CjGemini's 800D Project - Page 2

Sparks will be flying

I'm so conflicted...I love showing everybody what I do...but I'm afraid of the Black Helicopters finding me....again

For the Faithful...some videos of the take down process




I'm pretty fast at case take down. I spent about three times what I usually spend on take down with this baby.

Order of take down, for anyone interested:

Remove Face Panel
Remove Bay Covers and Hot Swap Door
Remove Metal Fascia Strip on top edge of Face Panel
Remove Front Panel and Switch Cover
Remove Hot Swap Trim
Remove Side Panels
Remove Window from Side Panel
Remove PCI Plates
Remove Hot Swap Drawers
Remove Optical Bay Clips
Remove Filters, Fans, Silicon Gaskets, Grommets, Plastic Covers etc
Remove Hot Swap Backplane PCB, Front Panel I/O, PWR RST Switches
Drill Rivets on Back Panel; undo screws to Remove Mother Board Tray
Undo Screws on Side Panel Rail Ends
Undo Screws on Hot Swap Face and remove Face
Drill All Rivets on Front and Side Panels
Case on side, spread Front and Back Panels
Ease out Bottom Panel
Remove Side Panel Retaining Rails
Remove Hex "Spikes" from Retaining Rails
Slide off plastic latch components
Ease out Mid Panel with Lower Drive Bay Sides attached
Drill Rivets; Remove Lower Drive Bay Sides
Remove Hot Swap Cage and Silicon Isolators
Remove Optical Drive Bay
Ease Top Panel free from Front and Back Panels
Remove Silicon Pads from Case Feet; remove Case Feet

At this point the Corsair 800D is parted out enough to prep for paint or powder coat. What may not be apparent is the rather sizable amount of plastic bits and bobs and assorted tiny black screws and nuts that you will need to keep track of, remember locations for, etc.

I thought the Lian Li PC P-80 had a lot of little parts to keep track of, but I think Corsair wins this round.

Better than the UFOs. No time for joy rides at this moment. Cases to mod, side panels to create, products to pimp.

Did I mention Pimping Products? Just for CjGemini's mod I got the idea for a Universal Radiator Mounting Plate.

Almost anyone can cut 4 straight lines in their case and remove a rectangle the size of a radiator. It's cutting the precise profile of the radiator, or of the fans, and getting the mounting holes all correct that's more of a challenge.

A Universal Radiator Mount Plate laser cut from 20 Gauge Galvaneal is the ticket. And that is happening for the "Diamond" on this mod. The plate will mount up with a 240 Rad(15mm spacing) and attach over a cut out in the bottom panel. The URMP follows the typical frame profile of a radiator: wide open for maximum airflow. This will make pulling the Radiator for inspection or dedustification very easy...

The second "product" I developed for this mod is a 360 Shroud that will cover the existing formed fan grills on the 800D Top Panel. It's reminiscent of the Lian Li PC P-80 Shroud/Ornament...but less stylized.

Of course there is the Koolance 360 Shroud, but it has plastic sides. And it's not exactly custom...I like custom parts.

So I spent a day fiddling around on the PC making technical drawings and models with paper and researching materials etc and came up with a neat little shroud design that I am having manufactured. It was one of those deals where it would cost about the same to have ten made as to have one made.

Of course the very first one is for the Diamond we're polishing here...and will get powder coated Polar Anxiety to match the top panel. Nine more will get powder coated Raven Black, which is a close match to almost all black cases, and I'll probably sell them here.

Time frame on the two "products" I developed for CjGemini's mod is about two weeks.

Getting stuff done by others always adds that unpredictable delay factor...but in this case I think it's worth the hassle. As an insurance policy I have a sheet of .050 3003 Aluminum on the way from McMaster. If push comes to shove I will make everything myself.

And to top it off (literally) I am having a Hot Rod shop punch louvers in a piece of 20 gauge Galvaneal for a Rad Grill to fit over the shroud. Again powder coated to match. I've seen just about every Rad Grill design and they seem to be slots, hex, or laser cut patterns...all flat. I like this design...louvers make sense...they baffle the fan noise, direct the exhaust, have good flow characteristics and aren't flat. Plus I think they look exciting.

This one off piece is ridiculously expensive (set up costs more than the part)...I should probably have a bunch made up...but I didn't. I've never worked with this outfit and I need to see what they come up with...it could end up hanging on the shop wall if it does not meet my criterion.

The 4" wide louvers will overlap the 105mm fan mount hole layout and hide those and the louver panel is the same dimension as the Shroud top so it will bolt up neatly...or it could be held in place with DS tape for a mysteriously clean look. My main worry is having a perfectly flat panel that mates to a perfectly flat shroud that mates to the 800D top panel. As long as all these metal master minions I have tasked and charged with these important duties do the right thing all will be well on Little Mountain.

Time frame on the one-off Louver Rad Grill is probably a little shorter than the Shrouds. I just have to wait and see.

Here's a vid of the URMP Concept.

Here's a Vid of the Shroud Concept

Edited by CyberDruid - 8/10/11 at 5:23pm

I'm conflicted. I want to show and tell..but I want to keep you happy...what's a Druid to do.

Well after I do a little snipping on the 800D it'll get quiet again. I won't have anything to crow about until the metal masters are done.