Here's a unique one. Custom case building

[PlatinumStorm]

Doing this from my iPad so bear with me. 

Ive currently got a full "open air" build. (Read: no case. Sitting on the mobo box.)

only because I'm not content buying a case everyone else has. I want to build my own case. I don't have my sketch readily available but it is going to be a 15"x15"x15" cube. I have a trademark logo and it's going to be built to resemble the logo. 

Im trying to source materials as well as get advice for what material to use. 

Id love input as to what companies to get in touch with as well as opinions for metals,paint vs wraps, types of clear window materials. There's no budget in mind yet, but I'm looking st the cost to quality ratio for sure. 

Thanks for your inputs everyone! Also, 1st post

[LienusLateTips]

Custom case building isn't really that unique. Go to the "Modding" section in this forum and you will find SO many people doing it.

[PlatinumStorm]

Notes on my rig

Gigabyte fm3+ mono

8gb HyperX ddr3 1600mhz ram

amd a6 cpu

i forget which graphics card ATM lol it's an asus 2gb gddr5 oc model

win10 home

[PlatinumStorm]

5 minutes ago, JDE said:

Custom case building isn't really that unique. Go to the "Modding" section in this forum and you will find SO many people doing it.

I suppose I should look more before posting lol. Got excited, my bad

[dany_boy]

If you want good value, I'd honestly just buy a case. Economies of scale do wonders for efficiency. I'm not trying to discourage you from building your own case, but its no gonna be cost effective unless you highly value modding/personalization. I've done some mods with 3 and 4 mm thick aluminium and tempered glass. I ended up paying 40 bucks for a custom made side panel, not to mention the time and energy I put into it.

[PlatinumStorm]

Just now, dany_boy said:

If you want good value, I'd honestly just buy a case. Economies of scale do wonders for efficiency. I'm not trying to discourage you from building your own case, but its no gonna be cost effective unless you highly value modding/personalization. I've done some mods with 3 and 4 mm thick aluminium and tempered glass. I ended up paying 40 bucks for a custom made side panel, not to mention the time and energy I put into it.

I have grown up customizing everything I can, and I'd feel it's a waste of money to go buy a case. I'm not looking for "cheap" but good value

[W-L]

23 minutes ago, PlatinumStorm said:

Doing this from my iPad so bear with me. 

Ive currently got a full "open air" build. (Read: no case. Sitting on the mobo box.)

only because I'm not content buying a case everyone else has. I want to build my own case. I don't have my sketch readily available but it is going to be a 15"x15"x15" cube. I have a trademark logo and it's going to be built to resemble the logo. 

Im trying to source materials as well as get advice for what material to use. 

Id love input as to what companies to get in touch with as well as opinions for metals,paint vs wraps, types of clear window materials. There's no budget in mind yet, but I'm looking st the cost to quality ratio for sure. 

Thanks for your inputs everyone! Also, 1st post

Depends really what you have in mind cause you can design and build it anyway you like. I would suggest to get either a motherboard tray with IO panel or to cannibalize it from an old case as it is much easier than making that yourself.

 

-Moved to Modding Section- 

[dany_boy]

16 minutes ago, PlatinumStorm said:

I have grown up customizing everything I can, and I'd feel it's a waste of money to go buy a case. I'm not looking for "cheap" but good value

Again, if you want to do it, go ahead, I personally love it, but the value proposition is just better if you buy it.

[dany_boy]

Oh and BTW you might want to take a look at protocase: http://www.protocase.com

[PlatinumStorm]

1 hour ago, W-L said:

Depends really what you have in mind cause you can design and build it anyway you like. I would suggest to get either a motherboard tray with IO panel or to cannibalize it from an old case as it is much easier than making that yourself.

 

-Moved to Modding Section- 

Well, it's definitely going to be primarily some kind of metal (aluminum for the light-weightness) but not sure about thermals. I plan on cannibalizing a few spare cases i have for some random parts, motherboard tray included. I'm mostly seeking advices from other modders about sites to buy from that they've used, aluminum vs steels, thicknesses, etc.

[PlatinumStorm]

Sketch i've made, with dimensions, and a cardboard visual build, so i could get an idea of the size of the project (with pikachu for reference, of course lol)

[W-L]

7 minutes ago, PlatinumStorm said:

Well, it's definitely going to be primarily some kind of metal (aluminum for the light-weightness) but not sure about thermals. I plan on cannibalizing a few spare cases i have for some random parts, motherboard tray included. I'm mostly seeking advices from other modders about sites to buy from that they've used, aluminum vs steels, thicknesses, etc.

It depends on what tools you have available aluminum would be easier to work with for cutting and shaping/bending. It really depends on the design on how your going to have to assemble and piece everything together.

[dany_boy]

7 minutes ago, PlatinumStorm said:

Well, it's definitely going to be primarily some kind of metal (aluminum for the light-weightness) but not sure about thermals. I plan on cannibalizing a few spare cases i have for some random parts, motherboard tray included. I'm mostly seeking advices from other modders about sites to buy from that they've used, aluminum vs steels, thicknesses, etc.

I prefer to work with aluminium, its lighter, looks better (IMO), is softer (easier to machine/bend/drill/etc) and doesn't oxidise. However it can be more expensive and thicker

[Protocase]

14 hours ago, dany_boy said:

Oh and BTW you might want to take a look at protocase: http://www.protocase.com

Thank you for the shoutout @dany_boy! 

[Protocase]

Good luck with your build, @PlatinumStorm - sounds like you have a pretty solid vision in mind! Not sure if you're familiar with what we offer, but feel free to check out our website. This profile of one of our customers, Lukas Dyjakon, and the custom PC case he built, gives a nice picture of what we do. Happy designing!

[PlatinumStorm]

12 hours ago, Protocase said:

Good luck with your build, @PlatinumStorm - sounds like you have a pretty solid vision in mind! Not sure if you're familiar with what we offer, but feel free to check out our website. This profile of one of our customers, Lukas Dyjakon, and the custom PC case he built, gives a nice picture of what we do. Happy designing!

Yup I'm working with one of the ladies there now. We're getting my case designed by the team and looking forward to seeing this thing come to life. I doubt anyone's designed something like what I'm doing. Lol

 

[Protocase]

12 hours ago, PlatinumStorm said:

Yup I'm working with one of the ladies there now. We're getting my case designed by the team and looking forward to seeing this thing come to life. I doubt anyone's designed something like what I'm doing. Lol

 

Awesome - very excited to see your build once it's complete! Keep us posted

[W31_D0N9]

On 5/2/2017 at 8:50 AM, PlatinumStorm said:

Yup I'm working with one of the ladies there now. We're getting my case designed by the team and looking forward to seeing this thing come to life. I doubt anyone's designed something like what I'm doing. Lol

 

Curious, what is the ballpark for using their Design Service? <$1000 USD? I'm also considering a custom case and whether or not to hire out for design and drafting.

 

Also excited to see how your case turns out!