my case mods in progress...

[qsqueeq]

here are a few of the mods i have been working on, the case was a cheapo from ebay. i plan on painting it black but i am lazy. sorry if some pics are blurry, i took them real quick and my camera sucks in the dark. let me know what you think
http://www.qsopht.com/computer/mods/

[cuelebre]

What I think..let me tell you what I think.....: WHAT A WASTE OF TIME.:eek:

Don't you have anything better to do like...going to scholl or may be.....a girlfriend????

Just kidding....but listen, (IMO) really It's not worth the time and effort, but if it makes you happy, go ahead, that's what is important.

You'll grow up.....someday..........maybe........we hope.... and do something usefull.:p

[qsqueeq]

yeah i guess.
fyi, i have a fiance and two bachelors degrees (computer science, and management information systems)
but i get bored like everyone else haha ;)

[Johnny Fist]

I don't know, I thought they were all well done mods. I especially like the one with the circles in the front bezel. That was a great design to work with.

[leprechaun_40]

I like the treatment with the front and right side. :t

You should paint that case black, would look really cool then:D

[qsqueeq]

thanks for the comments, i'm trying to get an idea of where to go next with it, and black was all i could think. i'm putting a window behind the designs on the sides. the circles design was created with a small hole saw (biggest one) then various drill bits getting smaller. i was trying to find more ways to put holes in the case and came up with that idea.

the front of the case is plastic, does spray paint stick well to plastic? i would assume sanding would be required for both the metal and the plastic.

thanks again

[Johnny Fist]

I've never had any problems using engine enamel. I'm a bit partial to Old Ford Blue. I never sand and never have problems with the paint sticking except in areas where surfaces rub together a lot, like where the side panel slides on and off. I get some chipping there after awhile, but never anything visible when the side is on. Just make sure you wipe it down really well and I don't think you'll have too many problems.

[crossedup]

Just another vote for done well. Looks good.

Wish I had the "bored part". Ive got a few to do and no time right now.

Paint and plastic seem to get along rather well, just several coats. Im going to test this when I get the time ( never :D )

[Johnny Fist]

Yeah, multiple thin coats work best as long as they're even. Don't try and get it painted in one coat or it'll come out looking like it.

[bonz_dragon]

I've used Testors model paint and it's worked well. Alittle on the expensive side but lots of cool colors!

[qsqueeq]

i've thought about testors, because i'm sure it works great with plastic, but you are right, the bottles are small and expensive.
i just don't want the plastic and metal to look completely different

[the xenon]

nice cutouts man, are u going to put anything behind them? maybe like modders mesh??

[qsqueeq]

modders mesh sounds cool, what is it? similar to just thin metal with holes in it?
i was just going to put clear plexiglass, but that sounds like a good suggestion.
where can you get it

[the xenon]

http://www.mnpctech.com/moddersmesh.html

this is the website by the guy who "invented" it, so probably the best place to get it. From what ive seen, modders mesh makes every case look awesome, and since its not that expensive u can always order and try.

[the xenon]

they also have a different kind at www.crazypc.com

[bonz_dragon]

What I normally use is the small spray cans. About 2 cans of primer to do an avg. size tower. Then 1 I did I used clear Candy Red over silver metallic and it took about 4 cans of the clear Candy color.
Originally posted by qsqueeq
i've thought about testors, because i'm sure it works great with plastic, but you are right, the bottles are small and expensive.
i just don't want the plastic and metal to look completely different

[qsqueeq]

sweet, that mesh looks good. do you like the circle or the hex better. i like the circle. plus the modders mesh is cheaper than the crazypc.

i never actually knew testors can in spray cans. where is the cheapest place for it

[Magua]

does spray paint stick well to plastic?

Generally it dosen't work too well. I have seen commercials for a Krylon spraypaint specificly for plastics, would give that a try.

[qsqueeq]

well thanks a lot guys, now i have bought more stuff. i just got 2 of the 1'x1' mesh sheets and some of the molding from mnpctech (http://www.mnpctech.com/modsupplies.html)

can't wait! now i need the paint. sucks though, i will have to take everything out of it to paint it. those with experience, how long did the coats take to dry and how long would you estiamate that it would take (hours? over a period of a couple of days?) to paint a whole case.

[bonz_dragon]

Originally posted by Magua
Generally it dosen't work too well. Well I don't agree as it is produced for the model hobbiest, of which most are plastic as well as metal.
I find it holds up better on the plastic parts than it does on the metal ones.

I believe the enamals dry and can be reapplied after a couple hrs. while the clear Candy coats require 24 hrs. and need at least 3-4 coats to look really good. Then Testors recommends a clear coat over the Candy.

I also at one time looked into airbrushing and those paints but lost interest as I just don't paint enough to justify the expense.

[the xenon]

i only had experience with enemal, i painted the insides of my case. Well because i messed it up the first time it took me about 2 weeks for the whole thing. (thats including the time spent scraping bad paint off with paint thinner, reapplying new coats and not doing it every day)

your best bet would be just to look in the back of the spray can where it says how long it should take for it to dry and how long till you apply next coat, those would be the best times. From my spray painting experience i didnt really apply more than 2 coats, and since its the insides of the case it didnt really matter because u cant really see the difference through the window.

PS i was going to put a thread about the rig i build this summer (thats the one i painted the insides of) but i need to take more pictures of it... which takes me very long for some reason. :rolleyes:

[Johnny Fist]

Two weeks? Man, it generally takes me fifteen minutes from start to finish with engine enamel.

[the xenon]

lol yeah i know but what i meant was that if u never done it before and ur a little lazy (like me) it can take u 2 weeks :D

[qsqueeq]

got the modders mesh yesterday, fabbed up some quick faceplate and painted it. also took front of case off and painted it black. i still need to gut the case of components and paint the main part of the case but i'm putting that off until the end because it won't be that fun ;)

here are some pics.

face stripped, painted cdrom and floppy faces (http://www.qsopht.com/computer/mods/modstrip.jpg)

front of case mocked up to see what the mess looks like
view 1 (http://www.qsopht.com/computer/mods/modfront.jpg)
view 2 (http://www.qsopht.com/computer/mods/modfrontlong.jpg)

[Johnny Fist]

Man, if you stick a 120mm fan back behind that grill I'm going to feel bad. I had the exact same thing lined up for a case of mine. Oh well, I'm sure someone else out there has already done it before, too.

[qsqueeq]

here are the latest pics of my case. finally painted everything and installed the modders mesh behind my cutouts. also put the front grill in for now but it's not permanent yet. still have a few things i want to do. sorry about the pics, my camera takes crappy dark pictures with no flash. i suck at painting too haha :confused:

top (http://www.qsopht.com/computer/mods/aftermodtop.jpg)
side 1 (http://www.qsopht.com/computer/mods/aftermodside1.jpg)
side 2 (http://www.qsopht.com/computer/mods/aftermodside2.jpg)
front (http://www.qsopht.com/computer/mods/aftermodfront.jpg)

[bonz_dragon]

doesn't look to shabby.
I think a lighted fan in front would be to much.

[Johnny Fist]

Doesn't that fan make all sorts of a racket being held onto that mesh like that?

[qsqueeq]

i don't have a fan on the mesh, someone mentioned that they were thinking of doing that. the front mesh on my comp is just there, with lights in the background from cathode lights and other led fans.

[cheeseman]

i think the only really why people make there case ""pretty is becuase they want to show , to me a case with lots of air vents and fans and a good psu is a good case, i don;t care if it is pretty or not

[cheeseman]

is is the point of the mess if someday you put more cd drives or dvd drives

[the xenon]

nice man, def looks awesome with the mesh :D
are u going to put anything behind the mesh in the front of the case?

[qsqueeq]

i doubt i will need anymore cd/dvd drives so i'm good, if so i'll just cut it and repaint.

i was thinking about it xenon but i don't know what to do, i also have another blue cathode tube light so i'm thinking of just attaching it to the top and letting more blue light shine through the mesh.

[crusious31]

Originally posted by qsqueeq
well thanks a lot guys, now i have bought more stuff. i just got 2 of the 1'x1' mesh sheets and some of the molding from mnpctech (http://www.mnpctech.com/modsupplies.html)

can't wait! now i need the paint. sucks though, i will have to take everything out of it to paint it. those with experience, how long did the coats take to dry and how long would you estiamate that it would take (hours? over a period of a couple of days?) to paint a whole case.

That stuff is 5.99 for 1' x1'.:eek:

You can get the same thing at a hardware store for way less.

[qsqueeq]

where at... i haven't seen it anywhere else
if you find it somewhere let me know

i just checked ace hardware online and they don't have the same thing but similar items are here
http://www.acehardware.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=1306630&cp=1254881.1255041
they aren't cheaper there

[cheeseman]

post i pic when you have all the mes and is 100% done

[mnpctech.com]

Nice work qsqueeq :cool:

Thank you for choosing Modders Mesh. I was the first to implement this product into case modding. Its always been mnpctech's goal to offer it @ lowest cost possible. I've sold it for nearly 3 years and never once raised my price even though my supplier has due of price hikes in steel market.

Thanks again,

Bill Owen
Pro Modder
http://www.mnpctech.com

[qsqueeq]

yeah i love the modder's mesh. i checked other places online and haven't found anything that's closer in price. i used JB Weld to attach it to my case and it worked pretty well. i bought two sheets but only used one, they go a long ways.

thanks again
sam