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Weirdest Case Mod You've Ever Seen
mattman writes: "Here's the stangest case modification you've ever seen. Someone assembled a pile of computer parts, hooked them up without a case and covered the lot with quick-dry spray foam. The result is a light-weight computer ready for LAN parties." This is wrong.
This is wrong
I really like when there is a good explanation like that because...
McCartney fans pay bus tickets. [...] Lennon fans too, with discretion.
looks like he's been looking at too many pr0n sites. =)
my other computer is your Windows(tm) box...
Probably not - he only has a pentium (I) 200 in there.
If you were going to try this with anything faster, water cooling would be a good idea, just remember to hook up the ends of tubing sticking out of the foam to a water source before you turn it on.
It's heat resistant up to 100C and more or less inflammable.
This is such an unfortunate word...
me and the family just dissimilated my PC and started crapping all over it. By the end of the month i'll be covered completely and we'll put it in the fridge to solidify.
One hell of a case for LAN parties
Occasional refreezing will be needed though..
When will I end this grieving ? When will my future begin ?
It was great -- everything fit in nicely and it was easy to move around. I was constantly a bit worried that it'd catch fire, but it didn't. The thing lived for about a month until I put together enough money to order my current case (a bit-ass SuperMicro with a mess of drive bays and fans).
Oh, and I got to drink the beer, too. That was the best part.
Every year during my review, I just pray the words "slashdot.org" aren't mentioned.
Yeah yeah...we all know what he was REALLY doing. He needed to test something before he used the foam to make a mold for his man-parts so that he could go build naughty sandcastles on the beach this summer.
...All I can say is that my life is pretty strange...
Way back when I interned at Cray, I had an idea to build an aquarium case filled with Florinert, complete with some fake goldfish and one of those little bubbling pirate's chests at the bottom.
The problem is that Florinert is pretty expensive; one of the techs estimated $200 a gallon.
I'll bet mineral oil would work dandy, though, assuming you could keep and condensation out of the tank...
Every year during my review, I just pray the words "slashdot.org" aren't mentioned.
Can we have a "user was in too much of a hurry to get first post to actually read the article"-rating? This guy needs it...
It was covered in on Slashdot However, use the previous link, the story's link is no longer valid. You've been warned.
http://www.maximumpc.com/ did more or less this.. but they left the computer in the case and filled the case full of foam.
Though their computer would not boot after they filled it with foam.
Ok, the foam is an obvious issue, but..
He's running Windows (cheap shot)
It's an Apple HDD (look carefully at the label)
Is that a Voodoo in there? (check out that classic loopback cable)
That's an old NIC (planning on using a transceiver?)
Yeah, I know his specs are listed at the top of the page, but I guess it was just kinda fun to point the out.
I'm against picketing, but I don't know how to show it.
You could mount them in a wall of your house and it'd double as insulation.
God spoke to me
I would LOVE to see him try to get that computer through the airport in one piece. It looks about as non-suspicious as a wooden gun.
(assuming that's possible (the part about Chihuly having a sense of shame (I know Seattlites will understand me here, but I've heard he's left his mark elsewhere in the world too (and on behalf of all Seattle, I apologize))))
Build stuff. Stuff that walks, stuff that rolls, whatever.
It was just eye candy, but at least its *good* eye candy.
The heavy equipment needed for water cooling would defeat the purpose of having a light foam case, so I was thinking a series of ducts.
:-) The duct idea is one I think would be most reasonable, if someone were crazy enough to relly want to try this with a modern PC. The foam idea is kind of neat, though, in a weird way--you could probably sculpt it into just about any shape. Just imagine, you could show up at a big LAN party with a PC-sculpture of the Q3 logo... ;-)
Picture a thin plastic duct leading from one end, to the CPU, to the GPU, and to anywhere else on a given modern system that would get particularly hot--northbridge on some systems, perhaps. *Then* with the ducts in place, one could encase the whole thing in foam and have an intake on one side and an out-take on the other, with a high-capacity fan on each side to keep the air moving and pump the heat out quck.
Then of course one could power on the PC and hope the thing doesn't overheat anyway.
Chasing Amy
(We all chase Amy...)
"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws"-Tacitus
Would work nicely if they used the foam from this
article.
...he didn't pay for that extra Windows license.
Let's hope the Microsoft gestapo doesn't get wind of his little project and decide to investigate.
"Adequacy.org: Where congenital stupidity is not an option, but a requirement."
This goes to show that there still is plenty of fun left on the net.
Looks like he just plugs in a HDD and goes. Wonder if he has had any trouble with it slipping? Drive is external to the blob making it a little more delicate than pictured. (Still cool though.)
Still he gets plenty of credit from me just for the creative effort if nothing else.
Bizarre...
Blogging because I can...
Now all he needs to do is order a chia pet and put a layer of dirt and seeds on the foam.
The only computer that requires a weedeater for maintance.
Banned from moderation 01-27-2002. Fuck you too
I'd hope it would be obvious to most people, but I wouldn't want to use this for any mission critical computers
Oh no! I wish I'd read your comment earlier; I've just moved our high-traffic e-commerce sites across to these (it was a real bitch pushing them into the rack, I can tell you!) So you think the dual celerons overclocked to 1.9GHZ might overheat when serving 500,000 hits per day??
Back to the drawing board...
Code, Hardware, stuff like that.
One of them Horta creatures from Star Trek Original Series.
cat
from the looks and description it's just a simple ventilation space for the CPU with just one opening. I was thinking more along the lines of a real duct system, specifically designed for maximum airflow over the CPU, GPU, northbridge and anything else that may get toasty on a modern system. What I mean is much like the pre-made duct system they sell for overclockers--I forget what the thing is called, but it's specifically designed to direct the airflow from the intake, over the CPU, and out of the case, unlike with just slapping a fan in the front and back which isn't nearly as efficient.
If airflow is directed very efficiently and driven by both an intake fan and an exhaust fan, even a modern CPU and GPU should be cool-able, whereas with this design the guy specifically warned against just doing the same with a newer, hotter machine. The hard part would be configuring a system of ducts to provide the most efficient airflow possible for at least 3 and possibly 4 components, but it could be done.
Chasing Amy
(We all chase Amy...)
"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws"-Tacitus
There might just be another way to look at this... don't take it as a "finished" deal, more as a proof of concept to be extended further.
I have a PC running inside a Wizards of the Coast cardboard box (K6-2/300), and have been considering other wacky ways of doing the case for it (no, I will not just use a spare PC case
The PC isn't going to be upgraded any further, as it's already just a linux development workstation and test web/db server. I could take the assembled components, build a basic cardboard frame around the assembly to keep a rectangular (1 PCI card height) form factor, and then simply fill the interior with spray foam. This would yield two benefits: (1) The exterior cardboard frame doesn't actually support the components once the foam has solidified, so it doesn't have to be strong (and could probably be removed afterward), (2) the PC is still a rectangular form factor and *very* stable (no cards coming lose in this thing!).
Yep, this is definitely a go. I'll be headed to a hardware store in the morning, and my finished result should at least be more aesthetically pleasing than the "sheep mound" these guys built
I was thinking, since it is running windows and has the right shape and texture, why not just finish it with a coat of brown paint?
looks like a sheep.
"Hey sis, this can of soup spells KARMA POINTS!"
hmm... for fun I enjoy launching DDoS attacks against 127.87.42.5
I like to have a high-powered system available to me when I'm on the road, and my budget doesn't allow for a high-end laptop (plus I don't like them). Given that when I'm on site there are generally extra monitors available, and peripherals can fit in spare space in my suitcase, this is just the sort of thing I'd like to have my computer in so I can take it on airplanes with me instead of shipping it or sending it with baggage. Just peachy!
"You're never ready, just less unprepared."
Neat idea, but the execution is horrible.
Surely the next step is to create a nice mould for the case, and inject the mould with the foam. I've done pretty much the same thing using cans of insulation foam (used to fill large holes in walls). I took large balloons and filled them full of foam, then cut the balloon away from the foam. This gave a really nice teardrop of hard foam, that was very light.
Off the top of my head, I fugure the same thing can be done using a styrofoam cooler box with a PC in it, fill the thing full of foam after blanking off the internal guts with card, and when it's set crack the case off and shape with carving tools.
The beauty of doing this is that you could, with some serious planning, create some amazing looking designs that had built in air ducts that forced the cool intake air to spiral around heatsinks and hot components. I imagine a nautilus shell would be easy to do - you'd end up with a PC that looked really cool and would be built with great cooling capabilities from a single fan or set of fans.
Shell shaped quiet PC anyone?
Now wash your hands.
This has been brewing in my mind for some time now. I have seen transparant cases, transparent harddrives, tacks and now foam cases. Where are the laptop mods. Please post any links you have to laptop mods that are not stickers and spraypaint. This has been bugging me for some time. I want in on the mod action.
Ascii artist &
I've come across the idea of mounting electrical components in a moulded foam support while searching for general info on EPP foam. I don't have any experience with this myself, but it does look like an interesting idea.
0 01
Try searching google for "E-PAC" EPP foam.
The URL for an article on the subject is http://www.cconvergence.com/article/CTM20000515S0
The EPP design guide that I originally found is a pdf file that can be downloaded from http://www.tuscarora.com/components/epac.htm
I am not an animal! I am a human being! I am a man!
-- he's not heavy, he's my sysadmin!
Gives a new meaning to the word "shitbox"
-Rick
Due to the one-of-a-kind nature of the NHP200NC, reproduction is impossible and orders are thus futile.
That thing would give me nightmares.
Someone you trust is one of us.
At least, you can overclock it without any scruples...
Is it only me, or does this also remind you of one of the Roger Dean designs for Yes tours in the 70's? No, I'm not that old, I've just seen the pictures and loved the music...
(this is not a
Here you go
Need to get away?
Adirondack Vacations
You obviously never kept garter snakes as pets before...
Is this the new iMac?
jrbd =)
I've seen places use excessive fire-proofing as a decorative feature.
I wonder if it gets them better insurance rates?
When this guy upgrades his system and sells his old parts on eBay, you'll know it.
(Hey, what the.... this video card is covered with some sort of bubbly foam! Doesn't he know he should package things with foam peanuts, *not* spray foam, before shipping!)
If you are ever at a LAN party on a sinking ship, you are in good shape with this mod! :-) Of course, you would have to coat your mouse as well, which could make it a little hard to use.
Weaseling out of things is important to learn. It's what separates us from the animals... except the weasel. -
By the end of the month i'll be covered completely
You know, this is really something you oughta take over here.
Why bother.
Eloi are stupid, throw morlocks at them!
Yeah, but unfortunately it's not going to be any use for LAN parties, as the story suggests. That's a shame, because it would definitely stand out at the LAN parties.
Follow me
Except for the fact this blob isn't yellow, I think this must be how Douglas Adams envisioned the Vogon Constructor Fleet.
Why don't this guy spraypaint it shiny brown like a giant freshly laid turd?
I'm at a loss for understanding what made him do this. What a wreck. Not only would it be nearly impossible to fix or upgrade anything, the case seems as much impractical as it is an eyesore. Happily it seems to have been mostly put together as a joke, and the $40 pricetag is agreeable.
Re. casemods, was it ever a good idea to strip these machines down and removing the shielding in order to install big plexiglass windows? I'm sure there was a good reason why we wanted the cases to shield against RF interference. Cutting big holes in the cases or omitting them entirely seems like a questionable practice to me.
For the handyman of the future, quick dry foam (aptly called 'Good Stuff' in the cans I get) is the answer to all your maintanence problems.
Throw out your duct tape -- the future is now!
This stuff really is something and it's just gotten big in the past few years. Instead of installing itchy sheet after sheet of that pink insulation stuff in houses, the new way is just to spray it in. There's a big movement to make dome homes with it too. Check out this.
the Trapper Keeper has merged with his computer
Here's One with Fringe!
--
-stubbie
It's admirably Cthulhian.
**>>BELCH
Aquariums are old hat. For the ultimate in geekiness, make a computer lava lamp.
One line blog. I hear that they're called Twitters now.
According to this site a Pentium 200 MMX's maximum power is 16 watts. Some of the very hottest 8-) newer CPUs expend quite a bit more. A 2 gigahertz P4 maxs out at 100 watts. Ouch! But 16 watts is still quite a bit.
It's too bad the author didn't take a close up picture of how he arranged the cooling channels.
How about putting a cup holder in it so I can get my drinks off the desk. Nothing worse then spilling drnhiks all over your desk during a nice Quake match.
-=BigDaddyMike=-
He should paint it a sickly pink-gray color, draw lines around the bumps and along crevices, and then name it... Mother Brain.
I've known plenty of friends who ran bare pc's with a power supply sitting on a desk and no case for several years with no visits from the FCC. This wouldn't put out any more RF noise than that setup.
My first thought: "How do you upgrade the RAM?"
Second: "Finally, a machine you can kick with impunity! (or just your foot)"
Kevin Fox
We're getting so many of these case mod stories, how about giving it its own category?
Yeah, I don't think it's a major issue.
I make racks out of hand formed portland cement and newspapers mushed together into a slurry and then pressed into shape with nothing but gloved hands. I can easily stack four PC units along with room for a few audio amps in this kind of rack that goes up to the ceiling taking up the floor space that one ugly ol' PC case would take up.
I just lay the boards out on the racks with the PSUs and HDs off to the side and the ethernet cables dripping off of one end. It's a far cry from portable, but if you tend to collect quite a few machines, a rack is the way to go. I have way less problems with boards laying out open on my hand made racks than I do with the few machines I still have in conventional cases. And, when I do have problems they're way easier to fix and swapping parts is a breeze. Cheap cases suck and expensive ones are . . . expensive. I say build your own racks.
By the way, I got inspired to make these racks after I made a squashed spheroid sub-woofer encloscure out of the same cement/newspaper mixture about three feet in diameter and weighting at least a hundred pounds. It's the funky jelly donut from hell. This thing thumps big time. I highly recommend it although my downstairs neighbors mourn the day I built it.
Is that Tetsuo's computer?
Rather than a shapeless mass, he should have put the parts in a box lined with wax paper. Wax paper does not adhear (much) to spray foam. It would then look more like a giant rice krispy treat.
Boobies never hurt anyone. - Sherry Glaser.
Apparently Cartman's Trapper-Keeper has taken over the computer!
Run before it's too late!
iMac RAM (at least on the Kihei case, which is what I have) is pretty easy to get to. The real problem is if your hard drive blows.
Apple is sorta-kinda easy-access on most of their systems. I've gotten the sense that it's quite a bit easier on the first-generation iMacs than it is on the second-gen.
BTW, I strongly suspect a modern Mac, or at least one a lot more recent than this, would do better than most PCs being foamed like this. The PowerPC line as a whole is pretty stingy with power compared to the overwhelming majority of x86 chips (though Crusoe is probably better).
/Brian
And unlike this case mod, they're very pretty and functional. And you can build one yourself.
www.monolithicdome.com
You see? You see? Your stupid minds! Stupid! Stupid!
If you're on the subject of weird pc cases, then check out the toilet pc, its got to be seen to be believed.
Personally, I think it would be inconvenient to make one yourself.
After all that trouble to make a customised case, it would only take one drunken guy to 'christen' the pc case....
"thanks to Wemblie for parts and help"
nice to see that Wemblie Fraggle found work after the show was canceled.
"...tried to run MS Windows on it."
Well no wonder they expect it to crash.
I see even classic Slashdot is now pretty much unusable on dial up anymore.
My computer really is a piece of shit!
--
Text added to bypass the lameness filter
Fair doos!
Lucky you don't have a dog!
So, how to put a cooling duct to every component topside that feels hot?
I did some lost wax casting when I was a teenager. In that process you model something out of wax, then cover the model with clay. You fire the clay in a kiln, and the wax burns away. Then you can pour molten metal into the negative space where the clay once was, and when the metal cools, you have a recreation in metal, of the original wax model. But we don't need to do that step here.
Here we only require the negative spaces within the mass of foam.
Well, wax is out. I thought one might use balloons, the long skinny kind. Blow them up, or fill them full of water. Make your network of cooling ducts. Spray on your foam, then burst the balloons.
Bits of balloon stuck to hot chips might smell bad you say? Then get someone you know, who wears them, to save their nylons, when they get runs in them. Put some silly putty, or something else that is very plastic, and put it in the toe of the nylon. Then put the balloon in after it. Tie a knot in the other end of the nylon.
The role of the silly putty is to make firm contact with the chip for which you want to provide a cooling duct. Hopefully, when the foam has set, and you burst the balloon, you can use the nylon to pull out the silly putty and the balloon detritus. What if you can't pull out the nylon without destroying the foam? Then put one nylon inside another when you make your sausage, and only pull out the inner one.
What scorching nylon doesn't smell any better than scorching rubber? Then, when you are setting up your ducts, cut holes in the outer nylon that are just big enough to fit over the chips. The duct that goes over the graphics processor on your video card? Maybe you want to blow that balloon up after you fit it between the cards.
This approach may be even more work, but it has the added benefit of making the whol thing look even more hideous.
If you were really careful you could make your ductwork out of ice.