Building An Acrylic Case?

[]V[]essenjah · Post by **[]V[]essenjah** » Thu Dec 14, 2006 2:38 pm

Well, currently the case I wanted to buy is out of stock and I need a good case, fast. My PC probably won't last me until X-Mas as it is falling apart. What I want to do, is build my own acrylic case. I have a good friend that I work with that has customized his acrylic case so we discussed the idea of me, possibly building my own acrylic case. However, I was wondering where I can go to buy the parts I need?

What I want is something that can have 4 120mm fans and possibly up to 9 bays.

fliptw · Post by **fliptw** » Thu Dec 14, 2006 2:39 pm

like the switch in stuff?

a hobbist electronics store, maybe Radio Shack.

[]V[]essenjah · Post by **[]V[]essenjah** » Thu Dec 14, 2006 2:45 pm

No, as in parts to build the case itself. All the panels ecs.

Mobius · Post by **Mobius** » Thu Dec 14, 2006 6:00 pm

Having worked quite a bit with Plexiglass, Lexan and other clear non-glass stuff over the years, let me advise you to not even THINK about this project.

Firstly, these materials are VERY easy to scratch quite badly (and difficult to polish successfully), and you need a TON of time to get the cut surfaces clear after cutting. Plus, it is not easy to work with either, high speed drills can melt the stuff rather than cut it, and if you want to avoid a lot of cutting, you need to bend it against a hot pipe, which is an artform all by itself.

I used to make clear cases for the models I built, and those are simply boxes, without anything inside them, and yet each one would take between 20 and 40 hours to finish, if nothing went wrong. Often after 10 hours, I'd be starting again.

On top of this, acrylic can hold a huge static charge, and there is no possibility of earthing against the case.

So, don't bother.

You want a good cheap case? Buy a Lian Li.

[]V[]essenjah · Post by **[]V[]essenjah** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 12:51 am

Interesting thought about static charge. However, I don't know if I completely agree with you. Considering my friend constructed his case and claimed it was very easy. I've seen the kind of cuts he made himself. He has used acrylic cases for years and has found them to be very durable.

Next up, I don't like Lian Li. Their ugly and designed in such a way that you can run them over with a semi and your PC will be safe. Never have a I had a need for that sort of strength.

I like cheap, light, supercooled, and nice looking.

I like the Sunbeam acrylic case because you can have 4 120mm fans and using aerocool fans, each one will run with airflow of over 89 cfm per-fan. I also plan to use an industrial cage fan used for cooling huge panels inside of plants and modify the case so that I can have a tube that runs directly from the fan placed on the outside of my house to the case itself while remaining cost-effective. Not to mention the case I was looking at is designed for water cooling. It also has 9 bays. Guess how much this case will cost me? $80.

Lian Li's run about $200-$300 for a decent one. And they don't have the cooling efficiency of this case. The biggest issue with video cards is power requirements and heating.

Static charge is an issue possibly BUT, I know several people personally who have used these cases all their lives, cut them, modified them, and never had a single problem and have never looked back.

I'm willing to possibly spend $150 for a WELL cooled case. Not $200-$300 for a tank-strength case that you can't hold more than 1-2 120mm 89+ CFM fans in.

Besides, I already spent $50 on fans and grills for an acrylic case.

Couldn't you just put some kind of anti-static material behind the motherboards anyway?

Krom · Post by **Krom** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 11:51 am

The motherboard should probably be mounted to a grounded metal plate like most cases are made of. You will probably be fine if you use just the motherboard tray from a metal case in whatever acrylic case you come up with and ground it to the PSU.

[]V[]essenjah · Post by **[]V[]essenjah** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 7:38 pm

Thanks. That's a good idea actually.

The thing I like about Acrylic, is that you can do virtually whatever you want with it, rather than a pre-made case with all the trimmings. If I want to go expensive, I get EXACTLY what I want. If I don't like it, I'll get new parts rather than a new case.

I may just wait until after Christmas when they get another shipment in. :\\