DM-01 HyperCase

Defyant · Apr 29, 2020

A new year and another case mod

The concept of this case mod has evolved over it's build so far. The original idea comes from the new wave of open design cases. The Cougar Conquer, Antec Torque and The ZC-11.

More so the latter of the 3 . But ive added some extras

And i'll build it from plex and a little threaded rod.

The build started with 4 main parts and has grown since then. Top section , Bottom a main spine and a motherboard tray.

The base is bent from a single sheet of 3mm plex and will be reinforced down the track.

Next is the top.

This time ive made unit in three sections to get the hard lines and cut outs.

It's important that these 2 sections are exact size width wise.

Next is to cut the main spine of the case. 6mm plex with give it plenty of strength with a second layer of 3mm to be added each side later.

The motherboard tray is the last of the main components.... and is upside down for some reason.....

To bring these bits together is some good old threaded rod and nuts..... with a few washers

The way this goes together is really basic... well to start with.

The motherboard tray is added.

And the top goes on... It's seriously basic..... bolting some clear or tinted plex panels to the sides would have you a very basic case.

Defyant · Apr 30, 2020

With the basic design and layout done its time to start modding all the parts

The first part to get some treatment is the spine. The idea will be to add some pattern to each side. This will also add another 2.5mm to the thickness of the spine adding a lot more strength.

A pretty basic pattern is cut using a router. A cut out for the PSU is also added.

This layer will overlay ontop of the spine and be hard glued.

A simple caddy bracket to hold the PSU in place is made.

All the parts are wet sanded and then glued.

The bracket is also hard glued into place.

For the other side again a pretty simple pattern was chosen, Trying to keep the lines sharp and clean

This side is also hard glued and now makes the spine 10mm+ thick, plenty of strenght.

Next on the upgrade slab is the MB tray.

This gets some extra love as it will also be the place where the SSD's mount.

As will all these cut outs all the edges are beveled for a cleaner look

Just like the ones before, the new section is sanded and hard glued into place.

The base of the case get some attention too ! as well as a guide channel.

And last but not least for now. The top of the case gets some extra loving too

An io panel is salvaged and put to good use

MTC soon!

Defyant · May 1, 2020

The next little addition was to be for the GPU. A side brace will be added later to stop any side wobble.

A small cover is made to help hid the riser cable.

Threads are tapped for the top

And slots for the bottom.

So far so good.

The original plan was to run the case as an open case design but i have decided to go more enclosed. With the option to change easily if that's what i want down the track.

So the inclusion of front and rear fans has been added to the design. This mean altering the front shape a bit and making a mount system for the fans.

I decided to make the fan mount a bit of a feature and make a fan duct.

The front of the main section get a large chunk cut away with a new angle. This will now allow the new section to slide on.

The fan mount and duct is designed to allow front or rear(internal) mounting of the 2 x 140mm fans

The other side is shaped a little different to allow for air to get to the PSU

the duct can now just slide into place , i still have not decided if i will clip mount or screw mount the duct into place.

primetime · May 1, 2020

Dam you took build your own pc to a hole another level.

This should be interesting

Defyant · May 2, 2020

primetime said:
Dam you took build your own pc to a hole another level. This should be interesting

Cheers primetime tyvm mate

Next update is where all the parts get alot of prep work. Bondo , sanding primer more bondo primer putty high fill spray putty and sanded again

The first part to get some attention was the top section.

Turning a rounded bend into a sharp line takes a fair bit of work.

The same work is put into the other side to where both sides have a sharp clean straight line. And while i was at it , i knocked up the vent modules.

With that little distraction out of the way it was time to prime , spray putty and add some spot putty. Then left to sit for 48hours.

The next victim to receive some major works was the fan duct.... After alot of initial sanding some accents were added.

The unit is then hit with some primer and the ruff spots are filled with spot putty left to sit for 48hrs then sanded and hit with more spray putty.

Next part to see some extra work is the base. This gets some extra supports for the spine, this will hold it in place to make assembly easier.

The rest of the parts are all sanded primed and spray putty where needed. The all the parts are left to sit for a week or two before a final wet sand and prep for paint.

For now ive assembled the parts , to finalise measurements for the front grill.

Defyant · May 13, 2020

Because i cant make up my mind what style of front i want for this case... i'll make 2

The first will be a grill type front.

Defyant · May 16, 2020

A bit of black satin to get a better idea.

Still needs a lotta work to get all the lines even but for now i can move onto the second front.

Defyant · May 16, 2020

Some Good news, Mwave have Jumped on board with some hardware for this build. A big thanks to the guys @ MWave for the support.

GIGABYTE Z390 AORUS ELITE
INTEL I7-9700K
GIGABYTE GEFORCE RTX 2060 SUPER
TEAM FORCE VULCAN 16GB 3200
INTEL 660P 512GB M.2
4 X SAMSUNG SSD'S

Last but not least the star of the show

DEEPCOOL ASSASSIN III COOLER

Again thanks MWAVE

The second panel will be made in 3 sections , a middle and 2 outer sections for the hyper vents.

First the inner.... This also will be made in sections with a slight bend for shape. The bottem "tab section" will be cut away later.

Another layer is cut heat bent and glued over the top for some shape.

For the vents 2 x side housings are made so far ive only done 8 of the fins, these are hand made

MTC soon

Defyant · May 17, 2020

A bit more work to the front panel today

Fritzz · May 17, 2020

Defyant said:
A bit more work to the front panel today

You say a "bit more work" and I say, more effort than I have put into building an entire PC!!

Love these one off custom cases. Can't wait to see the finished product!

Defyant · May 24, 2020

Fritzz said:
You say a "bit more work" and I say, more effort than I have put into building an entire PC!!

Love these one off custom cases. Can't wait to see the finished product!

Thanks Fritzz mee too mate mee too ! i'm starting to feel a bit over this one

Dare i say it again

A bit more work to the front panel again today

Just wanting to sort out the locking system and get the front near completed under primer and the vents painted.

Defyant · Jun 20, 2020

Some rear end action !

Defyant's Mods

Defyant · Jun 28, 2020

Almost done with this panel.. Fill a few ruff spots with spot putty a rub and final primer.

First off was to get some primer down.

Not sure what to call these things, but hopefully they look cool! i'll show the inspiration for adding these soon.

A lot more sanding some more primer and a few coats of spray putty.

The inspiration

DEEPCOOL'S ASSASSIN III COOLER FANS

Defyant · Jul 22, 2020

Couple of small updates and new additions

I knocked this up in the add break, a lil cover for the PSU and a place to hide some cable.

Then it was time for some mesh modding

A bit of primer and spray putty put em together for a look see and test fit

Another Update is the inclusion of an internal stat's screen.

Defyant · Jul 25, 2020

We're on the home stretch now ! ..... well until i change my mind again

Yesterday was all the boring stuff..... more sanding and spot putty work... but today was a bit more fun as i finally get to throw down some colour

First the boring! Kinda like running around putting out all the little spot fires.

Some final prep work to the PSU cover, Filling in all the plex joins and fixing a few small dimples.

It's a lotta extra work, but the end result will be worth it.

Not sure if any one noticed this before but i changed the front. Decided to carry the lines thru to the bottom of the panel for a cleaner sharper look.

This added a couple of extra days work... but i think it's worth the time.

Then finish off the bracket for the Galaxy II Stats screen It's a simple spring type clip mod, that just holds the phone snug in place.

A hell of a lot more wet rubbing and more spot fires and all the parts under base coat (silver)

A day later....just when you thought all the wet rubbing was over ..... It's more wet rubbing again....

Why sand every coat? To get the paint as flat as poss.... that is what gives the mirror finish @ the very end.

Fun Time First a few coats of the gun metal and then on goes the 2K clear coat.

Lets do a few more

Just for giggles! what could have been!!!!!

Defyant · Jul 26, 2020

After laying down some colour and some clear then letting it dry over night. The psu cover gets a quick light sand. This is to get the clear as flat as poss for a quick buff.
Normally i'd let this sit for a week to let the clear go rock hard. But i wanted to see what sort of mirror finish i could get now.

Looking promising,

If i can get the whole case to look this good i'll be a happy camper.

Happy with that i can get the last 3 sections under colour.

A bit more prep work for the front panel and then some colour and clear cloat.

Thought i'd take a sneaky peek @ how the black side vents would contrast!

Then move onto some big stuff ! remember these ?

That's pretty much all the players on the park now... I still need to wet sand and clear coat the top and back panels... prolly thru the week.

Then i can finally start thinking about adding some hardware.

Nobu · Jul 26, 2020

Gotta say, was a bit disappointed when I found out the acrylic wasn't going to stay clear, but not anymore. lol

Good job!

Light1984 · Aug 20, 2020

Any chance you could talk about that paints used? Getting ready to prep and paint a factory case and you clearly know what you're doing. Any insight would be appreciated

pendragon1 · Aug 20, 2020

Light1984 said:
Any chance you could talk about that paints used? Getting ready to prep and paint a factory case and you clearly know what you're doing. Any insight would be appreciated

rattle can paint and 2k top coat will give you the same results.

pendragon1 · Aug 20, 2020

mashie said:
This is case modding at its fines. Looking forward to see how this one is turning out.

its not just a mod though, its from scratch.

Defyant · Sep 21, 2020

Nobu said:
Gotta say, was a bit disappointed when I found out the acrylic wasn't going to stay clear, but not anymore. lol

Good job!

Cheers Nobu tyvm mate

I get a bit attached to the clean look of the frosted plex too!

mashie said:
This is case modding at its fines. Looking forward to see how this one is turning out.

Cheers mashie tyvm great to hear from you again mate

Light1984 said:
Any chance you could talk about that paints used? Getting ready to prep and paint a factory case and you clearly know what you're doing. Any insight would be appreciated

As pendragon1 said below, it is indeed spray can over primer using a 2k clear coat. I use a typical auto shop bought Acrylic can pain, i use a generic color as it will always be easy to by more later.
The Clear coat is 2k in a can. Prolly not "true 2k" as that usually goes off after use.

I Do have the full setup to spray off the gun using a my shop compressor but nowaday prefer to just go with the cans.

Everything i have used to do the job in order from left to right.

pendragon1 said:
rattle can paint and 2k top coat will give you the same results.

Cheers mate

pendragon1 said:
its not just a mod though, its from scratch.

Cheers , So tru I think i had of taken the time to think about the effort that was going to be involved...... i may have just brought a ZC-11

mashie said:
Well even the OP is calling it a case mod and all my scratch built cases were also case mods.

And some of the best case mods too

Defyant · Sep 21, 2020

Appols for getting slack! i should update more often.....

A hell of a lot more wet sanding flat buff and shine work to all the panels.

But the next step was to add some Grills to the top vents. These were never for air but for looks. Each vent had a template made and old car speaker grills were again shaped.

Once shaped these could then be hot glued into place

A dummy board is installed and the front duct and fans added.

Next step was to use the the vent grill templates to make some diffusers.

These are also glued into place in the grills. This will diffuse the RGB light strips for a more even look.

The lighting can go "full disco" But that not the look im after for this mod, really wanting to keep the lighting solid.

Ive added in some under glow strips to pass some light through and down the inside of the case/