I just got back from being out of town for a week, and have some more pics to show. First, here is that pic after hacking away the area in the center spacer for the PCI covers. Its not very pretty, but this will not be seen at all as it will be behind the MB panel. I just needed the space so that the PCI covers can slide in properly.



Problem with Screws

It is amazing just how much a minor detail can cause you lots of grief. I ordered #6-32 x 1/4” black oxide finished hex head screws from smallparts.com to use to screw the panels to the central spacer, and the case itself together. Thankfully while I was at it, I also ordered some #8-32 x 1/4” phillips screws figuring that they would come in handy since these can't be had locally. I'm using 16 gauge aluminum, which is about 1/16” thick. I wanted to countersink all of the screws so that they would look better, and in no way interfere with the MB. I had tapped out all 30 holes to secure the panels to the center spacer in #6-32, and countersunk the holes. There was a big problem however that I ran into. The allen screws have a bevel that is greater than 1/16”, so even with the holes being countersunk, the screws stuck out well above the surface of the panels. Here is a pic to show you what I mean:



Thankfully, the #8-32 x 1/4” screws have a very shallow bevel, so I ended up having to further countersink all of the screw holes in the panels, and retap all of the holes in the spacer. Recountersinking the holes in the panels was a serious pain. I ended up having to use a 5/16” drill bit instead of a countersinking bit to get the holes right. For a few of the holes, I ended up going back and using a bit of JB weld to fill in a bit as they had gaps around the screws. I can't even tell you what a pain this has been. After having messed with this for a few days, I was able to move on to making other cuts.

Panels

All of the panels will get a good sanding down once I'm done with them, so the scratches in the pics are only temporary. Sanding them down will be the last thing I do to them before going to the powdercoater.

I decided to make a cutout behind the MB so that the PSU would have a more area to draw in air from, and also to provide a bit of airflow behind the MB.



I also changed the way that the wiring plate is done from what I had originally planned. After trying my original idea, I ended up just using a flat plate countersunk with screws attached behind the MB tray. I think this still looks ok, is a lot simpler, and will still serve the purpose. I want this plate to be removable so that if I change out Mbs later down the road and want to adjust where the ATX and SATA cables come through, I can simply make another panel, which would be easy to do. I haven't drilled out the holes in it yet to allow for the cables.





I finished cutting out the backpanel and PCI slots. I had to do a lot of careful measuring while comparing to my Lian-Li Micro ATX mb panel to get the spacing right. I am hoping that everything is measured out correctly. I'll find out when my motherboard comes in.





I bought a GIGABYTE GA-H57M-USB3 MB that should be here tomorrow. I also got a buddy of mine to pick me up a brand spankin new Intel Core I7-875K quad from Microcenter in Atlanta (can we say only $200 + tax boys and girls). I am so glad to have gotten in on that deal.

Thanks for stopping by.