[Spotswood]

This is a build log of a prototype case I designed to air cool a mini-ITX/mini-DTX form factor motherboard. The design of the case/frame is centered around a 90-degree oriented motherboard (vertically mounted GPU) and my preference to build with slotted aluminum extrusion.

Some of the details of the case are:

Dimension: 435 x 235 x 300mm (height x width x depth)
Motherboard support: mini-ITX/mini-DTX (90-degree rotated)
CPU cooler height: 150mm
GPU support: maximum length of 325mm
PSU: SFX or ATX
Fans: 5 x 120mm
Storage: 2 x SSD/HD

 

[Spotswood]

The motherboard "tray" is completely removable.

 

[Spotswood]

Drives attach to the extrusion via rubber grommets (note the milled-out areas)...

..and are located behind/underneath the motherboard tray.

Here's the tray attached to the back panel frame:

 

[Spotswood]

Finished cutting and assembling the frame.

Bottom sheet was cut on my Avid CNC router:

 

[Spotswood]

All of the side panels will be cut on the CNC. Here's a quick time lapse of the PSU cut out:

 

[Spotswood]

Nuts can be inserted into the extrusion via small milled-out areas. By "capturing" a nut between two others (4mm long set screws are used to retain the two outer nuts), you have the ability to fasten to a fixed location (without having to drill and tap a hole) e.g. a side panel.

 

[Spotswood]

I only realized after cutting the left side panel that the two fan hole cutouts were - um, ugly. So, I remounted that sheet to the inside of the case and cut another solid sheet, thus creating a bottom fed air duct to keep the GPU nice and cool.

 

[Spotswood]

The top was milled from a 2.25mm thick aluminum sheet.

I still haven't decided on the design of the ventilation holes to be milled out of the top. In the meantime, I leveraged the extra length of the corner extrusions (moving them up a bit), allowing the top to "float" 2.75mm over the side panels (creating the equivalent of a 2.75-inch square ventilation hole).

 

[Spotswood]

The prototype case is complete. Please tell me what you think of the design, internal component layout, fabrication, etc.!

 

[Spotswood]

Thx for the tips!
Just found some M3 x 3mm set screws I am going to use on my MakerBeam (10x10mm) case!


Is the rectangle cutout at the back only for the I/O cables?
It looks big, what height is it?

Its 60mm/2.4-inches tall.

 

[Spotswood]

I tell this to every maker willing to listen, so here goes to you too
Trends are a fact of life;
I remember hating my reading glasses, because they covered half my damned face (and i felt like an idiot); fast forward it a bit and it's a trend all of a sudden.. 15yr olds (of all real ages) walking around with 70s-styled glasses on them.. fashiun!111!
I could go on, but point hopefully taken.

So on topic, am aware it's the new trend to cram everything in as tight an enclosure as humanly possible; slap some needlessly overpowered GPU in it, must-have RGB on it and call one's self.. whatever it is they call themselves.
For normal people however, mITX used to be.. mITX really.. you'd use the integrated graphics, so barring that PSU lying somewhere inside the case, your sole 'worry' would be the HDDs. Tidy, logical. No empty space inside wasted. Amazing thing, logic, is it not.
Enter trends and what happens when everyone adhers to them, ie mITX cases about as deep as a full tower; why? Who knows?

Make something compact that doesn't expect the user to have a dedicated GPU; ie something that isn't almost 3 times as deep as it should; ie something resembling what once was a typical mITX case; the kind no one, but no one makes anymore.
Who knows huh, someone might buy it.

The design is pretty easy to reduce in size. Here is a modest reduction in height:

:thumb:

 

[Spotswood]

Spent some more time reducing the size of the case.

Note the square corner posts in this model:

Side panels could be any color or material. Black/ebonized oak would look beautiful.

 

[Spotswood]

Also working on a smaller, simpler variation of the OP case design (for ITX-size GPUs).

 

[Spotswood]

Refining the PSU mounting bracket continues.

The bracket was tweaked to allow removing the intrusive support beam:

35mm thick fans could be used with a 185mm long GPU:

The fabrication of the top sheet was flawless.

Finally, completed the SSD/HD mounting bracket .

 

[Spotswood]

I finally finished the side panels.

 

[Spotswood]

I cut some "foot tabs" to provide room to mount larger/taller feet.