DeskPooter

[Crazy Buddhist]

updated 26 July cos, though yet complete, SHE has a name:

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~
DeskPooter
~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

call me a fool: I probably am one: but at least i'm a loving fool

As I had no plan here is a taste of where we are heading:

I've been building and rebuilding PC's for years. I have finally gotten really really fed up with white cases on my desk. I decided the computer and the desk had to merge

It's still a w.i.p but I love it lol. Main tools used were a hammer, jigsaw, pliars, hacksaw, electric drill .. oh and a screwdriver.

Having managed to get the case cut down to provide a backplate and mounting for the motherboard and PCI devices I then cut out the back of the desk drawer for the cable access. The hammer was widely used throughout this project.

Amazingly I managed to get everything nicely located. Both the DVD drive and CD writer will appear from the front of the drawer. Have yet to cut the slots to locate them. And can’t decide if I want to go to the trouble of getting some matching veneer and giving them a wooden fascia to match the rest.

The old lock on the drawer was removed and the barrel emptied and cut down to become the power button. Locating the power switch behind the lock was easy enough.

Time to power up and see if this thing will actually fly. Holy cow she does !!! The main thing was trying to organise all the bits so they would a) fit b) connect with standard cables and c) not cook each other. Currently she is running in the drawer, in the cabinet at 43 degrees C CPU temp - thats low enough for me and only 4 degrees higher than when the beast was in a case.

Finally I have to do some cabinetwork on the desk she is going in. It’s an old base unit from a large office desk:

Few more bits to finish: cutting the CD drawer openings, securing the lock barrel to the power switch (don’t try no more nails - I discovered it dissolves the power switch plastic ) and then I have to cut down the cabinet and rebuild the desk. Nearly done. Will post a pic when the final details are completed.

Now .. I know this isn't up to the way wacky standards of some of you pro modders out there .. but its my first mod and fit for purpose. The printer fits in the big drawer under the puter and the scanner on the shelf. With a wireless keyboard and mouse and flatscreen monitor being the only thing left on the actual desktop and the only visible evidence of there being a computer - my aim.



CrazyB

[Bucko]

Welcome to TBCS!

I like your mod. I had a similar idea floating around in my head too, but not so much to not see a computer on my desk, but to make space for more than one PC at my desk.

PS, I renamed your thread just a little to reflect what it is.

[Crazy Buddhist]

Cheers Bucko. Once its all finished and the desk refurbished and oiled its going to look great .. the desk top is 24 inches deep which is plenty with a flatpanel on it. Under one end will be the cabinet .. under the other end two polished steel legs designed to hold up a kitchen worktop .. and blend with my silver Dell monitor lol.

I think I may be able to sell the whole project, once done, as a bespoke piece of furniture for about £2000 including the PC ... not bad considering the whole thing is built from recycled parts. But thats not my point.

PC specs arent that hot but for anyone who is interested its a MSI K8N SLI Platinum Mobo currently housing a 3500+ Athlon64 Winchester core. Thats going to be replaced by an Opteron 180 Dualcore which I can overclock to the max. Graphics not SLI yet - actually a ATI Radeon Saphire X850 Platinum Edition but going to be replaced. And 2Gig of PC3200 RAM. Theres also a TV card in her as she runs both my music and my televisual entertainments.

[chaksq]

Thats kinda cool, reminds my of my old desk where I stashed all my peripherals in a drawer and ran the cables in the area behind the drawers.

[Crazy Buddhist]

yeah its that +1 - stashing the computer itself in the drawer. I have to get two fans to create a good draw through the disks area and accross the mobo surface, one front, one side, then create a waterproof top plate/cover in perspex or even glass perhaps, to seal it from coffee spills (it's under the desk !) and make sure the fans create the draw of air required.

[Crazy Buddhist]

Thats kinda cool, reminds my of my old desk where I stashed all my peripherals in a drawer and ran the cables in the area behind the drawers.

ps thanks I like it too

[Drum Thumper]

Very cool idea, and like Bucko, I've kicked this idea around a time or two myself.

The only thing that bothers me is the gray ribbon style IDE drive cables. Swap those out for some rounded cables like these, add some looming on the wires coming from the PSU and this would be flawless.

And I love the 'The hammer was widely used' line. I feel like that every damn day at work.

Have some more rep, and welcome aboard!

[Crazy Buddhist]

And I love the 'The hammer was widely used' line. I feel like that every damn day at work.

Have some more rep, and welcome aboard!

Why thanks and for the ideas. You can imagine how therapeutic it was using a hammer and an electric jigsaw on a computer build after ten or more years of windows BSOD's.

[AJ@PR]

Cool!!!

[Scotty]

Tools used Hammer...

Yup i see it..

"You will fit you stupid power supply!! *bang* *bang* *bang* There all good"