very, very noob in dremeling.

The Saint

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Mar 18, 2003
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Guys........

please don`t laugh for this question: :D I have NEVER modded anything in my life!

I have a dremel, and I have my Antec P160;

How do I cut my top panel to mount THIS in there....?

....thanks.
 
The Saint said:
Guys........

please don`t laugh for this question: :D I have NEVER modded anything in my life!

I have a dremel, and I have my Antec P160;

How do I cut my top panel to mount THIS in there....?

....thanks.

There is no such thing as a stupid question, unless you already know the answer ;)

You cut a square hole, that fits inside the screwholes on the outside of the radgrill. Then simply drill 4 holes and mount..
It is very easy.
 
thanks Daniel Andrew Lowe,

was wondering....any precaution I have to take before cutting? Also what would be the best blade to use with the dremel, to cut aluminum...?
 
The Saint said:
thanks Daniel Andrew Lowe,

was wondering....any precaution I have to take before cutting? Also what would be the best blade to use with the dremel, to cut aluminum...?

Np maestro.

Well a thumb rule is to use masktape. It secures against scatches and reduces the edges flossing. It simply is a must.
The blades I usually use are the Diamond Reinforced cutting blades. They are quite expensive, but last a hell of a long time instead of the std blades.
Remember to use eyeprotection, I can promise you that you will regret it when a piece of metal penetrates your eye, because you didn´t wear them ;)
Other than that, just take your time. No rush. Rush often equals crap result.
And most important of all, common sense :)

Good luck with it
 
Reinforced fiberglass cutting wheels would be ideal, but for that small hole you could get away with the normal cutoff wheels. As for safety, defiantly need some eye protection, and mask to save your lungs from metal/disk dust.

Since you've never done anything like this before, I'd find some scrap metal to practice on first before you go cutting up your case.
 
im assuming its going in the top.. correct?

with that said what u need to do is pop off the top pannel, in order to do that you need to drill out the rivits that hold the top on.

if you want just the holes to show then prop your pannel up upside down, on a piece of wood or something strong to prevent it from warping when you make your cuts.

you can ither use a dremel, holesaw or even a jigsaw to do this.

tape of the section on both sides to prevent the paint scatching and so when you draw on the case of where you want your holes to be, so it can be accurate ofcorse.

id say use a sharpee to draw out the section that you plan on cutting.

after that is complete cut your case up; if your using a holesaw your going to just drill through the metal until obviously until it is through.
for a dremel use two hands and a cutting wheel on your dremel, and make a small smooth cutting action taking a little off at a time.
make sure you use safety goggles if the cutting wheel brakes it will be expelled at high speeds away from the dremel itself and could take out your eye (lol i sound like an old man) just remember to be safe now then in the hospital later getting a piece of metal or cutting wheel pulled out of your eye with tweesers ( i got a pice of metal shaving in my eye thrown from a guy using a die grinder in highschool, i was standing around 20-30 feet away from him at the time.)
and if your using a jogsaw just drill a pilot hole to start your jigsaw and cut out your window or whatever ur doing, so you can mount that radiator your putting on your case. just make sure you drill holes for the screws so u can hang it from your case.

after your done peel off the masking tape after you remove any sharp burrs with a grinding whell if your using a dremel and file away the edge until you get the smooth edge your looking for so it doesnt look half assed.

to remount the top of your case, use a rivit gun to re rivit the edges back the way they were.
 
The Saint said:
....any precaution I have to take before cutting? Also what would be the best blade to use with the dremel, to cut aluminum...?

Yes, there are some precautions you should take. First, always wear eye protection... there's no sense in having red-hot aluminum particles in your retinas, now is there? Same goes for any friends watching you... protect those eyes! Along the same lines, a breathing filter (think lawn-care style) would protect your lungs nicely. If you don't want to use one of those, just breath through your nose and it shouldn't be too bad. Some people recommend wearing gloves, but I've never seen a reason to, and I feel it lessens my grip on the dremel. Close-toed shoes, full-length pants, and long sleeves are a plus, but not absolutely required.

For case protection... cover the area you are covering, plus some extra on each side of the cut, with masking tape. This ensures that if you make a mistake, you don't scratch the crap out of your expensive case. Draw your cut on top of the tape with a Sharpie, pencil, or whatever. Don't cut all the way to your line, but close. By leaving a millimeter or two, you leave room for a mistake or two (which everyone eventually makes). After making your cut, use the grinding tool to get it very close, but not 100% there... maybe 1/2 to 1/4 millimeter from where you want to be. Again, this allows for error. Finally, use a rotary sanding tool (or a sanding block, or just your hand) and some wet-dry sandpaper (400 grit or higher) to finish up. Keep the sandpaper reasonably wet, as it makes it last longer.

For aluminum, either the standard or reinforced cutting disks will do fine. Aluminum is fairly soft, so I wouldn't expect to go through more than 2 disks max, and realistically more like 1/2 of a disk or less. Cut using the highest speed setting. It helps to make an initial track, then cut all the way through. Don't push the dremel into the metal to cut it, but let the dremel's high-velocity wheel of death do the cutting. To get the corners square, you will have to come back with the dremel after you grind, then use a metal file or just lots of sanding to get to your final line.

As you get more comfortable with dremeling stuff, you can decrease your distance to the final cut line to decrease the amount of grinding you have to do. However, for your first project (and on something valuable), I'd leave lots of room for error. This cut will last forever, so it's worth the extra time. You might want to remove the top panel to get a more comfortable piece to work with. To do that, you'd just drill out the rivets holding it on, then rivet it back on when you're done.

edit: Wow, I'm slow to post... others have beaten me to it.

-SEAL
 
all you guys provided a good answer ... I just need to mention that YOU HAVE TO REMOVE TOP PANEL ...

DO NOT WORK CLOSE TO THE SYSTEM AT ALL

you definitely do not want aluminum flying into your motherboard .. you might think you did an amazing job putting that piece on until you switch on your motherboard and BOOM !! ...

Move all hardware away before using the dremel !!!
 
. . . or just take everything out and make sure the wipe the cast clean with a damp cloth when you're done (and let it dry if it's still wetish after a couple minutes).
 
wow.....

this is why I love [H]people..........! :)

Thanks so much guys for the suggestions, advices and support. I will do my best to follow the directions carefully.
Let me put in good use my dremel......!

Thanks

Edit: Spelling :rolleyes:
 
Would any of this advice be different for cutting a steel case like the thermaltake xaser III?
 
FarleyM said:
Would any of this advice be different for cutting a steel case like the thermaltake xaser III?

The one difference between the cutting would be that steel is not as soft as aluminum, so using re-enforced cutting wheels might last longer than standard ones... beyond that, there really isn't any difference in technique or precautions.

-SEAL
 
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