Watercooling case, built from scratch?

[Pob255]

Chipboard is not that good as it's very rough grian/chip means you need more thickness for strength.

For basic side panels hardboard would work as long as you had a solid frame underneath.

The one big issue you'll have with a case this big in wood will be weight.
You could look at wood top +bottom +front +back then purspex/acrylic for the sides (again it's fairly easy to work with, only get more complex when you try to bend or form it)

I'd sugest getting a removable motherboard tray, you can get these seperately, as that will make stuff eaiser.

keep working on the design.

[Hicks12]

Right, so should i scrap the chipboard then?
With regards to weight do you mean in stability or just me moving the thing? Its not meant to be transported so the latter isnt an issue.
Will keep working on the design .

[Hicks12]

Right, so should i scrap the chipboard then?
With regards to weight do you mean in stability or just me moving the thing? Its not meant to be transported so the latter isnt an issue.
Will keep working on the design .

[piggin23]

Pob is referring to the physical weight.
If you are not going to move the case then this will not matter.
You will also have to make sure that the case has lots of fans as wood is a good insulator.
When you have a aluminum/steel case, the extra heat is transferred into the surrounding area.
The wooden frame with perspex side panels will show off you internals.

[Hicks12]

Thanks for the info piggin , So does wood really have a detrimental effect on the temperatures? Since im going the watercooling route then i dont see a problem with having this as a base material, or am i totally wrong? .

I think i need to replan this a lot .

edit: Right been thinking, how about a aluminium case? For some reason the pricing seems pretty decent however I am not sure what thickness I would need. Would 1.5mm be thick enough? a 1 meter by 1 meter sheet of that is only £30, wheras a 1.5mm steel sheet is £2 more and then 1mm is £20 for normal steel.... now if i go this route I will need to get a dremel .

[Pob255]

Yes I did mean shear physical weight and just because you don't transport a case doesn't mean you don't move it.
esp if the case is going under your desk, then it's going to have to come out every time you need to do something to it.
Also the simple issue of trying to fit a side panel when it weighs that much.
You could use the chipboard for bottom and top.

as to wood being an insulator, that depends on the air flow, a case generally doesn't get very hot if you have good air flow so it shouldn't be much of an issue.

[piggin23]

Good air flow is a must, even with a water cooled system as the motherboard,PSU, hard drives etc will be affected.
I would go will the metal case, aluminium in particular.
Go with 1.5-2 mm as anything thinner will flex.
The bigger problem will be making a frame.

[Hicks12]

Yeh what ill do is i will use this wood and see how it goes as its here and will help my develop my wood work skills . However when i get the cash i will probably make the metal case .

[piggin23]

Sounds like a good idea.
You can use the first case as a test bed and work on a metal version.
You could also get a large second hand server case and cut that about to give yourself something different.

[momo77735]

Careful with aluminium. Modding a zalman gt1000 was a nightmare! Invest in a good dremel makes it so much easier.

[momo77735]

Also consider acrylic! Its much easier to design and shape and if u have a line bender you can get some really cool curves and with a dremel you can produce some really nice designs. Not also will it be light weight but you could always create a metal effect paint job and expand the case using bonding resins

[momo77735]

Also you could self tapping screws! (As you've guessed I've started an acrylic project )

[Hicks12]

Thanks for the suggestions momo, out of interest... where did you get your acrylic from? Cheaper than wood/metal?

[momo77735]

I went my sixth form. My old teacher was really nice he gave me 10 1 square meters for a pound each. Try the same ? It's really expensive online! I recommend 3 - 5mm. Maybe its me but 2mm sheets were really easy to break.

[Pob255]

Fleabay again is a good source for acrylic, be aware there are two types Cast and Extruded, the cheaper stuff tends to be Extruded, Cast is more expensive but suposed to be nicers and eaiser to work with (less chance of chipping or cracking) and more ridged due to increased density, however that also makes it heavier

Note: I've never worked with Cast acrylic only Exturded which is why I say "supposed", based on what I read and heard from others with more experience with using acrylic.

[Hicks12]

Right then, project was put on hold as i was doing exams and other more important stuff but all that is sorted so im back on it!.

So far, ive sorted the back structure of the case and i have to say its a lot sturdier than i expected so should certainly hold any weight in there, before i started work i tested the strength of it with no extra support with food cans and stuff and it held the weight well (about 6 or 7KG).



Heres the photos of the current development:




Forgot to take pictures before i started but i basically added the extra panel and took off some of the older mounting items.


This is the most up to date picture, as you can see im using an old atx board to reference my stand off placement.

I have been thinking that for the front i will edit it a tad and add in 1 or 2 120 mm fan mounts to keep hard drives cool .


As the structure is done i am just doing the markings for cuttings and will be drilling the holes for the standoffs later, stupid I/O of the motherboard is in the way so need to cut a place for the plate so i can drill the holes properly .

a quick question, how would i go about cutting a grill/honey comb holes for fan placements? Preferably i dont want to cut a massive hole and slot it in because that could affect the strength so does anyone know how to cut the standard small hole design to let air in/out?. Need to get a dremel shortly so looking for one to order at the end of this week .