--- r e f l e X i o n ---

[Weevil]

You may want to dab some clear lacquer on those caps, aluminum has a way of loosing it's sheen with time and heat. Just a suggestion...

[kgtiger]

As for the liquid tape, I have no idea mate.
I did a quick google but couldn't really find any info on it.
Ask him for a link on it.

[Wezly]

Sounds a lot like this "glue" I keep hearing about....
Is that how it's spelled? :P

[Xion X2]

You may want to dab some clear lacquer on those caps, aluminum has a way of loosing it's sheen with time and heat. Just a suggestion...

Yeah. It's a good idea to put something on them. I have some clear coat that I can use.

As for the liquid tape, I have no idea mate.
I did a quick google but couldn't really find any info on it.
Ask him for a link on it.

I looked it up on the net, and it seems to do a good job with wiring. It's like spray-on heatshrink, basically. I doubt I'll use it for the connectors, but it could come in handy down the road for a part of the project I'll be working on later.

Bling-bling. (UPDATE 2/18: Board in pictures has been tested after this procedure and is operating normally!)






MMMmmm. Polished caps and CPU socket. This took a while and a lot of care, but I think that it turned out very well. There are still a couple that I can't get to so easily that I'll have to polish by hand. I used my dremel and a polishing wheel for most of the work on these, along with some aluminum polish.

A few more shots.





The polish goes on in a paste, then dries. So when buffing it off it created a lot of dust. So I used a combination of compressed air, paper towels and isopropyl alcohol to clean off all the excess from the PCB.

Tonight I picked up some painting supplies, as I'll be tackling those red connectors in the next day or two.



I'll cover the pcb with that plastic sheeting and tape it all down with masking tape before spraying.

I couldn't believe my luck, but I found some spray paint made for acrylic and plastic, with no sanding or priming required!



Music to my ears.

More to come.

[Wezly]

Good luck.

I've seen spray-painting of motherboards turn out fantastically, or worse than you could imagine...

[dingdong555]

Wow, those caps look SWEET! Suits "reflection" so well.

[Xion X2]

Good luck.

I've seen spray-painting of motherboards turn out fantastically, or worse than you could imagine...

Yeah, I'll be careful. Going to test this paint on a few plastic connectors that I have laying around, first.

Wow, those caps look SWEET! Suits "reflection" so well.

Thanks, ding.

They should blend in well with the build.. especially with the nickel-plated RAM blocks that are on the way.


Teaser.

[kgtiger]

Nice work on the caps Xion, very shinny.

I am interested in seeing how the painting of the PCI-e slots works out too, might need to add that to my list.

[nigelke]

thats just sweet
i mean :drool: ^^

[NoGuru]

This is my favorite build on the interwebs!

[Seu]

the heat of the motherboard won't affect the paint?

[NoGuru]

the heat of the motherboard won't affect the paint?

I hope not, if it does there is something wrong with the board. Paint usually has a high temp rating.

[Vinas]

you've raised the bar with these shiny caps!

[Pado]

You could try Vinyl Dye since it seeps into the plastic instead of just coating it. Won't scratch or flake off.

[Xion X2]

Nice work on the caps Xion, very shinny.

I am interested in seeing how the painting of the PCI-e slots works out too, might need to add that to my list.

Thanks, KG!

The PCI-e slots will be a real pain. There are small pin-openings all along the top ridge of the slot, and unfortunately, this ridge still shows even with my ginormous 5970 sitting in it (these cards are a foot long, it's crazy.)

The DIMM slots should look very good painted as the RAM fits right on top of that top ridge of the slot, so you can't see any color underneath. Not so with the PCI-e, unfortunately.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet. I've done some painting tonight that's gone so-so. I may end up going with an all black evga board that I have my eye on right now if I can't get rid of the red. It just looks really out of place in this build.

thats just sweet
i mean :drool: ^^

Thanks, nigel!

This is my favorite build on the interwebs!

Thanks, NoGuru! Good to see you over here.

the heat of the motherboard won't affect the paint?

Watercooled mobos don't get that hot.

you've raised the bar with these shiny caps!

Thanks, Vinas! Glad you like.

You could try Vinyl Dye since it seeps into the plastic instead of just coating it. Won't scratch or flake off.

Hmmm. Not familiar with it. I'll have to give it a look.

Well, aside from painting, I've began reassembling the case with the Zero Gravity Chamber installed to see how everything looks. Luckily, everything is fitting pretty exact to the original measurements that were taken when I was constructing the chamber. Huge sigh of relief on that one.

I took several shots tonight of the assembly in action. This one turned out the best. Hope you enjoy.

[dingdong555]

Woohooo, finally, a full case shot! sweeeet!

[Wezly]

I tried looking for vinyl dye before, but could never get appropriate search results.
Could someone post a link if they find it? I am definitely interested in it....

[shazza]

This worked well on the fan blades ... it's available at Auto Parts stores and other places that carry the Dupli-Color paints.

[Weevil]

Whats your plans for the CD ROM?

[Pado]

This worked well on the fan blades ... it's available at Auto Parts stores and other places that carry the Dupli-Color paints.

Dupli-color and VHT are the only brands that I can think of. Some brands like Krylon have vinyl sprays but not vinyl dye. So stick with the prior two if you decide to go ahead with it.
Just read that a lot of people swear by a brand called SEM
http://www.tcpglobal.com/autobodydep...FQYwpAod5CHXYQ

[Xion X2]

Whats your plans for the CD ROM?

External USB.

[shazza]

I may end up going with an all black evga board

That was the first thing I thought of when you mentioned the issues with the red. And, you're an accomplished cap polisher now

I don't know how free EVGA is with their sponsorships, but if ever there was a showcase build out there - this would be it. Even if it ended up being extra cost to you, seems like it would be well worth it when you consider the final product you're aiming for. Good Luck!

[kgtiger]

Hay Xion, you could just add some red sleeving into the build to help tie the red pci-es in.
Like use a little red sleeving on the cards, not a lot just a tad?

[Xion X2]

Woohooo, finally, a full case shot! sweeeet!

Thanks, man. I'll tell you this much. If she turns out as well as your recent build, then I'll be happy.

This worked well on the fan blades ... it's available at Auto Parts stores and other places that carry the Dupli-Color paints.

Thanks, shazza. To be truthful, I'm not sure what to use at this point as I've received about 100 different suggestions from people.



More than likely, I'll end up going with that eVGA board. This is just starting to seem like it's not worth the headache.

That was the first thing I thought of when you mentioned the issues with the red. And, you're an accomplished cap polisher now

I don't know how free EVGA is with their sponsorships, but if ever there was a showcase build out there - this would be it. Even if it ended up being extra cost to you, seems like it would be well worth it when you consider the final product you're aiming for. Good Luck!

Thanks for the kind words.

I sent evga a message through their sales contact link through their webpage a few days ago and haven't heard anything. I may try sending an email but then won't bother with it again. I don't know of anyone who's been sponsored by them, and with these bigger companies it's usually tougher to get sponsorship.

Hay Xion, you could just add some red sleeving into the build to help tie the red pci-es in.
Like use a little red sleeving on the cards, not a lot just a tad?

Blasphemy, KG! Look at my avatar, bud. That's my color scheme. Red, purple and black?

This mess is my own fault, though, as I should've just planned on replacing the motherboard from the beginning. I was just kind of partial to this Foxconn board since I already had it from a prior build and it's been a great platform.

But yeah.. the red definitely has to go. It's like nails on a chalkboard every time that I look at that picture.

[weston]

/sweet pic

I've been waiting for this picture for months! Looks awesome!