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

[Xion X2]

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.

Yeah, I can relate to a lot of that.

Did you buy a routing table or just a router, voigts? I'm wondering if I can make a routing table out of this RotoZip that I have. After seeing callen's work with his, it's clear this is something that would benefit me for the kind of work that I like to do.

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

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!?

You guys are way too nice, but I certainly appreciate the compliments. It means a lot.

I haven't been doing case modding for that long, and so I find that I'm learning something new almost every time out.

I took last night off due to freezing weather conditions (my workshop is heated by just two cheap ceramic heaters) but plan on heading over to the shop again tonight to make some more progress on the build. I'll try to provide another update late tonight.

[Wezly]

Well, your learning produces great results, and unless you have a huge pile of "mistakes" that you're not showing us, I'd say you're a pro.

[Xion X2]

Well, your learning produces great results, and unless you have a huge pile of "mistakes" that you're not showing us, I'd say you're a pro.

Thanks, Wezly.

Another update on the way.

[sniperbob]

...you're doing this to please yourself, and not just to have nice photos on the internet...

THATS WHAT SHE SAID!

sorry...
Back on topic: Really clean build man! Amazing workmanship!

[shazza]

@sniperbob - oops, walked into that one, didn't I

@ Xion ... update, update, waiting for the update - nodding off here. (I guess I could just catch it in the morning, but it's kind of like reading a book - just one more chapter before bed time...

[Xion X2]

Ok, these hands are ready to go back to work.



But.. wait. Forgot something important.



Entering Ninja Mode...

Ready for anything... ready even for a tool that'd be in my hands for the first time.

The Skilsaw. I found her on sale for 24.99$ at Home Depot. A real steal, I thought.



Okaayyy.. depth adjustment looks good.

This is actually the first time I'm using one of these. It's probably etched in my memory as the tool I remember seeing my father use the most as I was growing up (I'm in my early thirties if any of you were wondering.) So I was anxious to get the feel of it by cutting some 1/4" plexi.

Oh, sorry.. I almost forgot to explain why we're breaking out the Skilsaw in the first place.

Tonight, I'm doing some more work on the Zero-G Chamber. Notice the bottom shelf in this picture. It's buckling a little down the middle with the SSD shelf resting on it.



To remedy this, I planned to experiment with some thicker plexi just for that bottom shelf. Instead of 1/8" I would try 1/4". This stuff is too thick to cut/break with my bending brake, so I needed a way to cut it. And after doing some research, it seemed like a circular saw was the way to go.

For blades, I'm using 140 tooth 7 1/4" Avanti made for cutting plastics and plywood. You'll notice the teeth are shorter than what you often see on your standard sawblades.

Set-up complete. Shelf length and width marked with the sharpie. We'll be cutting along that black rectangle shown in the bottom right of the plexi sheet. And to ensure a straight cut, we'll use an aluminum angle for a straight edge.



Earplugs in, safety glasses on.









Pretty good results. The 140 tooth blades gave me a nice smooth cut. Any jagged edges you see is just the protective paper over the plexi. The cut surface is smooth to the touch. It'll need to be sanded and polished.. maybe dressed with some edge trim. We'll experiment with that later.

Here's how it looks in the frame.



The shelf no longer buckles. Yeah, my side panel's gotten some dust and dirt on it from sitting in the shop with all these tools. It's ok.. I'll clean it up with some windex and an air duster later.



Looking pretty good. Still more work to be done on the chamber. I'm still not happy with the edges of the perspex, but I'll save that for another day.

For now, I'll introduce you to my latest workshop investment.





After seeing all the magic that callen has been able to create with his routing table, I just couldn't resist. They had the Ryobi table and router down at the Depot for 99$, and I couldn't pass it up. It's just a small table, but for the work I'm doing it should suit me just fine. I spent much of tonight just assembling it, but I'll be giving it some play in the next few days. It will have some important work to do on the Zero-G Chamber.

That's all for now. Thanks again for following the making of refleXion.

[Kibbler]

Crysis!

Just like in the beginning where Nomad falls into the water, then the suit is all haywire and his XO does some system check thing, then he flexes his hands.

Dude you're working in VR!

Sweet update

[Wezly]

Gaahhhh not enough update

(all caps)

What is the routing table for?

[Xion X2]

THATS WHAT SHE SAID!

sorry...
Back on topic: Really clean build man! Amazing workmanship!

Thanks, sniperbob.

@ Xion ... update, update, waiting for the update - nodding off here. (I guess I could just catch it in the morning, but it's kind of like reading a book - just one more chapter before bed time...

Pleasant dreams, shazza. Hopefully this sends you off well.

Crysis!

Just like in the beginning where Nomad falls into the water, then the suit is all haywire and his XO does some system check thing, then he flexes his hands.

Dude you're working in VR!

Sweet update

I didn't even think about Crysis, but you're right. Thanks man.

Gaahhhh not enough update

(all caps)

What is the routing table for?

You'll find out very soon.

[Xion X2]

[Wezly]

Oh my....

That's a purty motherboard ya got 'cherself there....

Get MIPS blocks!

[Xion X2]

Oh my....

That's a purty motherboard ya got 'cherself there....

Get MIPS blocks!

It'll look even better when I get the EK block on it.

No room for MIPS I'm afraid. Perhaps in a future build.

[callen_1]

for the routing table, and that's a bargain and a half. I paid over 10x that for my setup and you'll probably still run circles around me in terms of build quality lol. Either way you'll have fun

[nigelke]

nice work man needles to say more

[Xyllian]

Entering Ninja Mode...

Could swear to god that's the beginning of Crysis!

Looking awesome as always dude, keep it up.

[ShArKo]

You got the nano suit????

Maximum Mod p

[aka_GK]

you do need special Photoshop filter to show us pictures made in ninja mod
and yeah, not enough update

[Xion X2]

for the routing table, and that's a bargain and a half. I paid over 10x that for my setup and you'll probably still run circles around me in terms of build quality lol. Either way you'll have fun

Thanks, callen.

Keep up the great work you're doing, and that case will turn out awesome. And you're right.. it is fun. When you finally have the tools you need to do the job with, it's a lot of fun.

nice work man needles to say more

Thanks, nigelke!

Could swear to god that's the beginning of Crysis!

Looking awesome as always dude, keep it up.

Thanks, Xyllian!

You got the nano suit????

Maximum Mod p

Ahahahaha. "Maximum Mod".

you do need special Photoshop filter to show us pictures made in ninja mod
and yeah, not enough update

I may try that, GK.

[Mabyboi]

We Want more updates!!!

[Wezly]

EK is just as good. I forgot they made a block for this as well...

As long as nickel-plating is touching chipset, I'm satisfied.

Or new copper, whichever....

[voigts]

I already had a router table, so I just bought a Sears router with removable bases for both plunge and regular use. The router I had was an earlier Sears version that had a plastic housing and was a pain to work with. A router is one of those things that really takes some work to master using as it is such a versatile tool. I have yet to master it.

I would make one word of caution since you said you are new to these tools. I would advise against using gloves whenever you are using saws, drills, or the router. If a bit or saw blade grabs the glove, it will pull your hand in making the injury much more serious. If you happen to hit your hand, your reflexes will naturally pull your hand away. You also pay better attention to your fingers when you are looking at skin rather than gloves.

I just got a good deal on two 10" carbide hollow ground saw blades via Ebay that are for use with aluminum and acrylic. These are going to be great for cutting alu and acrylic on my table saw and miter saw.

[Xion X2]

We Want more updates!!!

Affirmative, Mayboi. Love the new avatar.

EK is just as good. I forgot they made a block for this as well...

As long as nickel-plating is touching chipset, I'm satisfied.

Or new copper, whichever....

Yeah, inside the block is copper and it's nickel plated on the outside. Black acetal top.

A router is one of those things that really takes some work to master using as it is such a versatile tool. I have yet to master it.

I would make one word of caution since you said you are new to these tools. I would advise against using gloves whenever you are using saws, drills, or the router. If a bit or saw blade grabs the glove, it will pull your hand in making the injury much more serious.

Yeah, I'm LOVING the router so far. The only thing that's a pain right now is I'm having difficulty finding a table with enough depth at the back fence for the kind of work that I'm doing (routing a groove down the middle of 7" shelves. Are there no tables out there that have a depth more than just 2-3 inches? Seems crazy that there wouldn't be. I ended up having to dismantle the fence just to have enough room to cut the grooves in my shelves.

Anyway..

I hear you on the gloves, but I feel naked working in the shop without work gloves. Just seems unnatural. I'm extremely careful, though. I don't get anywhere near a sawblade or router bit. I don't want to sound like a know-it-all, but I truly am one of those types who is very alert--too damn alert, in fact. I notice practically everything that's going on around me 24/7. And when I'm in the shop, there are two things on my mind all the time. 1) Safety, first and foremost, and 2) Precision.

I just got a good deal on two 10" carbide hollow ground saw blades via Ebay that are for use with aluminum and acrylic. These are going to be great for cutting alu and acrylic on my table saw and miter saw.

Can you link me to those sawblades? I have a new toy that I'd like to try them out on.


Loading pics in for another update...

[Xion X2]

It was time to play with the new routing table. Here I'm running just a spare piece of plexi through it to test. I'm routing through with my trusty Bosch upspiral straight bit. It's the same one that I used in my RotoZip.



You can't beat the smooth, clean finish this bit leaves behind. Just look how smooth it carves out the plexi (the cut on the top right.)



I bought a standard straight bit by SKIL, but it doesn't even compare to this upspiral. It wasn't carving clean.. it was causing the plexi to foam and melt around the edges. So I took it out and threw in the Bosch upspiral, and all is well again.

So what are we doing tonight.. well, we're doing a little rework. I know, I know.. no one likes to do things over, especially me. But as goes this project, so goes a good part of my time, money and.. well, life, basically. I've invested a lot into this work, so if an opportunity presents itself to make a part of it better, then I will.

In the last update, I showed how the bottom shelf in the Zero Gravity Chamber was buckling a little due to the weight of the SSD shelf. We were able to remedy that by making that bottom shelf out of 1/4" plexi instead of the 1/8" that was used originally. In addition, the original mount for the SSD shelf was very simplistic and rather ineffective. It was a straight join with weld-on, and while it will hold okay, there are more effective ways to bond two shelves together.

So tonight, we're going to explore a better way of joining the Zero-G shelves together by cutting and routing some 1/4" plexi to replace the 1/8" plexi that's currently in the chamber.

Here I am marking the SSD shelf location.



Where you see the shelf rest, we'll be routing a groove out in that bottom shelf for it to fit snug in. Here, I'll show.

Lined up on the routing table.



I've set my depth at 1/8". Remember that we're not carving through the shelf but just routing a groove out for our SSD shelf to fit snug in.



The depth of the rip fence on this table is too shallow, so I had to remove it and replace it with an aluminum angle positioned far enough back to route a little more than 3 inches into the shelf.

Here's the end product. A nice, clean straight groove cut into our shelf.





That turned out really well and was a lot easier than setting up a straight edge and cutting with the RotoZip. Having a bench just allows you better leverage, along with square cuts.

So, now it was time to cut a new SSD shelf in 1/4" plexi to replace the 1/8" piece. Time to crank up the new toy.



My new Ryobi table saw with 30 in. adjustable width to the right of the blade.

I moved it into the back corner of my shop next to the routing table.



It was fun using a handsaw to cut this stuff until it became difficult to make square cuts even with a straight edge. The Skilsaw kept getting hung in the plexi which would cause it to drift a little.

I admire anyone who has both the patience and skill to use hand tools for everything, but my philosophy is if there's a better, quicker, more precise way to do something, then that's the way I'm going. And this table saw will save me a lot of headaches and a lot of time. I'm doing a lot of work with plexi in this build and will in future builds as well.

The thing I noticed immediately with the table saw was how simple it was to square off a piece of material. Two of the four sides of my plexi sheet were not square because of the Skilsaw drifting, and I was able to correct that in a matter of minutes.



Ok, the first test... how well can it cut through not just plexi but tougher material, like solid state drives...



Anyone want to take a guess?



I'd have to be out of my freaking mind and then some, obviously.

No, what I'm doing here is measuring off that SSD shelf, because I'm going to cut the new shelf to the same exact size.

Lining up the cut with the miter fence.



We'll be cutting right along that line for our shelf width.

And away we go.







Notice that I'm feeding the blade while standing to the right and out of the kickback path. Important safety tip for anyone who's doing this for the first time.

And after what seems like far too easy a job, we're through. Here you can see the nice, clean cut it gives us. I'm using 180 tooth 10" Irwin blades made for plastic and plywood.





Ok, retrieving our shelf that we had routed the groove in before...



And we'll slide the new SSD shelf down in that groove..



Voila.

We'll secure the two pieces with weld-on. This should give us a cleaner and more secure bond than just bonding two flat pieces together.. especially with the more sturdy 1/4" plexi.




And, using our old SSD shelf as a template, we'll mark the drillholes for the new shelf...



And those will be drilled shortly.

Thanks for reading; that's it for tonight. Time for me to clean up some of this plexi dust before I get caught in a blizzard.

[aka_GK]

oh, nice work mate!
If that it not top secret info, how much did you already spend for all those tools?

[Red-5]

You must have quite the workshop now with all the recent power tool additions to it
They certainly make a difference when it comes to making accurate cuts, especially the router table. Love the clean finish it leaves on plexi.
Coming along nicely mate.