Project: Passion

[DonT-FeaR]

very cool... nice work

[mittelmeier]

Great idea and a nice sketch-up model. Can't wait to see pics. +rep and sub

[Datech]

How about you cover the center "heart" piece with the plexi but use silver mesh on the rest?

Sounds good, and I could probably do that pretty easily with scrap pieces. Thanks for the idea!

do you want that heart shape in your cutout design incorporated into your header?

It's up to you man, surprise me. You're the PS wizard.

[Xcartguy]

oooo, make the heart 3d with mesh or something so light can get through, then wrap it in barb wire!! j/k hehe, that shows my view on my relationships anyway

[Datech]

Here are some pics of the case I will be using for reference. It is a little scuffed up at the moment, but I should be able to touch up most of the blemishes.

Right side panel won't be touched. See below for face plate mod.

Left panel will be replaced with cutout design.

Handle and power buttons.

Faceplate.

Faceplate with black part removed.

After searching around Newegg and Xoxide today I came to the following decisions about the case:

• I'm getting a P5Q Pro mobo and a 750W Rosewill PSU in a combo deal from Newegg that saves me about $80 for my rig.
• I'm getting 2x1GB OCZ DDR2-1200 once it comes back in stock for my rig.
• Instead of having a side case fan that glows red, I'm getting 2x red cold cathode tubes to light the case and window.
• I'm backing the entire cutout with clear acrylic or similar since I won't need to worry about airflow from the side.
• I'll be painting parts of the face of the case a dark red to go along with the Passion theme.

And that last bullet is what I need advice on. I successfully dismantled the case I'll be using today and found that it disassembles into fairly nice pieces. Now I just need to know how I should paint them. The most experience I've had with painting anything is getting a can of spray paint from Home Depot and painting some old sandals in my garage for Halloween.

My idea is that I paint most (probably not all) of the silver parts a nice dark red. The most obvious part is the bulk of the face plate that is completely silver and. The top silver portion around the power button doesn't come away from the black parts, and I'm not sure that should be painted anyway. Also, the area under the handle comes apart quite easily and can be painted completely if need be.

So, seeing this, how do I need to go about painting it in anyone's expert opinion?

Also, in regards to the area under the handle, notice how it is slotted. That is actually open space under there, and I'm considering throwing another cold cathode down there so it glows through the slots. I might make some pinhole heart (or similar) designs after the handle as well to make better use of any lights down there. I found out that Girlfriend's father has a Dremel drill and a drill press, so a day at his place should cap off the fabrication part once I find a spare side panel.

What do ya think?

[DonT-FeaR]

/\ rofl....
(one above the one thats above)
that design looks quite awsome btw

[The boy 4rm oz]

To paint the metal prime it first. If it aluminium there are special self etching primers. IF it is steel most normal primers should cover it.

For plastic sand it down a bit first with some 1500-2000grit sand paper. I prefer to use wet rub sand paper but use what you have. Then prime the plastic with a plastic primer then paint.

Make sure to paint in a well ventilated area and to spray the paint on in thin coats to avoid dripping and an unsightly finish.

[blueonblack]

As an alternative to cover the cutout, you can get an 18" x 24" piece of 1/8" thick cast acrylic in transparent red from estreetplastics.com for $10.79 + shipping. Then it would be red even with the lights off.
________
ETOBICOKE CASTING

[Xcartguy]

They got that one red paint w/ metallic pieces in it, to maybe give it a little more pizazz or something.

Xcartguy

[Datech]

They got that one red paint w/ metallic pieces in it, to maybe give it a little more pizazz or something.

Xcartguy

Yep, that's probably what I'm going to use. As a small update (since I'm really excited), I ordered most of the pieces of the thing today:

• eStreet Plastics Transparent Red Acrylic Plexiglass (window)
• Xoxide's 12in Dual Red Cold Cathode Kit (pretty lights!)
• Xoxide Wire Sleeving Kit in UV Red (better cable management and look)
• Xoxide's Sunbeam OC Cooling Kit (not sure if this will be on hers or mine, either way it will reflect the light nicely)
  
• ASUS P5Q Pro mobo (my new mobo)
• Rosewill 750W PSU (my new PSU)
• Western Digital Caviar 500GB HDD (my new hard drive)

Over Thanksgiving I should be cutting and painting the pieces. The computer hardware should get here Friday, in which case I will have new pics of my rig, and mock ups of hers whenever the mods arrive.

Now I just have to find some scrap computer that I can rip a side panel off of and cut up. Anyone want to donate? Haha.