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Wooden PC Case

infinitymdm
By infinitymdm
in Cases and Mods
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I'm planning to build a new pc for college. I want all components made entirely of wood and I want it to run on shoe polish. 

 

All joking aside, I'm building a Ryzen 5 / GTX 1070 ITX rig, and I'm designing a custom case out of wood with a glass front panel. Below (way down there)  is my design thus far. I'm working on a CAD model too, so expect to see that here soon. 

 

From right to left, top to bottom in the sketch, first is the full layout with all of the components drawn approximately to scale, followed by the empty midframe (where all of these components will be mounted), then the front panel I/O shroud and the PSU shroud, then below all of that is the lengthwise view of one of the edge pieces separated from the rest of the case. All of these parts will be made of wood, likely oak or maple, or whatever I can get my grubby mitts on for a good deal. 

 

Overall dimensions are 12 in wide by 30 in tall, and 5 in thick (possibly 6 in when you include the glass panel and associated mounting hardware). 

 

For airflow, I have a single 120mm intake fan at the top and an 80mm exhaust at the bottom. I feel that this may not be enough and I'm looking for suggestions in this area. 

 

I haven't yet sorted out front panel I/O, and don't quite know how to take care of it. I want all the usual stuff (Power, Reset, Drive indicator LED, a couple of USB 3, etc.), and I'd appreciate some advice here as well. 

 

I'm also not sure how to mount my GPU in place. I don't want to glue it down, as I'd like to be able to upgrade in the future, but I'm not sure how to solve that easily. Suggestions appreciated. 

 

Anyways, what do you guys think? I look forward to seeing your feedback. 

2017_03_10__23_56_18_315_25.png

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I have tried to make a case in Autodesk Inventor before. I didn't finish. Here is a super useful image: 2808280_dd.jpg

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btw, I have no idea how to build most of the fp io besides power button/reset button which is ezpz

 

idk

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Just now, ShadySocks said:

I have tried to make a case in Autodesk Inventor before. I didn't finish. Here is a super useful image: 2808280_dd.jpg

Lol, I'm not even going to try getting that in-depth. I'm using the ATX and ITX standard measurements published long ago by Intel and a few other companies. 

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Just now, ShadySocks said:

You should add space for some 5 1/2in bays :)

5 1/2in? What is this magic? I knew of the 5 1/4in, but 5 1/2in? What powers are these? 

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That was a typo, but you could invent the 5 1/2 in bay xD

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Just now, ShadySocks said:

That was a typo, but you could invent the 5 1/2 in bay xD

Yeah, I figured. I think I'm happy with my USB's. I have very little necessity for disk media these days, so I will be satisfied in the absence of a disk drive. 

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Okay, but seriously. I do have some problems I need a bit of help with. Any suggestions for GPU mounting, airflow, and front panel USB? 

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Okay. I have solved a few of my problems, I think. 

 

Front Panel I/O

I want several things on the front panel, including USB 3.0, power and reset switches, and a drive activity LED. I've found a kit on Amazon from SODIAL that has switches and LEDs. I plan to buy white LEDs to replace the included red and green ones, because this is a computer and not a Christmas tree. I also plan to CNC a power button from wood and mount the power LED inside of it, so that the power button itself will light up when the system is on. All that should cost about 5 bucks total. 

As for front panel USB, I've found a 9 dollar kit that has 2 USB 3.0 ports and plugs into the mobo header. So i will be purchasing that. 

Total: $14

 

Airflow

I retook some measurements and determined that my current airflow solution should be just fine. The case will have positive pressure, and my intake looks pretty elegant, so that's all good. I'm getting a couple of Noctua fans. 

Speaking of fans, what is a good material to use for dust filtration? I can't have my fancy new case letting dust in, now can I? 

Total: $32

 

GPU Mounting

I haven't a clue. Halp. 

This is the one problem I don't know how to solve. How does one securely mount an EVGA GTX 1070 Black Edition graphics card? Will the two bracket screws be enough to hold it in place? I need answers, and I need 'em fast. I'm on the verge of purchasing materials and beginning the fabrication process. 

Total:??? 

 

Anyhow, I'm almost finished with a very basic 3D mockup of this thing in Autodesk Inventor. I will upload a few shots of that here as soon as I get it finished. 

 

Thanks again to all for the suggestions, and a particularly big thanks to @Droidbot for the power switch vid. Very helpful. 

 

Nuff said. 

 

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In addition to the bracket screws for your graphics bracket you probably want a GPU supporter in the back and maybe the front, a scrap piece of wood or wooden dowel cut to size should work to help support it and lift it off the bottom. How significant this is somewhat dependent on the pcie extender you use. That being said I don't have direct experience, this is just what I would do.

 

As for an air filter ModDiy.com has a couple options as so do other sites so shop around and determine what you want and how much your willing to pay. Best of luck!

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On 3/11/2017 at 0:24 AM, Droidbot said:

btw, I have no idea how to build most of the fp io besides power button/reset button which is ezpz

 

For USB, you can purchase mountable USB ports, as for audio I would salvage the audio connectors from a spare chassis, some cases use PCB mounted jacks, other's use standalone jacks. If your jack is the latter type, you can easily secure it with hot glue.

 

However I am also stumped on mounting a GPU in my own build, so if you figure it out, I'd be interested in hearing how you manage to mount your card.

 

EDIT: You could drill small holes where you want your USB ports, and then shape the hole with a small file.

My procrastination is the bane of my existence.

I make games and stuff in my spare time.

 

 

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I found this guy who has a similar layout and design to yours. Might help iron out any details in your design. He uses aluminum for most everything, I think its his favorite material to work with.

 

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