ABS/Tagan Black Pearl - evolution of a water-cooled rig

[aka_GK]

wow, millertime, it's genious! I thought of making some kind of rubber grommet for the same purpose, but it can be as easy as masking tape!

[SNiiPE_DoGG]

I've also found that a toothpick and some model paint makes a good rivet masker as long as you get a texture match

[millertime359]

wow, millertime, it's genious! I thought of making some kind of rubber grommet for the same purpose, but it can be as easy as masking tape!

I can't take all the credit. Nils suggested it to me. It wears out fast though and you still have to watch out for the stem as it can still nick the rivet.

I would follow SD's advice and keep some paint around to touch it up when you are done if you want it perfect.

[shazza]

Thanks for clarifying, guys.

ARGGGHHH ... everyone raves about how easy the Irwin Unibit step drill bits are to use, and CptDread shows gorgeous pics. I set out to practice putting in a fillport hole today. It did not, I think, go very well.



The setup:






The Drill / Unibit:







The hole ...







Somehow, I just don't think this is the look I'm going for:







So - please tell me what I did wrong:

A) trying to drill it freehand?

B) not enough / too much lube?

C) or just cause I'm a girl ?



Be brutal - I need some guidance here. I did do two smaller ones earlier on the mobo tray, and they actually came out okay.

[GregSG]

C) or just cause I'm a girl ?

Be brutal - I need some guidance here. I did do two smaller ones earlier on the mobo tray, and they actually came out okay.

I guess C is ruled out

[millertime359]

Just grind it down. Got a dremel?

[Waterlogged]

I to was curious about all the hype surrounding the unibits and when I got mine, I wasn't too impressed at first. It took a good bit of playing around with speed (rpms) and feed (pressure) to figure out that these need to be treated a bit differently than a regular drill bit. For me, I found that slower speed and lighter feed worked pretty well.

[charles_h]

Golly!

How thick is the material?

Did you use the Knock-Out Bit on the right?

With a step-drill bit, you gotta stop as soon as it punches through to the size you want. If you stop half way to the next size, you'll get troubles. Also, I find it best to feather the drill power for greater control.

Golly!

[Liderc]

Shaz, looks like the material just didn't cut away entirely on the outer edge which caused it to fold over and not be removed through the drilling process. I would assume you could just dremel the rest down and sand it to perfection. It could also be that the metal may be plated with a different kind of metal, which caused it to separate during the sudden heat transfer, this allowed it to buckle on the first layer which resulted in the splits that you encountered.

[shazza]

Thanks all ... I'm not sure what happened really. The first couple of "steps" went fairly smoothly, and I had a nice clean cut. Then, as I went bigger, it got worse. I can rescue this hole, but this was really for practice anyway, so will give it another go tomorrow. The basic circle is still a circle, it's just all the collection on the edge. I may have been going too fast, as it seemed to take forever (I thought it would go a lot quicker).

@ Charles - I was using the middle one, cause the big one wouldn't fit in the drill. The material is probably .05-.06 max, judging from the thickness of the plates I bought. It does seem a bit "softer" if that makes sense.

@ Liderc - heat makes sense. Could also fit with me running the drill too fast.


And yes, I believe "C" is still in play

[CptDreadFlint]

Oh dear...I'm so sorry Shazza. I feel partly responsible...
...perhaps I made it sound just a little too easy.
The particular unibits I used to make the hole I posted was the Irwin #4 as seen in your pic on the left.

The panel used is approximately 1.5mm - 2.5mm.

I give it a medium pressure with medium speed...

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz for 3secs
zzpfh! (sound of bit dropping to next step) (1 second)
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz for 3sec
zzpfh!

" " " "

I'm not saying that's how your drilling should sound like, but it's to provide sorta "feel" as to how mine is and perhaps take a cue from that sorta "feel".

If its taking too long, ease up the power (slight increase) and give it a slightly heavier pressure.
With more practice, you'll get the feel of it and the holes will be smoother and as you grow into your technique. Keep us updated, please.

Good thing that was a practice panel!

P.S. It's not "C" - you're a girl. My wife OWNS me in drilling. Totally SCHOOLS.

[shazza]

Thanks Cpt ... that helps a bit. Now I know how it should sound Yep - I used Bucky Jr. - No. 4.


Couldn't let it rest, had to give it another go. This is with one of my practice panels, 0.08 in. thickness.



Ta Da ...




Not bad - not quite as nice as my Pirate Hero's, but much much better than before.




So now - what did I do differently?

1) Different piece of Aluminium - yep (must be that secret alloy they put in the Lian Li mid-plates that caused my problem)

2) Drilled slower (and calmer), carefully monitoring my "steps"

But - the REAL secret (Can't believe you guys missed this one - or else you were just being incredibly kind and not thinking ANYONE could be this STOOPID) ... Did'ya even know you could drill a hole that big by spinning the drill counter-clockwise ????????


Oh My Goodness (Golly, Golly, Golly, as Charles might say) !!!! While I should be embarrassed, I'm just gonna say this is another great example of what I don't know. And y'all wondered why I got so excited about getting a darn rivet in place

[charles_h]

hehe, I thought of that but then thought... nah... couldn't have had the drill on reverse.

In any event, A+ for tenacity. You basically drilled a hole with brute-force Cobalt > Aluminum destruction power!

Nice!

[millertime359]

I didn't even think about mentioning that Shaz.

O well, at least you figured it out and it looks much better.

[shazza]

LOL - I have used a drill before, but not that one. I guess I never even thought I could cut a hole going in reverse - 'specially one that big. No wonder it got so hot.

While I would have figured it out eventually, I have to thank one of the folks at ModBros' forum who asked the question

[aka_GK]

Did'ya even know you could drill a hole that big by spinning the drill counter-clockwise ????????

I am not so cool as you are - I've managed to drill out 6 rivets on reverse last week

[Waterlogged]

Yeah, I thought of asking that but figured it couldn't be that.

[CptDreadFlint]

Ta Da ...

That's what I'm talking about!

... Did'ya even know you could drill a hole that big by spinning the drill counter-clockwise ????????

Not in a million would I have ever guessed...
Thanks for the laughs!

[charles_h]

- 'specially one that big. No wonder it got so hot.

must...resist...

[CptDreadFlint]

DB? Anybody? Someone's gotta say it.

[twwen2]

That's what she said?



I guess it was option C after all...

[ohms]

It's looking good Shazza! The second attempt came out real nice. So how hard was it to put in the rivets? I wanted to take my case apart when I had initially got it but I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to put it back together.

[SNiiPE_DoGG]

Lian-li's are constructed with completely with 5052 alloy aluminum - this alloy is softer than an alloy like 6061 or other aluminum variants and is used because the primary structural features are created using metal braking and stamping.

yeah its a pain to drill it because its gummy on a rotary bit, especially if its not perfectly sharp.

[millertime359]

It's looking good Shazza! The second attempt came out real nice. So how hard was it to put in the rivets? I wanted to take my case apart when I had initially got it but I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to put it back together.

I had the same concerns with my Cosmos 1000. It has all the extra plastic trim pieces. Just take alot of photos as you tear your case down so you can reference back to something if you have issues.

It's really not that hard. Just take your time tearing it down and pay attention to how it came apart. You will have no issues putting it back together again.

[kgtiger]

If you can succed by going backward, I can only imagine your success when you go forward.

Well done Shazza, you will always learn more from your challenges in life that your successes.

Howerver it allways feel better if you can just skip the first part.

Rule # 1

Always wear safty glasses that are clean and not scratched.

The larger the hole you intend to drill the slower the drill bit speed needs to be and the less pressure you should apply.

Only ever drill with sharp drill bits.

Looking forward to see what adventure you get up to next.