TJ Maxx

**clocker** · 06-12-2006, 11:55 PM

Progress has been made.
Not that you'll be able to tell...It's weird how several hours of tedius work can make such a small visual impact.
Kinda depressing actually.

Anyway, much of the drudgework is finished.
All of the drilling/tapping/holesawing etc. that needed to be done before paint was begun is completed and the interior panels are done as well.
The necessary "pass through holes"- motherboard wiring, reservoir outlet and CPU inlet tube- were laid out and cut.

The reservoir needed a bit of customization.
Originally, both the inlet and outlet barbs were perpendicular to the rez body itself.
This is fine for the return from the GPU but not so good for the outlet to the pump.
That outlet barb needed to go straight down, through the floor and right into the pump top.
I also needed to drill two mounting holes to fasten the rez to the subfloor- I wanted the unit to appear free standing.
Some drilling and tapping produces this:

The intake (with the internal seperator tube) is original while the old outlet now sports a fashionable plug and the new outlet is the barb on the bottom.

A word about the paint...
The TJ's exterior finish is a velvety matte black- very striking but easy to overdo.
I wanted a finish that would compliment the matte but add a bit of pizazz so I went with Hammertone "hammered" black.
This finish has a bit more sheen and also some texture, not to mention it's far more durable than my other favorite color, straight satin black.

Here is the painted case assembled with the mirrored subfloor panel and rez installed...

While the case was stripped I also installed the black Lian-li caster set and replaced the power switch with a Bulgin ring lit switch (the LED will indicate HDD activity).
Neither of those show up well in this pic but they will be featured when I get to the relevant areas of the case.
Now that the rez has been mounted I can locate the pump mount and also install the radiator and PSU.
The new DD NV-78 GPU block arrived today so the loop is all on hand.

Also in the mail was my much anticipated Nixie clock.
I'm kinda wondering if I can incorporate into this build somehow...

**lynx** · 06-13-2006, 12:26 AM

Originally Posted by clocker

While the case was stripped I also installed the black Lian-li caster set and replaced the power switch with a Bulgin ring lit switch (the LED will indicate HDD activity).
Neither of those show up well in this pic

Or indeed at all. Perhaps you could get worldpease to call round with his camera, he seems to have a grasp for these things.

**suprafreak6** · 06-14-2006, 01:51 AM

hows the progress clocker

(Also i was wondering when do i get my 5th star)

**Virtualbody1234** · 06-14-2006, 02:31 AM

Originally Posted by suprafreak6

(Also i was wondering when do i get my 5th star)

Check at the bottom of this page:
https://filesharingtalk.com/vb3/showgroups.php?

**clocker** · 06-14-2006, 10:59 AM

Originally Posted by suprafreak6

hows the progress clocker

The rad has been drilled and tapped to accept 6-32 screws for the fan mounting.
Why the manufacturers don't do this for you is a mystery...I absolutely hate "self-tapping" screws (which they fail to provide anyway) and the procedure is tedious and fraught with peril- one slip and your matrix is toast.

Fortunately, I didn't screw up.

Now I can begin to mount the parts in the lower compartment.

**suprafreak6** · 06-15-2006, 03:09 AM

man sounds like its moving along...how do you find time to do this stuff...
i barely have time to come on this site...but i stick it in everytime i possibly can...
also another friggin 1k of posts until my 5th star...that stinks..hopefully ill be upgraded to mod or something...dought it...im not cool enough

**clocker** · 06-15-2006, 01:07 PM

Originally Posted by suprafreak6

...how do you find time to do this stuff...

At night I think about the next steps and the sequence necessary to complete them.
I usually get up around 3:30/4 AM and work for a few hours before leaving for the shop.
On my way I stop and get any needed hardware or plexi or whatever so I'm ready for the next morning.
Big stuff (like painting) has to wait for my weekend.

The lower compartment has had it's mirrored floorpanel cut and installed so the PSU and rad can be test fitted.

**pic specifically composed to include the black LL casters thus satisfying Lynx's unnatural craving to see them ahead of time. Sorry but the Bulgin switch will remain a mystery for now...
As more components are added it gets increasingly difficult to avoid conflicts/interference and sure enough, I've run into two issues.
The first, and easiest to deal with, concerns the rad.
*gratuitous shot of rad with Sythe S-Flex fans installed*

I had hoped to center it between the casefloor and the subfloor, unfortunately this almost completely obscures the passthrough hole in the subfloor where the motherboard wiring will go.
So far I've resisted the urge to drill holes in the original case structure...the entire case could be restored to stock condition (even the paint could be removed, I suppose) without visible evidence of my alterations.
This means working within the holes that Silverstone provides in the subfloor and that inconveniently leads to this conflict.
I've decided to mount the rad directly on the floor which leaves about 1" clearance for the cabling and (hopefully) will have minimal impact on airflow.

The second issue is similar but I'm responsible for the screw up.
When I transferred the location of the passthrough hole that the rad>CPU tube needs I made two errors...the first was not accounting for the width of my t-square base.
This rookie mistake offset the tube 3/8" from the actual center of the CPU socket...a visual boo-boo and probably only noticable to me.
I could live with this but it gets worse.

When I originally mocked the PSU into place to check clearances, I did not have the modular cables screwed in.
The Hiper's "stereo plug" type connectors are quite long and not flexible so the effective length of the PSU is considerably longer than just the casing itself, a fact I did not take into account at the time.

Well, I have to deal with it now because the tube will not clear the thicket of PSU connectors.
Either this tube run will have to be routed differently or possibly I can make a custom bulkhead fitting to solve the issue.
I'm pondering options now.