Tocsin! getting alarmed about not much: optiplex into breadbin will go

Sunday, December 14, 2008

optiplex into breadbin will go

I had some problems with the install of the dell into the new box. Nothing major, but in a moment of laziness I went online and bought a new motherboard. Then I found that the MB was compatible with every issue of the P4 except the one sitting in the dell. So...
The X-QPack can have the new MB and we'll get that running when I get around to buying a processor.
The Dell...
I went to B&Q and bought a rather presentable pine box:



I stripped the Dell down properly, bining the plastic casing and keeping the metal work that will be of use.
This included the base, from which I kept the metal to locate the MB, and the sections that hold the PSU in place.
I decided to split the levels putting the PSU and the HD on the base, and the MB situated above that.
The optical drive will be replaced with a laptop sized drive and a card reader will be added later. The required space was calculated using a standard CD ROM and a 3.5" floppy drive.
I got to work with a router and produced this:



This seems to work ok. The space is used well and the cooling fans will be added when they arrive. Additionally, the HD will get an air in with an outflow fan placed on what looks like the base (but is actually the back of the case. A large inflow fan will be placed on the hinged lid with some mesh and speaker cloth covering it, as this is going to be modelled on a 1940s type radio.

Problem: The width on the expansion slots needs to be widened by about 2mm. The 13 mm is fine when it's only 1 mm thick, but fouls the VGA plug. Additionally, it seems I need to extend the height of the slot by 15 mm. Doh!!

2 Comments:

Blogger Dalg said...

Bespoke wooden pc cases. There has to be a market for them.

15 Dec 2008, 09:47:00  
Blogger Panic Stricken said...

yes. Think they are called "Breadbins" :) what else can you do when everything is already arranged in alphabetical order?

15 Dec 2008, 12:18:00  

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