a bit of searching. I always thought they mould make a better LAN case than a briefcase.

peace.
unloaded

Captain Slug said:

These have been done a number of times and are rather ineffective because they usually aren't much lighter or smaller than a regular case. It's also rather difficult to find a briefcase in the right size range that doesn't cost a fortune and isn't flimsy.

The only benefit seems to be the premade handle. Ironically it may be easier to build a custom briefcase type shell instead of trying to modify a regular briefcase. If you need help doing that, I'm available.

Click to expand...

Thanks Captain it's much appreciated. I will let you know via PM if it should become something I will need assistance with. I have made PCs before from nothing but never one for ME with all MY weird detail oriented Type A personality traits.
I also had not really thought about it being any heavier or light just more managable than using those pre-made LAN straps etc.

UnLoadeD said:

You might check out some of these DJ LP Cases. There are lots more available on the web if ya do a bit of searching. I always thought they mould make a better LAN case than a briefcase.

peace.
unloaded

Click to expand...

Holy crap Batman!! Those look hella good!! I wonder if the ones with wheels would be better to use?
Whatta think Captain?
Thanks for the link UnLoadeD!

The VTech said:

Holy crap Batman!! Those look hella good!! I wonder if the ones with wheels would be better to use?
Whatta think Captain?
Thanks for the link UnLoadeD!

Click to expand...

I had to go measure one of my LPs to make sure a motherboard would fit (since they don't list measurements). These cases are ideal since they don't clamshell like the others. In order to make upgrading easier you may need to work out how to add a motherboard tray that slides into the case from the top. Possibly using drawer slides.

The internal dimensions of that case should be 14 (with rounded edges) x 12 x 6. PERFECTION as far as building a machine goes.

At $55 you'll still need to heavily modify it with fan, drive, and I/O holes. Atleast you'll be starting with somthing that looks wicked.

If you want to cut the weight down I recommend considering a Laptop CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive. I know where to buy them cheaply.

Sweet. This is going to be a long term project since I have a few other that are priority. "Christine" is #1 and the LAN "Fun Pack PC" as I call it, is something I am really wanting to do. I dig these cases. As for the cheaper laptop parts, being a reseller gives me access to some great pricing.
Of course I will have to purchase a bulk lot to sell to customers but that makes me money so I don't mind.

I'll be bugging you a lot soon Captain. Thanks again for the dimensions input. Another thing I was thinking of for the motherboard was a sliding tray at the bottom laying the board flat if possible. I was thinking that this way, I could put a fan on inbetween the handles blowing down in addition to side venting across the board. Thoughts? Possible? If I need to that UnLoadeD's idea of a smaller micro board so be it but I would rather use higher end componants just in a cool looking case that is portable.

Well I'm outtie for today, I work nights so I'll check back later when I get up.
Thanks again all. I would not know or be able to do half of what I have been doing or thinking since I found this place.
God bless Overclockers.com!!

Here's specs on ones that hold 70 LP's, some hold more and would be bigger if needed:
Dimension (W x H x D): 14.25" x 16.5" x 10.5" Weight: 8 lbs. Capacity: 70 LPs

With those dimensions in mind, here's how I would layout the case to make the best use out of the room, while making constructcion simple. All of the I/O connections in this design would use extender cables. That would allow you to open the case and slide the motherboard out, without having to disconnect anything or turn the machine off.


The Slim CD-ROM and Hard drive would be mounted vertically, as would the motherboard. The PSU and cables all reside in the very bottom of the case.