Ideas for first mod on an old case

[blingling]

I've been trying to come up with ideas for my first mod which is mostly just a practice mod for when i build my next computer. So instead of getting a new case I decided I would try to mod an old Compaq I have its pretty bulky and has a door thing that doesn't close fully anymore, but here it is, post some ideas you think I would be able to do (nothing to complicated like etching i think i'll stay away from that for now). I was planning on adding maybe a window and painting it.

Here's a Angled Pick

The back I was thinking about redoing it so power supply would be up top, don't know how hard that would be, might be beyond my skill.

Here's the front

This is the case when its open the computer part slides out of it

Inside of the case

 

[blingling]

no one has any suggestions like on how to fix the back, so the power supply would be up top.

 

[DudeItsMe]

First of all I'd take the case completely apart and check the condition of the parts. I had what looked like a great modding case, until almost every plastic hinge on it broke because in their old age they had become rigid.

 

[KoZLop]

well you cant really put a window because of the metal brackets... HURMM
let me get back too you.



EDIT: some paint

 

[thevampirelord66]

meh friend has that exact same case.....theres not gonan be much modding there unles u can completley rebuild the inside chassis of it.

 

[blingling]

yeah i took it completely apart earlier today and it was still in good condition aside from alot of dust, but it does seem like it would be a pain to try and put a window in seeing as its not a side panel i can take off its all together.

 

[Mickey21]

I am not sure that really would make a nice first mod. It will definitely take a lot of work hence, might not be a good starter unless you are just ready to mess it up mostly. Would make a great case to hack away at to practice making things like holes and grills and modding plastic.

But if you want suggestions as it seems you do.. Hack the metal bracket off the power supply and stencil and cut the hole necessary for the power supply to be situated at the back top area. Cut the front door bezel to fit a display screen and create another mechanism to hold it securely shut as most of those Compaq models were notorious for. I would paint the entire inner steel caging and rebuild the outter steel shell in acrylic plastic with necessary steel railing to allow for insertion of the newly painted steel caging interior. Remove the entire front bezel assembly with newly created front door display and paint it to match new theme of course. Attach new bezel assembly to acrylic out shell and insert caging assembly again to finish computer off. Would take quite a bit of time, but it surely could be done... Would look nice then... Of course with the obligitory lighting and interior changes to wire sleeving and part change-outs to facilitate a faster computer hopefully... Just my 10 cents...

 

[kuyaglen]

shiny a.k.a "mirror" paint finish of a technicolor muse.

 

[DudeItsMe]

But if you want suggestions as it seems you do.. Hack the metal bracket off the power supply and stencil and cut the hole necessary for the power supply to be situated at the back top area. Cut the front door bezel to fit a display screen and create another mechanism to hold it securely shut as most of those Compaq models were notorious for. I would paint the entire inner steel caging and rebuild the outter steel shell in acrylic plastic with necessary steel railing to allow for insertion of the newly painted steel caging interior. Remove the entire front bezel assembly with newly created front door display and paint it to match new theme of course. Attach new bezel assembly to acrylic out shell and insert caging assembly again to finish computer off. Would take quite a bit of time, but it surely could be done... Would look nice then... Of course with the obligitory lighting and interior changes to wire sleeving and part change-outs to facilitate a faster computer hopefully... Just my 10 cents...

So unless you have a lot of time and money to spend, trash that thing

 

[starhawk]

wtf is *that* thing?!?!?! that belongs in the ugly computer case thread...

assuming i didn't go blind from the obnoxious design of that *thing* (and i had the $$$) i'd probably follow the following steps:

(1) paint the case black w/ red highlights outside (except for the case door on the side)
(2) gut the interior down to the outer frame
(3) build new hdd/drive cages from lexan (easier than plexi to cut- just go real slow w/ a jigsaw... no real need to tape edges, no cracks in edges, either)
(4) repeat (3) for atx form factor psu cage
(5) junk the main case door for a lexan version
(6) put in a modright ultra orange uv (presleeved!) custom psu from frozencpu (retails there for $120!)
(7) add uv & red ccfls
(8) get good innards and assemble them

 

[Mickey21]

Some of the coolest mods come from the ugliest looking cases initially. What is the trouble in this situation is probably going to be the lack of funds to accomplish well, the desire to work that hard, and the quality of the final appearance.

 

[MONST3R]

you might be able to do away with the big metal bracket or at least shave it down a little bit. you could put a nice little window in and some cold cathodes. or if you are feeling spunky, pop a 120mm fan on the front. that always does the job.

 

[starhawk]

i know exactly how you feel- my financial situation 11 1/2 months out of 12 is pancake-flat broke. i'm planning on doing a cheapo mod out of an old crapheap soon since i have little other choice and i really want to try my hand at it.

 

[blingling]

yeah i was going to go with just using this case as a thing to practice for my first mod and then later getting a better case when i'm ready to build a new computer

 

[blingling]

well if i go with just getting a new case i'm not sure whether i want to get a case with a door like the thermaltake tsunami or one without a door like the coolermaster centurion 5. because i wanted to get some drive bay devices so i don't know if i should go for the neat door look or the open look where i could see the stuff i put in the front bays. I'm leaning towards going with a door

 

[DudeItsMe]

My problem with this idea is that if you're going to mod it to be an awesome case, it's probably not going to resemble it's former self, inside or out. So why spend tons of $$$ on the case to make it cool, when it is no longer close to what it was. He might as well just build a case from scratch.

 

[starhawk]

it's easier to start from something than nothing.

besides... after actually studying that case... i don't think it's fugly after all. it's sorta... interesting.

but perhaps not meant for the ugly case thread, unlike many others.

however, it does have several flaws in its design:
(1) there are a lot of heat problems inherent in the apparent overly protective design that it has. all that paneling inside is going to make for a real winner in the cooling department because they obscure airflow. a good handheld abrasive cutoff saw will take care of that very, very quickly, as will a jigsaw.
(2) the psu in the middle will obscure any attempts at a large hsf for a p4. best route for that is the jigsaw, or a dremel with a cutting disc of some sort. simply cut out what appears to be a mount for a 120mm fan above, in a rectangle to fit the psu you want to put in there.
(3) i'm betting that the case is microatx cuz it only has 4 pci slots in the back. not much you can do about that, but stay away from amd if you are upgrading the mobo, as it's hard to find a cheapo (athlon xp) matx board that allows higher than the default barton core speeds... which would be 1ghz. you would be essentially forced to use an athlon xp-m (or whatever they're calling them this week ) in order to get a speed higher than a via epia board.
(4) the expansion options for this case are quite limited unless you like making holes. it can only mount up to 6 drives in there: 2x 5.25" devices, 2x external 3.5" devices, and 2x 3.5" hdd's... unless you want to use slim 5.25" devices in which case you can put in 7... if the psu can handle it and you have the adaptors.

i would suggest cutting away any unnecessary metal in there to improve airflow and using slim drives where possible. they aren't as good (by far) as full-size drives, but you will get more space that way. 3x slim drives fit in each full-size 5.25" bay, with 1/4" left over... so you can add a 7th if you have 2 bays and squeeze them in right.