water cooling [I'll make it fit] Copper pipe water cooling in Node 202 (also, my first build)

[Smollie1]

@SonoDanshi @RAM555789 @SidewinderB4 @lampuiho Thoughts on how it turned out?

 

I'll be in Canada in a few weeks and I'm going to try and sell this to fund a new project (also a 202). What would be the best way to do that?

Here are my current ideas:

1. Create a nice build log (will do this anyway)
   1. Include a short showcase video for Youtube
2. Post to LTT as well as other forums
3. Post to r/hardwareswap with prices for the; Node 202 case, full loop and PSU / cables
   1. I'd keep; CPU, GPU, mobo, RAM, SSD

Hopefully it will help that everything is basically new. If this is a terrible plan, let me know.

[SonoDanshi]

19 hours ago, Smollie1 said:

@SonoDanshi @RAM555789 @SidewinderB4 @lampuiho Thoughts on how it turned out?

1. Post to r/hardwareswap with prices for the; Node 202 case, full loop and PSU / cables
   1. I'd keep; CPU, GPU, mobo, RAM, SSD

Hopefully it will help that everything is basically new. If this is a terrible plan, let me know.

If you are keeping the guts of the build then I think you will have problems finding a buyer for what's left quite honestly. (Sorry to be brutal here but...) what you are essentially trying to sell is a case with a hole in it along with a PSU, and then cables and a waterloop custom made for a motherboard you won't be selling! I wish you all the luck in the world selling it, but think you will struggle to find someone.

 

As for how it turned out, I agree that the cables need work, but then that's also hypocritical on my part as my 24-pin cabling in the node202 is also a mess. At times, there's only so much you can do with so little space. I am very happy to see you were able to get the case closed with all the piping fitted - as you say you can definitely shave a few mm from the inside of the case with a dremel if you need it. My personal feeling on the reservoir though are that as it is a very slimline case I would have gone with a 40mm bitspower reservoir (or similar) so you had a small footprint outside of the case meaning it could still sit on a shelf or in a cabinet somewhere. Each to their own though of course.

[Smollie1]

Thanks for being brutal, I think that's important.

 

Quote

ou are essentially trying to sell is a case with a hole in it along with a PSU, and then cables and a waterloop custom made for a motherboard you won't be selling!

 

[SonoDanshi]

Yeah sorry, I felt like a dick saying it, but you are looking at a niche market already and then further limiting your potential buyers even further. On a bright note, you should be able to sell the PSU without too many issues.

[Smollie1]

Yeah, I mean the reason I wasn't going to sell the rest of the components was that I didn't expect that anyone would actually want them, but maybe the motherboard is sufficiently good that in fact I could find someone who wanted it as a HTPC.

I agree about the 40mm reservoir, that would have been better. I definitely bought parts not knowing how they'd fit or what they'd be like, and rather excitedly. Next time around I'd do it much slower and be very picky about parts.

[SonoDanshi]

It took me 4 months of planning and work to finish my build and I still spent several hundred dollars I didn't need to on parts that wouldn't fit or were just plain wrong. It always surprised me as I was so careful with measurements and when the things arrive they are massively too big.

[Smollie1]

Yeah, I think you made the right choice with the Coolstream SE 240 rad. I'll put one of those in the next build along with a low profile fan like the Scythe Slip Stream or they new Noctua 15mm fans.

 

I think the basic problem is that 1/2" diameter tubing is actually too large for this case. I'm excited about the idea of using 1/4" diameter tubing. I think I'll machine some 1/2" to 2x 1/4" acrylic blocks as splitters. The 1/4" copper is super malleable and would allow for getting tubing through tiny gaps and around components. There just isn't enough space or money in my pocket to be buying these fittings. Time to get hold of a tap and die.

Possible new sale routes:

1. Try and sell the whole thing as a showpiece HTPC
2. Part it all out and take the case as a loss (or just start the next build in this case)

[Smollie1]

I picked up this EVGA 970 ACX water block from EK. Was $45, which was hard to pass up. Now just to find a card for it. There are a couple for sale nearby for ~$150 so I'm going to pick one of those up.

I was asking around about which card to get if anyone has any opinions here?

I've figured out a totally new design based around a central perspex divider (the cardboard) that will carry fluid also. I have access to a laser cutter and CNC now so I'm upping my game. The new EK radiator is in and the 2x Scythe fans are on their way. Once those arrive that's all the big pieces and I can start on the perspex / acrylic centre block, I obviously need very precise measurements for the laser / CNC.

Shame it's a nickel plated copper rather than solid copper, but I can't complain for that price.

 

I'm pretty sure my 450w PSU is fine for this and a more powerful CPU / mobo. Not sure about TDP though, wouldn't be surprised if the temps got a little high.

 

 

[Smollie1]

This is the most notable recent example of the perspex channel thing that I'm talking about. This guys build was totally insane. Others have done this but he went way further. I'm planning something extremely simple compared.

 

The loop will go:

Pump --> channel --> CPU block --> Channel --> GPU --> Rad --> Pump

Not sure what I'm going to do about the radiator yet. Either It'll be a small custom one under the GPU bracket or I'll build it into the bottom part of the channel.

Oh, I forgot to mention that I removed the front I/O and will need to relocate that and I also removed the internal power cable. The old power socket will now be where I'll put the drain valve which is nice.

[Smollie1]

Scythe fans arrived. 15mm really is very thin, compared to the SP120 that I had before this is a much better solution. A little worried about their static pressure and also them being pretty choked as the centre partition is going to almost entirely separating the two compartments in terms of airflow.

 

 

[Smollie1]

I also drilled out the rivets in the centre section of the case and cut out half of the GPU bracket.

 

[Smollie1]

Unfortunately I really can't move on with the acrylic partitions until I've gotten a GPU. The measurements have to be super precise and I don't want to be re laser cutting things over and over. Luckily there are quite a few 970's available on Craigslist.

In the meantime there are plenty of other jobs to be getting on with. A few of which are:

1. Design and build custom base out of Birch plywood
   1. I'm unsure how good this is going to look. I might do some 3D renders first
2. Cut the plastic out from the underside of the lid
3. Buy and thread some PETG tubing
   1. This is for some super low profile fittings where one side will be within the compression fitting and the other end will be threaded into e.g. the GPU. This will shave off about 8mm I think
4. Recreate the right hand side vent on the GPU side somehow
5. Sleeve the gross fan cables
6. Figure out how to power a couple of 5mm LED's that will fit into some G 1/4" stops I have for the central channel

@SonoDanshi I must seem totally insane

 

[SonoDanshi]

6 hours ago, Smollie1 said:

 

@SonoDanshi I must seem totally insane

I'd say you are well on your way. Considering this started out as your first pc build things have... escalated since then. Intrigued to see how the petg threading turns out and I'm very jealous you have access to workshop tools as well. I really need to buy my own house so I can escape from this tiny apartment and fit out a garage with tools.

[Smollie1]

I learned the laser cutter today and cut a bunch of test pieces. I'm definitely going to be able to do the acrylic pieces all with the laser. Tomorrow I'll keep working on the designs. I think I'm going to have 4 6mm pieces for the main channel which will give me enough width to have the reservoir in there. This method definitely saves a ton of space.

I tried getting all the cables in there with the cardboard mock up and it was a little tight (all on the CPU side), but that was with zero cable management or shortening. I think there are some clever things I could do with fixed acrylic cable combs and maybe use the custom base as an opportunity to route some cables. I'm not worried about the cable management, I have 6 weeks with workshop access.

@SonoDanshi I'd be interested in your thoughts on what kind of window to put in lid of the case. I figured out how to make a lip in the 6mm acrylic of any depth I want which means I can get it totally flush with the steel. I'm going to do the same for the custom I/O shield.

 

[Smollie1]

Just some shots of 2/4 centre channel runs in place with the protective plastic off. They look really nice. These are only tests, I've changed the design to include all the necessary bolt holes and channels for the rubber seals. Onshape is kind of slow once you get a lot of stuff into a sketch, which I guess is fair enough as it's an in browser app. Should be bearable enough for this project but I'll probably move to something native next time.

 

 

[Smollie1]

I picked this up last night from a Craigslist ad, never overclocked. It's the 2974 variant, superclocked (SC). It also came with a backplate which is a nice bonus.

 

 

[Smollie1]

Water block was filthy, so dismantled and cleaned. Nickel is sensitive so no soaps or vinegars.

 

 

[Smollie1]

[Smollie1]

I've got 9mm of clearance as well as a bunch of GPU sag. I will resolve the sag with a custom stand-off, maybe in the centre of the right side fan.

 

Not sure how much work the fan is going to be able to do with that much clearance, there is also the lack of ventilation between the CPU and GPU side because of the centre channel. I'm think I can do something creative with the base to help with this problem.

 

[Smollie1]

The original EVGA backplate won't fit with the water block, it's just placed in the picture below. By that I mean there are 4 screw holes out of alignment and the screws provided are too short. I can solve both of those problems but it's low down on my list.

 

I'm going to re sleeve the orange  cables to black and get some 3:1 heatshrink so they are heatshrinkless. I'm also going to spray the compression fittings a different color, probably black. The theme of this build is going to be black and clear. I'm also probably going to do UV lighting and use Mayhems sky blue dye , not sure what that stuff looks like when it's light out.

 

Finally having the GPU in the case means I can make a bunch of progress. I'll probably finish the designs for the centre channel tomorrow and figure out where to get the bolts and rubber cord I need. One of that last major unknowns is whether I can thread PETG and cut a gap for a seal so that I can have fitting-less connections in a bunch of places.

 

I also have very little clearance for the fittings out of the GPU, I could either buy the EK angled attachment like @SonoDanshi did or I can design and laser cut my own design which would save even more space. I could have the fittings be on the 'ends' of the piece which would mean I don't need to worry about the height at all. That seems like a much better idea. EK have gotten enough of my money already, although the product is crazy high quality.

 

[SonoDanshi]

I had sag on my GPU as well so I've just put a small plastic stand-off that I glued to the frames where the 2 fans meet.

 

Are you buying a different style terminal block for the GPU?

[Smollie1]

No, I'm going to design my own one and laser cut it out of acrylic with the terminals in a more desirable position.

[Smollie1]

Things are moving along.

Dremel blades arrives (426 for steel) and I cut the hole for the acrylic window. Took ages but I only went through 2 wheels which was better than I thought I'd do.

 

I'll finish filing the edges neat tomorrow and finalize and laser cut the window. It's going to be 6mm acrylic with lip so It's totally flush with the remaining edges of the lid.

 

I have some PETG coming and some 90 degree fittings for the CPU block to centre channel runs. There is still a ton of work to do, but it's slowly getting done. I've finished designing everything now so I can focus on just building. I've decided to go with a custom acrylic base to tie the whole thing together in a 'clear' theme. I'm going to spray the orange fittings black.

@SonoDanshi Do you have any experience with 40mm / 60mm fans? I was thinking of putting a couple in the case in pull but I'm worried they'll be loud and whiny. If I ran them slow I'm not sure they'd be of much use for the effort / cost.

I'd be putting on in the CPU side vent and one in the 'to be cut' GPU side vent.

There's not going to be much left of this case soon.

[Smollie1]

Given how long it's taken me to pull off this project it would be a crime not to build another identical one afterwards with the kinks worked out. I think I could build it in 10% of the time. If I didn't do the custom cables myself, even less.

[Smollie1]

@red773 This project might be of interest to you