Should i bend/mold the acrylic panel of the NZXT S340 if i wanna use a bigger CPU cooler?

[khazad]

I'm planning on getting a new high end air cooler but i don't know if i have enough clearance on my case so i was thinking on maybe heating the acrylic and then push it a bit so it could make room for the cooler.

 

Or would it just be better to just get a custom glass panel?

[W-L]

19 hours ago, khazad said:

I'm planning on getting a new high end air cooler but i don't know if i have enough clearance on my case so i was thinking on maybe heating the acrylic and then push it a bit so it could make room for the cooler.

 

Or would it just be better to just get a custom glass panel?

Depends on how much work you want to spend but I wouldn't recommend bending it as it wouldn't be a very clean job. You would be better off getting an acrylic sheet and cutting out the portion for the cooler to stick out and over. You could add accents and other accessories to have it look similar to the hood scoop or blower sticking out of a car which I have seen done before. 

 

 

[khazad]

1 hour ago, W-L said:

Depends on how much work you want to spend but I wouldn't recommend bending it as it wouldn't be a very clean job. You would be better off getting an acrylic sheet and cutting out the portion for the cooler to stick out and over. You could add accents and other accessories to have it look similar to the hood scoop or blower sticking out of a car which I have seen done before. 

 

 

Oh thanks! Didn't thought about that, i think it'll look better that way.

[TomvanWijnen]

If I remember correctly the clearance of an S340 is 160mm, so even big Noctua coolers would fit. If it's just a few mm too large, you could perhaps get away with it by putting some soft material on top of the tips of the cooler and just pushing the side panel on. Either way, good luck and have fun!

[khazad]

2 hours ago, TomvanWijnen said:

If I remember correctly the clearance of an S340 is 160mm, so even big Noctua coolers would fit. If it's just a few mm too large, you could perhaps get away with it by putting some soft material on top of the tips of the cooler and just pushing the side panel on. Either way, good luck and have fun!

Yeah but i think that it'll look cooler (no pun intended lol) with a hood scoop, idk i'll have to think about it, maybe i'll do it on cad or something first.

[Killing-time-itself]

Acrylic doesnt take well to bends. The way it's done is by putting it on a mold in an oven. I would suggest using polycarbonate, lexan, maybe even plexi glass. I know from experience that lexan bends really well same for polycarbonate which is basically the same as lexan.