Here are some pics of the case I'm using for this Budget Mod. Its already been taken apart. Its nothing special. Its just an old Computer I'm rebuilding for my sibs. I decided to do some modding just to make it a little cooler looking. I've already for the acrylic for the window ready to be cut as well as the case its self. I'm kinda going with a car theme with this one. I'm gonna paint the case gloss black with white racing stripes. I have a little delima right now though. I dont know what to do with front of the case. I want to change it some so it doesnt look so plain. Any opinions or ideas are appreciated. Just remember that I'm on a tight budget. Like $5 or so. lol. I do have some fans, some scrap acrylic, plastic sheets, stuff like that.


Inside of the case. Just an old P3.


Case shell.


Front of the case without the faceplate.


Case shell all ready to be cut.


Faceplate. Any ideas on what I could do to it?

Here is the case with the window cut out and with the trim on.


Window with coaxial trim. No acrylic yet.

Quote: Originally Posted by Ferrariferg Here are some pics of the case I'm using for this Budget Mod. Its already been taken apart. Its nothing special. Its just an old Computer I'm rebuilding for my sibs. I decided to do some modding just to make it a little cooler looking. I've already for the acrylic for the window ready to be cut as well as the case its self. I'm kinda going with a car theme with this one. I'm gonna paint the case gloss black with white racing stripes. I have a little delima right now though. I dont know what to do with front of the case. I want to change it some so it doesnt look so plain. Any opinions or ideas are appreciated. Just remember that I'm on a tight budget. Like $5 or so. lol. I do have some fans, some scrap acrylic, plastic sheets, stuff like that. Inside of the case. Just an old P3. Case shell. Front of the case without the faceplate. Faceplate. Any ideas on what I could do to it?

You could cut the panel in front for a fan..it just might be hard to get it to look right since it's not flat or symetrical.

You might just try cutting the entire thing off below the CD rom drives and fab something out of the acrylic you have.

Add a different power switch there too, you can probably find something in your garage or at radioshack pretty cheap...also, kids broken toys are great material to steal from!

Black and white sounds kinda dull though, might wanna spruce it up with some color..maybe a "Union Jack" (English Flag) or something on the side without the window.

You can use a sticker (Make sure you clearcoat the panel so it doesn't peel off easily. It will add some protection, and make it look more like it was painted.... especially if you carefully color/block it and buff it out)

Painting something like that would be time consuming...it can be anything realy, you know there intrests I'm sure!

If adding sticker/decal as Solid suggest, you can mix water with little bit of dish washing liquid, apply solution to where you want to add sticker, put sticker on the wet spot, now you can move it around till you get it where you want it, then when in place you can use a cotton rag or for large decals, a squeegee to remove water solution, this will also allow you to get air bubbles out.
Works on all stickers, well maybe not the cheap paper ones...

I'm gonna use a car ignition switch for a power switch and a toggle switch for the reset switch. I thought about putting a fan in the front but like you said its not flat and my fans are all too small. I am opening up the vent on the front for better air flow. I'm still coming up with ideas for the paint.

Quote: Originally Posted by Ferrariferg I thought about putting a fan in the front but like you said its not flat and my fans are all too small. I am opening up the vent on the front for better air flow.

Here's an idea, considering the front bezel has that curve and mounting a fan into it might be difficult....consider cutting a hole for your fan, and instead of putting in a duct ring, mount some mesh or custom grille of some sort behind the bezel (Modder's Mesh or pieces of acrylic or plastic rod, or pieces of chrome barbecue grille or something). It would be a big airflow improvement on the existing "suck air from the tiny slit in the bottom" design, and if you did your own thing with rod/barbecue grille, it'd look very unique and custom too.

Ive been thinking about doing that but I have to get some modders mesh or something. I only have a small piece. Not enough to make a grill out of. But the computer doesnt really need much airflow. its only a pentium 3. lol. If I do put a fan on it though I want a grill that will resemble something from an old muscle car to keep with the car theme. I do still have the scrap metal from the window so i was thinkin about cutting something out of that. problem is its pretty thick steel. take alot of cutting discs. lol.

Good work so far!
Is it just me but is this project screaming oldskool at me?!
The way you did the window cut and the age of the case gives it an oldskool flavour imo, and I reckon you could play on that idea!!
As for the front panel, hmmm? maybe not cut a round hole but cut a rectangular piece out ( vertically ) and have some modders mesh/grill of sorts mounted in there - I think with the curve of the front panel and following that shape it could look pretty pimpin'. maybe have it gently backlit??

Quote: Originally Posted by MRMOBEUS Good work so far! Is it just me but is this project screaming oldskool at me?! The way you did the window cut and the age of the case gives it an oldskool flavour imo, and I reckon you could play on that idea!! As for the front panel, hmmm? maybe not cut a round hole but cut a rectangular piece out ( vertically ) and have some modders mesh/grill of sorts mounted in there - I think with the curve of the front panel and following that shape it could look pretty pimpin'. maybe have it gently backlit??

lol. It is pretty old. My step dad bought it in 1997 for me and my brothers. It was pretty much a top of the line computer when we got it. We would all go to school and brag about having Windows 98. lol. I would definitely like to do some lighting. I'm also thinking about making a hood scoop out of the scrap metal from the window. Its a steel case so i can just weld it onto the top of the case and add a couple fans to it and cover the opening with some modders mesh. I think it will help me keep with the muscle car theme. I really need to get some modders mesh. lol. everybody has said something about using it in one way or another.

Well I did some painting the other day on the chassis and psu and I messed up. I was trying to rush through everything and neglected to read the cans of paint before I used them. Not to mention I forgot to preime everything first so I got some peeling on the chassis. The psu turned out fine but I painted everthing with Enamel Paint and I cleared it with Acrylic. Guess I gotta go back and strip the paint and try again. This time I'm gonna take my time and do it right.

And keep those ideas for the front bezel comin. they really help me out. Thanks for the help.

Bummer, I feel ya pain dude! ( Didn't someone say the exact same thing to me when I made the exact same mistake in the beginnings of "CLAW"? lol )
But it'll be worth the hard work when you see the finished and improved paint job!

Quote: Originally Posted by MRMOBEUS Bummer, I feel ya pain dude! ( Didn't someone say the exact same thing to me when I made the exact same mistake in the beginnings of "CLAW"? lol ) But it'll be worth the hard work when you see the finished and improved paint job!

I hope so. I did some sand blasting earlier today. got alot of the paint off. I didnt realize how thick I had put it on. lol. I ended up running out of sand before I could finish but I can probably just use paint thinner to get the rest of it off. Ill do some more work tomorrow.

Just a small update. Got some of the stuff cleaned up and primed as well as buying a sleeving kit. Should have more to add tomorrow.


Part of the PSU, HDD and Floppy cage, and various other parts primed and ready for paint.


The sleeving kit. Carbon colored (mix of black and clear fibers. not just black).


The contents of the kit. Pretty good for only $4.
10' - 1/8" sleeving
10' - 1/4" sleeving
5' - 3/8" sleeving
5' - 1/2" sleeving
12 - zip ties
1' - 9mm heatshrink
1' - 18mm heatshrink
6" - 24mm heatshrink

Got some more stuff done and some stuff bought.


Fan taken apart. I have it painted but I didnt take a pic.


80GB HDD. Nothin special but I got it for free and it's bigger than what was in it.


Woo. Paint. I got all the paint I'm gonna need. My dad bought it for me cause I mowed the lawn. lol. he thought I only need 1 can.

More pics tomorrow. I'll have some stuff painted.

Ive been kinda busy lately but Ive gotten some work done. Ive got a pretty big update this time. Heres some pics of what Ive gotten done.


The roll of mesh I bought at home depot.


The mesh fan grill for the PSU.


The sleeved cables and painted connectors.


The drive cover before cutting.


After cutting.


The fogged acrylic covered with mesh.


The drive cover with acrylic and mesh before finished sanding and painting.


What its gonna look like when finished. There will be a 4" white ccfl behind it.



Decided to make my own rounded cables so I split the ribbon cables I had.



Sleeved the cables. Look pretty good I think.


Inside of case after paint.


Shell painted gloss white. Not done yet. Need another can of gloss black.


Everything installed and the blue ccfl's on. (Bad Pic.)


Front bezel with light switch panel in and tape on to represent the stripes. Yes. The computer is started with keys.


Bad pic of the switch panel I made for the lights. The switches are blue and light up when the lights are on.

I've never seen rolls of mesh like that...what's the exact name of that product? Love the custom mods so far, keep it up!

Quote: Originally Posted by Ferrariferg Ive been kinda busy lately but Ive gotten some work done. Ive got a pretty big update this time. Heres some pics of what Ive gotten done. The roll of mesh I bought at home depot. Front bezel with light switch panel in and tape on to represent the stripes. Yes. The computer is started with keys.

Hah, nice find on the mesh How much was it?

And just an idea, I notice you like hot rods, and since the key turns the computer on, you should find a way to make a "VROOOOM" sound when you turn it on... or did you already have that in mind?

Oh well, good job so far

I'm glad your all liking it. I should be getting some of the plastic painted soon since I just got the paint for it.

I dont know the brand of the mesh but it comes in like a 25' roll and I think it cost about $8. Its made for heater vents.

I still would appreciate more info on that mesh...is it aluminum or plastic? Paintable, in your opinion? To me, it looks like aluminum or steel mesh that's about 5 mm thick.

Your close-up pics are too blurry. Try taking those pics after first activating the "Macro" mode in your digital cam; it's usually quite easily found by clicking one of the direction-pad buttons until you see an icon on-screen that looks like a flower. That way, you'll be able to get a close-up pic that's nice and clear, even if you move by accident while shooting it.