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Firstly this isn't really going to be a log like the lil star case, I just want to share the progress of my case I will be using for the foreseeable future.

So I started with a xclio a380 color case, I've had it for a few years now and after the lil star felt it was time to drastically change it. As with the lil star I decided I would chop it down, but only in depth as I wanted to keep it simple.
I plan to reshape the window and remove the door, these 2 things combined with a major reduction in depth should create a very refreshing retake on the case.

The theme for the case has been inspired by aircraft, mostly the ah-1 cobra. Paint will be a flat charcoal grey, with some accent paint of an unknown color.


Heres the starting point, really I've always loved the design. Theres just something about it.


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Heres the bare chassis before anything has been done, I did paint it black when I got it but other then that it was stock.



Aluminum rivets again. Its really stupid how they have such a large fan blowing into a small hole. The amount of restriction is ridiculous. Really the fans that came with the case aren't that good, although a huge boost can be had by changing the sleeve bearing out for ball bearings.



So this took a few days to get too, but it was done quick and dirty. I'm lacking the patience I had in during the lil star mod.



So this should give you a better idea of what its going to look like. Although its far from finished its vastly different. If you look close you can see the layout for the window.

I love case mod threads, even though they're relatively sparse on TR (not sure why). It's very neat to watch the process from start to finish.

DPete27 wrote:

I love case mod threads, even though they're relatively sparse on TR (not sure why). It's very neat to watch the process from start to finish.

I enjoy them as well. It's too bad I don't have the skill to pull them off myself.

I want to chop that case down to mITX height. Leave one 5.25" bay, 2 expansion slots....sweeeet.

Loved your last thread, will be watching this one.

Tomorrow I build...
Here's a teaser.



Yes, yes I did.

Seen A380, thought of the Airbus for some reason.

Back to back fans, need to triple that up, and make it one Red, one Blue and one Green LED fan stacked together and a fan controller for the LEDs to get different colors and brightness

And then.................

Lol, well these are the color changing led fans.

Did you spray paint the rear one black or was is originally black? Anyhow, have you done a test run with the fans back-to-back like that? I haven't tried it, but I'd imagine it would create lots of turbulence/noise and not be very practical.

DPete27 wrote:

Did you spray paint the rear one black or was is originally black? Anyhow, have you done a test run with the fans back-to-back like that? I haven't tried it, but I'd imagine it would create lots of turbulence/noise and not be very practical.

Most noise comes when/if they rotate in opposite direction.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra-rotating_propellers

I painted the one black to try it out as the top fan but, i didn't like the way it made the leds look. So I put it in the back and it actually adds an interesting effect.

I did test the fans in series and it seems to add good pressure, but I'm doing it more for looks and because I had an extra fan. The shrouds have a bit of extra space which is probably just enough area for the air to settle some. It adds marginally more noise, but noise isn't a concern for me I use a headset.

So its all put together now, yay!

Msi z87 gd65 gaming
i5 4670k w/cooler master glacier 240L
cooler master v850
8 gb hyperx
7870 myst.
240gb pny xlr8

Everything is new except the videocard gonna hang on to this until the gtx 880s drop.

Anyways on to the pics.


I always start with good intentions when it comes to wiring.



And then this happens. Here I can see the dual 120 pci fan I made for a mod to the 7870, also reseated the heatsink with fresh thermal.



Fans work, thats always a good sign. Here you can see how the black fan causes a 2 tone effect when the lights are in mid-spectrum.



Hah, bet you were thinking it was gonna be a side shot.



Here's the back side.



The top is cool too.



Bam!

1) You might want to remove that tiny soda can from inside the case. (as seen in the last pic)
2) I like the louvered 5.25" bay covers. How'd you tilt them? Superglue?

Hahaha, what I can't remove it that's my cpu heatsink.

I hot glued the bay covers in. So if I ever want to change it, it won't be hard. Also the hot glue is a little flex so if I bump into it I don't have to worry.