Building a PC in a Pelican Case

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XinnKoda

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At my work, I have a lot of down time, sometimes several hours when there is nothing to do. I have a small work area where I could put a desktop computer except other people use the area when I'm off. I don't want to lug around a whole desktop all the time and a laptop seems too weak or too expensive to get the kind of power I want out of it. I'm curious if anyone has ever thought of building a "portable" desktop computer. I'm thinking of getting a large pelican box/duratool case and mounting an LCD monitor to the lid and essentially using the bottom of the box to mount the motherboard and everything else. I would just modify the box to allow to install fans and mate the LCD and PSU so I could run a single power cable out to the plug. Has anyone attempted this before? What other things should I consider before taking on this project?
I should also mention, I want to try this route because I can get a much more powerful computer for the price, as well as having the option of upgrading it in the future.
 
I would just worry about how to prop up the top part of the box with a monitor in it.(Maybe using hydraulic arms like on a hatch of a car) Other than that, providing you have enough cooling, this seems like a pretty straight forward project. Personally I would use the guts of an existing case to help make the process easier.
 
Just build a mITX PC. Then bring your own LCD with you of any size. How dark can you make this "room" you hang out in? Consider a projector.
 
i've actually built a few machines exactly like this, pelican case and all. i only have one picture at home here, but i can get you more tomorrow probably.

eSkmtRi.jpg


i took this halfway through to show a friend, so please excuse the cable management. i forget the exact dimensions/model of the case, but as you can see it was perfect for a 23" monitor. get one with a vesa mount directly on the back. i drilled four holes, bolted through, and added a bit of silicone. you don't need to worry about the weight of the monitor, the hinges on these cases are study as fuck. once you reach a certain point it "pops" open and it's not going anywhere.

you can get as fancy as you want with recessed power, data, audio, etc. google search for recessed stuff like that, not hard to find. keep in mind every hole you drill is another chance for water/whatever to get in. i had originally planned to do all that as well, but decided against it.

as far as incorporating bare pc components, not sure that's a great idea. get a horizontal matx case and somehow affix that to the pelican so you can get at it easily. that's what i'd do anyway. i've just purpose built a couple with mac mini's. can kinda see the plexi shelf i cut out, screws through the side of the case into the shelf. super simple. works though.
 
That is almost exactly what I'm looking to build. Could you possibly get me the dimensions that you used?
 
Thank you very much! One question, has vibrations (from having the computer in your car or just general packing it around) caused any issues with the LCD screen? I thought about using rubber bushings when mounting it to absorb some of the vibrations.
 
nope, not yet. this has survived two years of travel to different venues around the state, in the hands of some not so tech-savy people. mandatory ssd in your pc, but i think that goes without saying haha.
 
You can buy basically that. Military uses em, as does disaster agencies, oil and gas sector etc.

Built in screens, screens in their own cases. Whole gamut of options. Obviously batshit expensive but you can easily do it.

it’ll work fine, just make sure you have proper airflow. It’s massively easier to just have it so the power receptacle is accessed when open though. Poly is a pain to do neatly and you lose the integrity of the waterproofing etc unless you put yourself through even more pain.

Or just get a laptop with an external gpu :)
 
toddao said:
tacos4me that's a great job. Is there a way you can do a custom box for me?
Click to expand...
Shoot me a PM with requirements, might be able to work something out. I have bits kicking around somewhere still I believe.

Haven't built one of these for awhile now, running H265/SRT encoders from the field to studios these days. Remote prod ftw.
 
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