# [casemod] CM Test bench V2



## Ace_finland (Dec 11, 2012)

Hey guys, 

This is an ongoing mod which is quite far done. I will post more build log photos a bit later and as the modding continues i will post new photos. There are still things i haven't done but entered the case in the cooler master mod competition and this is how far i got before the deadline.

This is the case






This was what i was aiming for






As far as i have gotten 


































Sponsored by:





Hope you like it! next on the list is modding the ram to look like the rendering


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## HammerON (Dec 11, 2012)

Looks nice! What rads are you using? It would be nice if you could show us some pics of the inside...


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## micropage7 (Dec 11, 2012)

wow ..
nice nice, i never think that test bench would get like this


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## Naito (Dec 11, 2012)

That is awesome! Nice work


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## micropage7 (Dec 11, 2012)

you should put it on Case Mod Gallery. umm btw maybe it would be more interesting if you put some work log here


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## Ace_finland (Dec 11, 2012)

HammerON said:


> Looks nice! What rads are you using? It would be nice if you could show us some pics of the inside...



I'm using two Ek coolstream 240 rads, i will post more pictures when i get home. Have most of  the pics on the computer! But here's another one while u wait 









micropage7 said:


> wow ..
> nice nice, i never think that test bench would get like this



Thanks!



Naito said:


> That is awesome! Nice work



Thanks!


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## HammerON (Dec 11, 2012)

Love the lighting


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## Ace_finland (Dec 11, 2012)

micropage7 said:


> you should put it on Case Mod Gallery. umm btw maybe it would be more interesting if you put some work log here



I will! thanks for letting me know! I will post a more photos what have been done as soon as i get home, really need to do work stuff at work 



HammerON said:


> Love the lighting



thanks!


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## HammerON (Dec 11, 2012)

Ace - Please do not double post. Use the "Edit" or the "Multi-Quote" buttons please


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## NHKS (Dec 11, 2012)

WOW! spellbound.. had u enough time for the competition and resources, most likely that yours would have won it! the final product looks better than the rendering in terms of execution & design(oh, those case lights look great!!).. 
i see that you have used braided-sleeve tubing for the cooling circuit- that's quite unique and suits the hi-tech look, besides the black theme.. glad that u stayed away from transparent tubing for a change.. can't wait to see inside pics and how the ram turns out.. 
a question looking at the pics, did u plan to have the expansion cards' support brace illuminated as well? i can see the provision for leds there too.. also, u plan to do something more with the 24-pin & gpu cables routing? just asking if u plan to stiffen them or something of that sort.. i am no mod expert, so don't think I am giving some feedback, just curious..

btw, great effort with your mod, Ace! u should be proud of it..


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## Ace_finland (Dec 11, 2012)

NHKS said:


> WOW! spellbound.. had u enough time for the competition and resources, most likely that yours would have won it! the final product looks better than the rendering in terms of execution & design(oh, those case lights look great!!)..
> i see that you have used braided-sleeve tubing for the cooling circuit- that's quite unique and suits the hi-tech look, besides the black theme.. glad that u stayed away from transparent tubing for a change.. can't wait to see inside pics and how the ram turns out..
> a question looking at the pics, did u plan to have the expansion cards' support brace illuminated as well? i can see the provision for leds there too.. also, u plan to do something more with the 24-pin & gpu cables routing? just asking if u plan to stiffen them or something of that sort.. i am no mod expert, so don't think I am giving some feedback, just curious..
> 
> btw, great effort with your mod, Ace! u should be proud of it..



Thank you for your kind words! Regarding the gpu bracket it was a heat of the moment design, a few days before the deadline i finished my diy cnc router which i then used to do the gpu bracket. The only way to get the aluminum and acrylic together and be strong enough was to use bolts. Now the bolts block the lights too much to get it looking nice, that's why its not illuminated. I will fix this at some stage. Yeah, same with the cables, was thinking of something more "solid" than cables, just didn't have time to do it before the competition.

All feedback are appreciated! And you were spot on what needs to be fixed.

If u like it you can head over to coolermasters facebook page and vote for me


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## Ace_finland (Dec 23, 2012)

Hey guys, 

The build log as promised. I edited a bit away but all the pictures and so on are there! This is still an ongoing mod even if it looks kinda done
Background:
I entered the Cooler master mod competition this year and thought.
I was thinking for ages for a case to pick and by accident I found the test bench by Cooler Master at a local computer store. I knew instantly that this is the case I wanted to modify. It's different enough to other cases and I didn't find anyone else in the competition using the same case. 
After countless hrs designing i think i came up with something worthwhile doing. 
This was the design I stuck with for now unless i change my mind for a 100th time 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



Also started fabricating the radiator boxes today. 
Started with some kinda straight pieces of 1mm  sheet metal. Decided on 1mm thickness to add some stability and still easy to fabricate.




The machine




Bent a small test piece to figure out the radius and the measurement, also to get all the angles right. 




Made four pieces so i can mess up two, easier to make extra now than going back to make two new ones 




Quick test fit to see how its gonna look
http://i1068.photobucket.com/albums/u447/Ace_Finland/Cooler%20master%20mod%20competition%202012/DSC_0565.jpg[/v]
[IMG]http://i1068.photobucket.com/albums/u447/Ace_Finland/Cooler%20master%20mod%20competition%202012/DSC_0567.jpg

Also some parts  arrived 





Back after a lot of hrs in the garage and at the workshop at work. Not much of an update when it's full of fail but thought i would share anyways.
Plan A
Cut a template of the size i wanted 




Mark the piece to be cut
http://i1068.photobucket.com/albums/u447/Ace_Finland/Cooler%20master%20mod%20competition%202012/2_zps37e3dd85.jpg[/v]
Working with my best friend :) (angle grinder)
[IMG]http://i1068.photobucket.com/albums/u447/Ace_Finland/Cooler%20master%20mod%20competition%202012/4_zps0f736c06.jpg
After a lot of filing.








After this i realized cutting the next 3 slots in the metal will make it very thin and will flex and bend a lot. And the plan is to powder coat it after i'm done with it, so i can't use any filler. so over to...
Plan B
Decided to get all the cuts before bending. Don't mind the tolerances, just forgot to adjust the digits




Make a "table" for the mill at work.




Used double sided sticky tape between the table and the metal sheets to prevent the pieces to vibrate during milling.




Fastened the sheets with screws in as many places as possible, i did not want the sheet to move during milling.




Let the milling begin. Still a Manual mill so need to be very focused 




More fasteners used as it progressed.
http://i1068.photobucket.com/albums/u447/Ace_Finland/Cooler%20master%20mod%20competition%202012/9_zpsafcdce09.jpg[/v]
Almost done, still need to clean all the edges and as you can see in the red circle i made a bit of a mess. I had just finished that slot and turned the mill off without turning off the feed. So when i turned the mill on it went like a bat out of.... :( Words cannot describe the feeling when that happened. I had spent 6 hrs milling just to do a simple mistake. Anyways, gonna weld it back and see if i can file it down. Wouldn't be a problem if i could use filler. 
[IMG]http://i1068.photobucket.com/albums/u447/Ace_Finland/Cooler%20master%20mod%20competition%202012/Photo2012-10-14190142_zpsff12290d.jpg
welded and grinded down the mess i did the other day 
Got the sheets bent today but now i don't know if i should go with the circular mesh or the hexx mesh. The hexx mesh is made out of 1mm aluminum and the circular mesh is made out of steel sheet which would make the whole construction a lot more stable.


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## Ace_finland (Dec 23, 2012)

tried some powder coating last night
This is satin black. Two problems with this color, fingerprints sticks instantly, and it looks kinda cheap 





This is the surface finish of the original cooler master case. I'm really liking this surface finish so i'm gonna order some textured powder coating black and give it a try.




Gonna order this color and give it a go!




Got a lot done the last week so thought i would post a few pictures
First of all I'll show you something great when working with metal sheets. I have not seen many use these and i don't know why.  They are quite handy when you don't want to weld and will help a lot in hard to reach places, when you don't have to use a regular nut. It's rivet nuts 
Works like a normal rivet.




Modified a normal rivet gun buy cutting the head of a M4 bolt and jamming it in the rivet gun. Added a few washers to prevent the rivet from entering the gun




All done




In the end I just got a rivet gun made for the rivet nuts which made it a lot easier.




Made some acrylic for the case. Had to countersink the acrylic in order to get it flush against the case




Mounted. It's clear acrylic but it has a green protective sheet on it.




Spot welded some ends on the radiator holders and mounted it all together




Removed the green protective plastic. Still needs to be sanded to get a matte finish so the red leds will spread the light better.





Drilled the front acrylic plate. Still need to remove a lot of acrylic in the middle




Drilled holes in the aluminum after i knew the acrylic would fit.




Test fit




During the test fit i marked around the edges with a knife so i could get a rough template.




As you can see its a bit rough  Will still do some more welding on the case and when that is all done i will grind down the front and back plate and sand it smooth. But you can see its starting to look as the rendering 




Almost forgot to update, have another project that I've been working on for the last 5 months. Can anyone guess what it is? Just got the "table back from a workshop that leveled it for me. So now i just need to get it assembled and it should be good to go if I just can figure out how to use it 




Back on topic
Started sanding the edges, tried a lot of different machines and files before getting the result i wanted. Still need to straighten up the edges but wanted to mill the fan controllers first in case i make a mistake and need to redo it. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	








Milled away a bit of material to get the psu as close as possible to the back of the case to make as much room as possible inside the case




Started disassembling the new lamptron's




Very easy to take apart




In the preview yday you saw the milling so no need to post more pics of that, the controller fitted!




Had to power it up


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## Ace_finland (Dec 23, 2012)

After looking for leds for the acrylic and realizing buying "computer leds" are way too expensive i started looking for other options. Found this through a company in Finland. I don't know the price but it should be less than 50€ for 5m of leds. These are 15,6W/m so should be plenty of lumens 




The Leds can be cut every three leds and cables can be soldered on straight on the copper tabs, 8mm wide and 2,5mm high. The best thing with them is if you have a 2cm led strip or a 5m led strip all you need is 12V. 





Also have milled the front acrylic, milled a 3mm gap to place the leds in, a nice tight fit.




From the top




Full 12V, probably need to run them on 8V, otherwise with 2m's of leds it will look like a nuclear power plant 




As low as it goes.




Still need to sand the acrylic edges to make it more smooth and spread the light even better, but it's a good start.
Got some great news guys. After some discussions with EK Waterblocks they decided to sponsor me in this build!
Since I started water cooling I have always liked the design of the water blocks that EK provide. So it is truly an honor to work with such a great company! 




The parts  




Unpacked




This i won over at cooledpc.com but thought i would share it anyways 




Pump top to add some performance





'
 EK-DDC X-TOP CSQ - Acetal, such a buty




Waterblock for my Asus Gene-V,  EK-MOSFET ASUS M5G




EK-CoolStream RAD XT (240)




A bunch of fittings, some i have bought and some sponsored




EK-RES X3 150




 EK-FC5X0 GTX GW Backplate - Black




Special thanks to Gregor over at EK for helping me out!
Been quite busy the last few days having time off work in order to be able to finish the mod for the competition. 
Started with some motherboard raisers, was gonna machine them in aluminum but then i found this nice red Ø20mm plastic bar. Not the right red but they won't be seen after its installed and it's so easy to machine in plastic.
First i machined them to the right diameter




Drill and tap




All done!




Test fitted the pumps and the rads to check for clearance issues




All sanded and ready to get glass blasted




Glass blasted and ready to be powdercoated




It looks a bit uneven but its smudges from me fingering it, i didn't see it but it shows up in the photos, will clean it off before the final shots!




Radiator box, or whatever you would call it




Rear side of the same part




Almost assembled


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## Ace_finland (Dec 23, 2012)

And some final shots of the case itself, I really like the way it looks and glass blasting the acrylic made a really matte finish which hopefully will hide the single leds and give an even light throughout the acrylic. 

















Still need to cut slots in some of the acrylic to be able to install all the leds. 
Also need to make something to hold the GPU's in place, i know what i want now so I just have to fabricate it. 
Finally decided to go with circular mesh, the hex mesh i got was only 1mm thick aluminum and was not stable enough. This is the color i went with, gun metal gray. Will make a slight contrast to the black powder coating.




For quite a while I've been thinking about what to do for GPU supports, I've seen a few versions out there but nothing that would fit my mod. The biggest problem has been production time of something more complicated that i would have to mill or grind from aluminum. So when I finished another project of mine (homebuilt CNC router) I decided to put it into its first good use (haven't had time to use it since all my time has been spent on the case).
This is what i wanted but wouldn't have had time to complete without the router. Test mount straight after milling all three parts.




Glass blasted and painted. Also countersunk one side and threaded M5 threads into the rear of the aluminum.




Close up of the support




Now you are probably wondering how i will physically attach the gpu's to the support. Haven't had time to see if it works but there is no reason this shouldn't. You mount it from the rear of the support so the tab from the GPU go between the support and the "extra bit" Then you just turn the screws to pinch the tab from the GPU to the support.




Also tried some engraving, my gf wasn't happy with the font, placement, size and basically everything, but I like it, It's about 0.5mm deep




Also covers a extra hole in the case, although this won't be visible when the motherboard is installed but still a nice touch  Still needs a bit of filing to make it fit perfect.




Had to assemble the case in order to figure out where to drill holes in the mesh, so figured i would try to take a photo of the leds going at the same time, took around a 100photos before my gf snapped these two. It still doesn't show off the real red but it is awesome in my eyes  This is as low as it goes, if i crank it up all the way u won't see the case. Gonna check with some ppl if there is a solution to get this right for the final shots.








Getting close to the end of the Coolermaster competition! Have been very busy the last weekend, spent around 30hrs on the computer on saturday and sunday and had to take today off work just to get it up and running. Taking it to get photographed tomorrow so i can get some proper shots of it for the competition. 
Anyways, gonna start with the parts. A lot of the parts are from my previous build but there are also new parts
Coolermaster test bench
Intel 3570K
Asus Maximus GENE-V
Corsair Dominator Platinum 16GB 1600MHz
128gb OCZ Vertez 2 SSD
Corsair AX850 PSU
2 X Gainward GTX570
2 x Lamptron FC5 V2
4 x Schyte Gentle Typhoon 
A lot of leds

Watercooling:
2 x EK-FC5X0 GTX GW Backplate - Black
2 x EK-RES X3 150
2 x  EK-DDC X-TOP CSQ - Acetal
2 x  EK-CoolStream RAD XT (240)
1 x EK-MOSFET ASUS M5G - Acetal + Nickel
1 x EK Supremacy cpu block
1 x EK Dual parallell sli block
2 x laing ddc pumps
A lot of EK fittings
Mayhem's Aurora tharsis red




Sleeved the led wires, the cat loves it 




Installed in the acrylic




The lamptrons installed




Mounted the rads and the fans to an xspc rad mount, quite a tight fit, a little bit over 1mm to spare 




Plumbing done on loop 1, was a bit more difficult than i first expected. Ignore the blue cables, resleeved them after




Had to check what it looked like with the Hyper212 that i've used during the build. Had to remove all the water cooling so i could get all the sizes right




So many cables, had to cut every cable and shorten them, they would not fit in the case as is.




Tried to get hold of some genuine CoolerMaster sticker but it was a lot harder than i expected. So contacted Coolermaster and got approved to make my own stickers. Was gonna go with normal stickers but due to the case is slightly textured it wouldn't look good so went with these polyurethane based "3D" stickers. Got a few different color combinations made so i could pick the one i liked the most. Big thanks to Mr Glasberg over at staffans.fi for making these priority 1 and making them in more or less a day 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	







Assembled and more or less ready to go. Still have a lot to do but this will have to do for the competition. 
Leak test ongoing








Did a compilation photo of the mod for the competition so thought i would post it here aswell.





Sponsored by:


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## Ace_finland (Dec 23, 2012)

Working on the ram today, will post pictures later  Thanks for the ones who voted for me in the Coolermaster mod competition! Got a 3rd prize!


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## de.das.dude (Dec 23, 2012)

Damn! this looks nice! i reallllllly love the lighting! BTW did u use 3ds max to design?

But i think this should be posted in the right forum, ask one of the modserateors to do it for you


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## Ace_finland (Dec 23, 2012)

de.das.dude said:


> Damn! this looks nice! i reallllllly love the lighting! BTW did u use 3ds max to design?
> 
> But i think this should be posted in the right forum, ask one of the modserateors to do it for you



Thanks! Does it matter which moderator? I used Solidworks to design it


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## Ace_finland (Dec 28, 2012)

Thanks for all who voted for me in the Cooler Master mod competition! Got myself a 3rd prize  

After a very busy Christmas I've made a prototype of the ram, did not go well at all but at least i've gotten started.  

This is the design. It's basically the same design as the Dominator platinum ram but with a sandwich construction consisting of two aluminum sides with acrylic in the middle. 





The aluminum part





One of the aluminum parts pressed together with the acrylic. Got decent tolerances on the parts so i just pressed them together with a vice, no glue needed 





Made a red light bar so the ram would match the case better. Still want a white acrylic top with it only being red when its on 





Installed without a lightbar





It looks the same with a lightbar. Think there is not enough light for the light to reflect all the way to the middle of the ram. I will experiment a bit more but if i can't figure it out i will leave it with just a red lightbar 

With the red lightbar and the original part it looks like this. It's not too bad but a bit of the white light shines through due to the fact that the leds are further apart than the width of the lightbar. The red bar is the same width as the original one. Also gonna polish the entry surface of the acrylig to let as much light through as possible





Sponsored by:


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## Ace_finland (Dec 31, 2012)

Thanks to all that has been following me this year and a happy new year to you all! Next post will be next year


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## HammerON (Jan 1, 2013)

Keep up the great work


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## adulaamin (Jan 1, 2013)

Subbed! Looking very good!


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## Ace_finland (Jan 12, 2013)

Thanks guys!

Hey guys! 
Back now, been very busy with work and a lot of other stuff. 

Have been trying my best to get the ram working but after corsairs "release" on monday i decided to shelf my idea. 

I tried making grooves and so on in the acrylic and i got the light to spread decently as far as the new corsair kits are covered. Maybe they had the same problem  Anyways, I will move on to some other mods i want to try out instead. Updates to come as soon as i make some progress 

Oh, also got the Rig Of The Year over at guru 3D!


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## HammerON (Jan 13, 2013)

Congrats on the Rig of the Year


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## Jetster (Jan 13, 2013)

Impressive


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## cdawall (Jan 13, 2013)

Beautiful.


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## Ace_finland (Jan 13, 2013)

HammerON said:


> Congrats on the Rig of the Year


Thanks HammerON!


Jetster said:


> Impressive


Thanks!


cdawall said:


> Beautiful.


Thanks!


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