the Bomberman Case Mod

This was my first real attempt at modifying a computer case.  One might ask "why would someone modify a computer case?"  Well, the answer is simple.  

Because.

It started out with people needing to add additional fans because they over-clocked their processors, which created more heat.  Then people made some custom paint jobs (though this could have been being done before the big fan craze of '99.)  Then people started adding clear windows and neon lights.  Someone else got the bright idea to make switches for all their noisy fans, so that they could turn some off if they were sleeping in the room or something. Then someone else decided that it would be neat if you could switch the fans from 12 volts to 7 volts, so that they'd be quieter, but still blowing air.   After that, it just got obscene.  

So, here's my contribution to the obscenity.  I built it throughout the early part of 2001, and it's about time for a little paint touch-up.  As far as I know, nobody has ever done a stained-glass window on their computer case before, but I don't subscribe to any case-mod magazines or anything, so I could be wrong.  Until proven otherwise, however, I will proclaim myself the "GUY WITH THE FIRST STAINED GLASS PC CASE."  Truthfully, it's not actual glass, it's plexiglass.  It's also not stained, it's painted with "stained glass paint".  Nonetheless, it's pretty sweet.  I chose Bomberman because I really like Bomberman (duh) and I thought it would make a nice picture in stained glass.

You can't really tell from the pictures, but the stained glass paint stuff gives it a nice textured, semi-opaque look.  

You can click on the pictures and get a bigger view.  The pictures should open in a new window.

Here you can se the window and the back of the PC.  The large fan on the top is 120mm, the smaller one below the power supply is 85mm. The window measures approximately 20" x 15".   There's a fluorescent light behind the glass that sets off the stained-glass effect really nicely.  Also, the inside of the case has a chrome spray on it, to help reflect light back out the window.   It's hard to capture with flash photography, but I think you can get the idea. 

If you're interested, the plexiglass came from someone's basement, and the light was purchased for about $10 at Pep Boys.  It was made to plug into your cigarette lighter, and I just snipped the cord and wired it directly to the power supply via the fan bus.

In this view, you can see the front fan, sort of, which is also a 120mm fan.  The thing between the front of the case and the front of the fan (which is mounted on the inside of the front of the case) is made out of a ceiling light step-baffle fixture.  The hole for this was a pain to cut, because the front of the case is rounded.  It took a lot of cutting, filing, and sanding to even make it look remotely adequate.  To finish off the effect, I got some roofing spackle-type gunk to fill in between the case and the baffle.

The case doesn't have feet, by the way.  It's sitting on an old monitor stand from a laptop.

Here you can see the front of the case.  There's an intake fan on the bottom, and above the power button and CD burner,  you can sort of see the switches that operate the fans and the light.   They're just toggle switches, and there's no corresponding LEDs, because I didn't feel like wiring all of that.

Here's a great shot of the top and other side.  There's nothing too exciting going on over here.  Unfortunately, the way my desk is set up, this is the side I get to see when I'm actually using my computer.   Poor planning all around.  As you can see, it really needs some touch-up paint.

How did I go about making this beast?  

Window: big piece of plexiglass that I cut to size with a Dremel, painted with the above-mentioned paint.  If you're not familiar with the paint, it looks pretty good (though I wouldn't do the window on my front door with it, as suggested by the point-of-sale booklet.)  There's squeezable "lead" that you draw the outline with, and then you fill it in with the colored paint.

I used a jigsaw to cut the giant hole in the side of the case.  This took forever.

I used the Dremel to cut the holes in the back of the case for the 2 fans.  The holes are surrounded with a rubber trim, and the fans are bolted on along  with a grille.  

The front fan is mounted to the inside of the case, on the metal.  I used my trusty Dremel to cut out the holes in the metal part of the front of the case, as well as the plastic.  

What's *in* the case?  Surprisingly, the equivalent of an AWESOME computer, if this were the year 2000.

• An AMD Athlon 600 on some sort of motherboard.

• 30 GB hard drive space

• TNT-2 video card

• 512 MB RAM

• 16x DVD ROM drive

• a blazing 4x CDR drive

• some sort of sound card and NIC