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

[Xion X2]

Good to hear you got more lighting, and you ALWAYS have time to post an update here

for the dremel... arent there diamond tipped wheels? i know i've seen them at canadian tire here in canada...

or another place for diamond tipped: http://www.dremel.com/en-us/Attachme...l.aspx?pid=545

otherwise there are metal wheels: http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows...%252523199.jsp

Grinding wheel - as in for cutting? The one's MNPC-Tech sell are good.

Not for cutting, for grinding. (I know I've mixed up these terms recently.) These have a different shape than cutting discs. They're in the shape of a cork. They have the same effect as sanding but are more brute for faster filing/sanding of metal.

What I need to do now is to grind down the slight lip on the corner pieces smooth so they'll mount flush to the front of the frame.

On my way to Home Depot now to see if I can find something that'll work. I'm hoping that I can find a bit for the dremel to do this and don't have to buy a grinder.

[Xion X2]

Sweet, found an all-purpose grinding/sanding kit with the stone grinder bits included for my dremel. Will give these a run tonight to see how they do.

[Wezly]

Like I said, first time I opened one. It was also the last

Can't wait to see what's next. I think I enjoy large updates with more wait-time instead of teasers...

[shazza]

Gotcha, Xion - I wasn't sure which you were referring to. Now - get back to the grind

[Xion X2]

Gotcha, Xion - I wasn't sure which you were referring to. Now - get back to the grind

No problemo. Like I said, I was being a bit unclear.

Uploading some more pics for another update.

[Mabyboi]

No problemo. Like I said, I was being a bit unclear.

Uploading some more pics for another update.

*runs to get popcorn and kleenex*

[Xion X2]

So last we left off we had worked on that motherboard tray and the corner supports for the frame.

Here she sits under her new work light, a daylight flourescent with two bright bulbs. Waiting to be attended to.



But wait. Those corner supports aren't done quite yet.

Let me preface this next part with saying this. I imagine there are two camps out there. Those who think I'm a ridiculous perfectionist and those who probably appreciate my attention to detail. Well, the reason I'm so picky is because, when I began this build, I said to myself that no matter what lengths I had to go to, the finished product would look professional as if built by a case manufacturer. That was and still is a key objective of mine with refleXion, so this next piece you're about to see is a direct result of that drive.

Here's a close up of the corner support. Notice running along the bottom that there is a rough lip that's left over from the dremel cut:



This lip will not be seen easily as it will be behind the front of the frame. But for one who would look closely after the case is complete, they would see this:



See how the lip, being a rough cut, doesn't allow the corner support to sit flush with the frame of the Zero G Chamber? These two pieces will be bolted together, so I'd like as clean a join as possible.

So, time to break out the dremel again to grind these supports down. I'll be grinding off that lip that's keeping the pieces from sitting flush against one another.

Let's get the dremel ready.



And away we go.



Ok, stopping point. Look where my finger is resting. To the left we haven't touched yet. To the right, we've hit with the grinding wheel. See the difference?



But.. wow.. these things go about as fast as the cutting discs. After just grinding half the corner support, look at what's happened to our wheel.



Not good. Definitely need something stronger.

It was at that moment that I was reminded of my first job out of high school. To put it plainly, it sucked. I worked in a warehouse doing some pretty hard labor. The company I worked for built huge carpet carousels, and one of my tasks was to grind hundreds of galvanized piping day after day with a small handheld grinder to prep it for welding. And then I thought, you know, I didn't do that stuff with one of these hollowed out, cheaply made grinding/sanding wheels. What I used was a diamond-cut steel bit. So there has to be something better out there for this job. And hopefully Dremel makes it.

Time for a trip to Home Depot. And when I got there, I found just what I was looking for. A large multi-purpose grinding/sanding kit.



That's what I need. Grinding stones.

Let's give them a whirl. I'll try this one out first.








Ahhh yeah, now we're getting somewhere. This is looking good, but it's left some rough edges that need to be treated with the file.



You love me in my ninja work gloves.

Take a look at the two corner pieces now. Notice the difference.





And now, look how well this new corner piece joins to the frame as compared to before we hit it with the grinder.




Looking a lot better.

More to come tomorrow.

[vistageek92]

Superb man! Also i like the new lights, we now have some nice white light back into the pictures!

[vistageek92]

Also, what program did you use for your "refleXion" logo?

[Xion X2]

Superb man! Also i like the new lights, we now have some nice white light back into the pictures!

Thanks, bud. Yeah, the flourescents make a huge difference in picture quality. I did the best I could with those halogen lights, but they're just too much yellow. Besides.. it kept tripping the breaker due to the 1000w it was sucking down, hehehehe.

Also, what program did you use for your "refleXion" logo?

The side panel logo or the project name logo on the pictures? The side panel was done in Autodesk 3DS Max. The project name logo was done in Photoshop.

[Xion X2]

A sneak peek into the next update.

[aka_GK]

"Plexi in distress"
and yeah ninja gloves

absolutely agree with you about all that grinding and filing, we are spending so much time to do this builds - they must be perfect after all that

[Xion X2]

absolutely agree with you about all that grinding and filing, we are spending so much time to do this builds - they must be perfect after all that

Absolutely.

The Ninja Gloves look sweet in the pics. Imma have to break them out again.

[Nashaz]

Fantastic updates bro!
Looking forward to the finished rig...

[callen_1]

Definitely looking forward to this! Work your magic mate

[masxerofkartis]

grinding refers to sharpening, a grinding wheel is to make a knife o whatever uses a blade similar to that cut more easily by making it have less surface area thus exerting more force, What you are looking for is a sanding wheel since a grinding wheel will make that surface a poor quality knife.

It turned out pretty good though, i knew that unsanded edges are bad but not that bad, well done for the effort you put into this

[dingdong555]

Sorry man, it was looking at me?

[kgtiger]

Looks good mate, glad your happy with the fluorescent lights.

[voigts]

Let me preface this next part with saying this. I imagine there are two camps out there. Those who think I'm a ridiculous perfectionist and those who probably appreciate my attention to detail.

I think I'd vote for the ridiculous perfectionist myself.

I have sat and wondered why in the world I have found myself multiple times over stressing and spending inordinate amounts of time on minor details that don't show up in pictures and that no one else will ever see. I have concluded that it is definitely the sign of a sick mind.

[Xion X2]

Fantastic updates bro!
Looking forward to the finished rig...

Heyyy, it's my man Nashaz. You've been MIA for too long. Thanks for the props.

Definitely looking forward to this! Work your magic mate

Will do, callen. Thanks.

Great acrylic work in your project, btw. I'm looking forward to seeing the final effect.

It turned out pretty good though, i knew that unsanded edges are bad but not that bad, well done for the effort you put into this

Thanks, masxerofkartis! I appreciate the positive feedback.

Sorry man, it was looking at me?

Just wait until he chews through that plexi. Then you'll see this:

Looks good mate, glad your happy with the fluorescent lights.

Love the lights, KG! I feel like I'll have a nice suntan afterwards, but they work great!

I think I'd vote for the ridiculous perfectionist myself.

I have sat and wondered why in the world I have found myself multiple times over stressing and spending inordinate amounts of time on minor details that don't show up in pictures and that no one else will ever see. I have concluded that it is definitely the sign of a sick mind.

Nah, not sick at all, friend. It's the sign of a great craftsman.

To me, a build means a lot more if every last detail is given special attention. I equate it to the kind of polish found in a BMW or Mercedes vs. what you'd see in a Taurus or Cavalier. (No offense to any Taurus or Cavalier owners out there, but you get the idea.)

To me, going that extra mile gives a build a certain polish that is special. And that's what I'm striving for.

[shazza]

Nice attention to detail, but that's not a surprise I think it shows you're doing this to please yourself, and not just to have nice photos on the internet - altho that is a nice benefit for the rest of us.

[Xion X2]

Nice attention to detail, but that's not a surprise I think it shows you're doing this to please yourself, and not just to have nice photos on the internet - altho that is a nice benefit for the rest of us.

That is true about me, shazza. Thank you. I'm not just looking to hide the flaws in this build; I want to rectify them. Because anything you all may not see, I will still know is there. And that would bother me. Especially if this case was closely examined down the road and those flaws were revealed.

Obviously, when you're working with mostly hand tools, you have to be reasonable as some things will just be beyond your realm of control. But if I see anything that's within that realm of control, then I'm going to act on it as often as I can.

I'm comfortable with my quest for perfection even if it may drive some others crazy. Patience is a virtue when you're trying to build something special.

[voigts]

That is one of the downsides to being a perfectionist, namely that every minor flaw that no one else would even notice, you notice. They are usually the first thing that you see when you look at the finished product.

It is hard when you are limited by your tools knowing you can do even better than you do on a project. This is why I've shelled out several hundred dollars on some nice tools over the winter as some of my tools were simply driving me nuts. I am looking forward to using my new-to-me real table saw, scroll saw, and brand new router as I know they will be so much more accurate and easy to work with.

Nice attention to detail, but that's not a surprise I think it shows you're doing this to please yourself, and not just to have nice photos on the internet - altho that is a nice benefit for the rest of us.

I think it is normally easy to spot builds that are only about internet pics vs people who do stuff like this because they like doing so. Someone who is only about pics would in no way pay so much attention to detail.

[Wezly]

Oh. My. God.

Will you write quality control guides for case manufacturers?

And why don't you start manufacturing cases!?

Freaking out at the extreme attention to detail and cleanliness. I feel like having you re-manufacture a couple CM cases I have here.... O.O

But seriously, I'm glad you're doing everything you want to do and are not rushing yourself to please the masses. You would be disappointing yourself and everyone else here who cares about the details of this build

[Mabyboi]

Your attention to detail is unreal, as shazza said, we can all see that you are doing this for yourself, i know when i build my computers, if there is even the smallest imperfection, i know its there... and thats all i see..

your work is beautiful, please. design and build me a case?!..... PLEASE!?