Scratchbuild PC Case: Materials?

[aom]

I am planning to make a custom pc case from scratch and I was wondering what material should I use for it.

 

I thought about acrylic since it easy to work with and bend, but whenever I search online to buy it, it is crazy expensive even though people say its cheap. (and how can you bend acrylic to a right angle or would it be better to attach the two sides together)

 

I also thought about MDF since it was cheap and easy to work with and Ive seen some good cases made with it, but people say it doesnt resist moisture well (is that a problem for a pc case)

 

I dont want to work with aluminum since it seems much harder to work with and expensive. I dont have access to many tools (basically only a dremel and and few other)

 

Which one should I use and if none, what should I?

 

[joelthezombie15]

I am planning to make a custom pc case from scratch and I was wondering what material should I use for it.

 

I thought about acrylic since it easy to work with and bend, but whenever I search online to buy it, it is crazy expensive even though people say its cheap. (and how can you bend acrylic to a right angle or would it be better to attach the two sides together) Unless you have a large source of heat you wont be able to bend acrylic at home. and its cheap for bulk but not for small projects.

 

I also thought about MDF since it was cheap and easy to work with and Ive seen some good cases made with it, but people say it doesnt resist moisture well (is that a problem for a pc case) Ive never seen a nice MDF case but it has potential, its fine unless you want to do something with water cooling and it leaks.

 

I dont want to work with aluminum since it seems much harder to work with and expensive. I dont have access to many tools (basically only a dremel and and few other) If you have the tools, aluminium would be our best bet. But since you dont have the tools you are better buying one. or wood which is ugly imo.

 

Which one should I use and if none, what should I?

[aom]

Snip.

I saw acrylic being bent with a paint stripper. At first i thought it was something more affordable like a heat gun or soldering iron. Did not expect ~$300.

I seen quite a few mdf cases that look nice but miniscule compared to other materials. But makes it even more worth it.

Turns out you can just seal it with homemade compounds like water and elmers glue to block out moisture from the air. And if the amount i use for the case is light enough, i may use it(mdf is really heavy) since i was it to be semiportable for lan parties and such.

And if it isnt, ill stick to buying a case.

Just out of curiosity, what tools would you really need for making an aluminum case?

[joelthezombie15]

Just out of curiosity, what tools would you really need for making an aluminum case?

depends on what you want to do, you may need a cnc machine or you may need a bending tool, you will need a drill press grinder, snips, shear force, buffer, either a welder or a rivet gun. It is very involved. 

[ForsakenLive]

Dremmel, metal bender, drill press, metal handsaw, rivet gun, welder, etc.. you need a whole lot of tools, it's not cheap at all.

[gylmir]

Dremmel, metal bender, drill press, metal handsaw, rivet gun, welder, etc.. you need a whole lot of tools, it's not cheap at all.

i go with him its not cheap unless you find a retired casemodder that sell all this stuff.

You have to put more than 1000$ in working stuff without the costs of your material for case and hours you spend on it.

 

mdf is not that heavy as many people say depends on the thickness you take i made a case with 12mm mdf en it was even lighter than my previous case i bought.

with like 2sq meters of mdf 9mm you can make a whole case depends on how many wooden shelfs you build inside.

[aom]

i go with him its not cheap unless you find a retired casemodder that sell all this stuff.

You have to put more than 1000$ in working stuff without the costs of your material for case and hours you spend on it.

mdf is not that heavy as many people say depends on the thickness you take i made a case with 12mm mdf en it was even lighter than my previous case i bought.

with like 2sq meters of mdf 9mm you can make a whole case depends on how many wooden shelfs you build inside.

Okay. So no aluminum for a long time lol.

How large was the 12mm mdf case?

Since im in the US, the land that doesnt believe in metrics(come on america) the only thing i have that comes close would be 1/4inch (6.35mm) and 1/2inch (12.7ish mm). Can i pull it off using the 1/4 or should i play it safe and use the 1/2?

Really scared mostly that it fall into pieces under its own weight and weight of the parts.

[gylmir]

@Brinith i will calculate for you case depth is 20.87inch (53cm), height 19.69inch (52cm) and width 9.84inch(25cm)

 

but next time i will use only 0.47inch (12mm) for backplate of the mobo and all the other 0.35inch (9mm).

works alot easyer and makes it again lighter and tinner to.

[aom]

@Brinith i will calculate for you case depth is 20.87inch (53cm), height 19.69inch (52cm) and width 9.84inch(25cm)

 

but next time i will use only 0.47inch (12mm) for backplate of the mobo and all the other 0.35inch (9mm).

works alot easyer and makes it again lighter and tinner to.

I see. kk. also did you make your own motherboard tray or did you use a donor case or part bought? 

 

And last question, is there some sort of template to space out the pci expansion slot opennings in the back and the rear IO relative to mobo?

[gylmir]

@Brinith

i used 0 donor parts.

i put my mobo on the right place of the wood used a small pencil to draw all the mounting holes, drill the holes very small put m3 screws in and let them sink in the wood by tightening with a bolt on the inside then i took another bolt so i keep at least 0.2 inch of space between the wood and mobo.

And then used another bolt to fasten the mobo.

 

for the backpanel it was a bit tricky but found the easy way, make sure that your mobo is exactly positioned the thickness of your wood from the side you have a little margin to be wrong (this is important to hold your gpu nothing else)

since i installed my pc on the sideplate i hold the backplate just next to it and draw the lines to cut out, that you draw a bit to high is not a problem but make sure that the gpu is cut out perfectly because you have to screw it in the backplate.

 

here is an example of mine i did not cut my gpu far enough and had to make a small gap more to the side but now i don't need screws to hold it because the backplate holds it all

 

to see the whole building project check this like for images.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/106133681440893996843/albums/5916500043571522209

 

(ps i'm working on a new case out of wood but need time to work on it)

the first case you make you will get stuck on problems and the 2nd you will know more what you want and have to do.

[aom]

@Brinith

i used 0 donor parts.

i put my mobo on the right place of the wood used a small pencil to draw all the mounting holes, drill the holes very small put m3 screws in and let them sink in the wood by tightening with a bolt on the inside then i took another bolt so i keep at least 0.2 inch of space between the wood and mobo.

And then used another bolt to fasten the mobo.

 

for the backpanel it was a bit tricky but found the easy way, make sure that your mobo is exactly positioned the thickness of your wood from the side you have a little margin to be wrong (this is important to hold your gpu nothing else)

since i installed my pc on the sideplate i hold the backplate just next to it and draw the lines to cut out, that you draw a bit to high is not a problem but make sure that the gpu is cut out perfectly because you have to screw it in the backplate.

 

here is an example of mine i did not cut my gpu far enough and had to make a small gap more to the side but now i don't need screws to hold it because the backplate holds it all

 

to see the whole building project check this like for images.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/106133681440893996843/albums/5916500043571522209

 

(ps i'm working on a new case out of wood but need time to work on it)

the first case you make you will get stuck on problems and the 2nd you will know more what you want and have to do.

thanks so much for your help. Cant wait to finish planning out mine. (though I probably will have to wait a couple months to get the time and cash for this, I am a student btw)

 

And good luck on your second case.

[gylmir]

@Brinith no problem any time.

idd it cost some money and a lot of time hope to see your case in a few months on the forum.

 

thanks but i'm still drawing the case i want

[Aloosh709]

ooof, 2014 

Acrylic is super easy to work with and bend, a few seconds under a heat gun or on a frying pan and you can bend it at any angle you want by hand and it will harden within seconds by blowing on it or in front of a fan.