aio Need ideas to mod node 202 case to fit h5 sf

[Zondaa]

Hi guys,

 

Being an idiot that i am i went ahead and purchased a corsair h5 sf for my node 202 without realising how large the cooler is and being able to no longer return the cooler was looking for ideas on how i could maybe mod the node 202 to accommodate the H5 SF cooler. pictures of how it protrudes upwards and sideways are below.

 

 

[AMICLG]

If you have access to a 3D printer than you could print a space that goes between to top and bottom. 

[Zondaa]

Unfortunately i don't nor anyone i know owns a 3d printer. 

[W-L]

6 hours ago, pasha786 said:

Hi guys,

Being an idiot that i am i went ahead and purchased a corsair h5 sf for my node 202 without realising how large the cooler is and being able to no longer return the cooler was looking for ideas on how i could maybe mod the node 202 to accommodate the H5 SF cooler. pictures of how it protrudes upwards and sideways are below.

As long as you don't mind cutting up the case you could fabricate a bump or raised portion to accommodate for the extra height using sheet metal.

[IanMSmith]

I know this post is old, but this is the only topic I could find online questioning compatibility with the H5 cooler and Node 202 case. I found a solution and took a risk in buying the H5 cooler, but I'm glad I did. Performance gains over the Cryorig C7 are incomparable. I also love the frankenstein, muscle car look with a big ass liquid cooler busting out of the top of the case.

 

Here's the build on PCPartPicker - https://pcpartpicker.com/b/hN29TW

 

How did I do it? Well, it took quite a bit of work. First off I mounted the bracket to the motherboard and tested the fit. About 5/8" too short! What's in the way? The case and the Power Supply. Because we can't do anything about the power supply, additional standoffs were needed. So I went to Ace Hardware and bought 3 aluminum tubes that were 5/8" long as a sleeve around 1" long black machine screws. The C5 rests on top of these aluminum shims and the longer screws travel through them into the standoffs. Then I modified the case. Roughly tracing around the backside of the cooler, I carefully cut away the footprint of the cooler out of the skeleton of the case, sort of like making a turkey by tracing your hand, except way way less fun. It was miserable work actually and I ended up using a jigsaw rather than a hacksaw after about an hour of back and forth motions I was pretty sick of it. Then I had to remove enough metal from the case above to fit around the C5's profile. Here's the problem - the Node 202 has a large grid of holes for airflow and this meant I had to remove a larger section than I would've wanted! After cutting a big, square hole, the top of the case could now sit flush and I had to do something about the gap between the case and the H5 cooler. This is for aesthetic purposes mostly, but also (I imagine) improves functionality. The H5 cooler's blower design is intended to suck air across the motherboard to cool components, meaning, without a good seal, air could be coming in from the top, down to the blower, and out the radiator without actually passing over the motherboard at all. So I improvised. This is the only ghetto part of my build, but I couldn't think of another solution that didn't involve a 3D printer or some other labor intensive and ugly design. I used a bike tire tube, also from Ace Hardware. After carefully cutting pieces to fit around the cooler and it's odd shaped components, I used gorilla glue (to bond rubber to plastic) to hold the rubber in place on the underside of the case top. When you put the lid down over the H5 cooler, a little contortion is required, but not much. It looks finished and doesn't draw the eye. All in all, I'm happy with the result and the performance gains are well worth the trouble. When the PC is standing vertically on my desk, I can see the slim profile of the liquid cooler shooting out the back of the case and I love the look so much. It looks good in the same way a T-47 airspeeder from Star Wars looks good. Well worth the struggle and the time!