PC Side Panel Modding !! Help

rash219 · Sep 9, 2007, 01:18 AM

well ok here it is....actually its quite simple....the first thing i have noticed with many people is that they cut their side panel and fix in the plexiglas why i dont know

....what i want to do is make the entire side panel itself with the plexiglas....possibly a thin sheet that is still durable under pressure.....now i dont want to show the entire inside of the case...just the mobo area so i will cover the back/one side with a print...maybe a sticker/poster print.......from the game fear.....as seen in the images below...the black will sorta be glossy

http://www.bagthatpic.com/imag...d=31&file=tLM82480.jpg (dimensions are in INCHES)
http://www.bagthatpic.com/imag...d=31&file=HDB83462.jpg

p.s. i did the sample design myself

The white areas are all transparent....i will put in 2 red cold cathode rods inside.....as for attaching it i was thinking of getting 4 of those small L shaped tool carpenters use and sticking it to the top and bottom of the case with those double sided tape.......so it hold the plexiglas

ok so there thats my idea........now the question are

1) What do you think...........is it possible ??
2) How thin is actually safe to begin with to be a PC side panel
3) where can i get the plexiglas custom cut .......someone said Lowes on this forum but i can find any info on their site

4)and do stores like fed-ex do custom sticker printing

Any other comments are also welcomed!!!!

ChaosMinionX · Sep 9, 2007, 06:59 AM

My suggestion as far as the "sticker" goes is to find an auto shop that does vinyl prints and cutting, they should be able to help you out....and that mod is completely doable.

procupine14 · Sep 9, 2007, 03:53 PM

as far as thickness of your plexiglass goes it doesn't have to be that thick...my entire case is acrylic and it is failry thin (side panels are less than 1/4" thick) and this thing is a tank....however....plexiglass is far more flexible. I would suggest...if you can find it....to go with an acrylic sheet personally. I'd say that the side panels on my case are approx 1/8" maybe a little thicker

ChaosMinionX · Sep 9, 2007, 11:46 PM

Lexan > Plexiglass... Plexi is very hard to work with especially when doing side panels. Its very fragile when used for that.

rash219 · Sep 10, 2007, 02:31 AM

Is acrylic, lexan and plexiglas the same thing

H3X4D3C1M4L · Sep 15, 2007, 06:03 AM

No.... lexan looks the same but is much easier to work with. Plexiglass is good but harder to worth with. Acrylic scratches easy (as I have learned with fish tanks)

Sep 9, 2007, 01:18 AM	#1
rash219 DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 2 Rep Power: 0	PC Side Panel Modding !! Help well ok here it is....actually its quite simple....the first thing i have noticed with many people is that they cut their side panel and fix in the plexiglas why i dont know....what i want to do is make the entire side panel itself with the plexiglas....possibly a thin sheet that is still durable under pressure.....now i dont want to show the entire inside of the case...just the mobo area so i will cover the back/one side with a print...maybe a sticker/poster print.......from the game fear.....as seen in the images below...the black will sorta be glossy http://www.bagthatpic.com/imag...d=31&file=tLM82480.jpg (dimensions are in INCHES) http://www.bagthatpic.com/imag...d=31&file=HDB83462.jpg p.s. i did the sample design myself The white areas are all transparent....i will put in 2 red cold cathode rods inside.....as for attaching it i was thinking of getting 4 of those small L shaped tool carpenters use and sticking it to the top and bottom of the case with those double sided tape.......so it hold the plexiglas ok so there thats my idea........now the question are 1) What do you think...........is it possible ?? 2) How thin is actually safe to begin with to be a PC side panel 3) where can i get the plexiglas custom cut .......someone said Lowes on this forum but i can find any info on their site 4)and do stores like fed-ex do custom sticker printing Any other comments are also welcomed!!!!

Sep 9, 2007, 06:59 AM	#2
ChaosMinionX USB 3 dot oh Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 1,911 Rep Power: 47 System Specs	My suggestion as far as the "sticker" goes is to find an auto shop that does vinyl prints and cutting, they should be able to help you out....and that mod is completely doable. __________________ ::Heatware:: How you can help DriverHeaven by using Digg!

Sep 9, 2007, 03:53 PM	#3
procupine14 Why is it Beeping!?!?! Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: USA, Missouri Posts: 1,400 Rep Power: 58 System Specs	as far as thickness of your plexiglass goes it doesn't have to be that thick...my entire case is acrylic and it is failry thin (side panels are less than 1/4" thick) and this thing is a tank....however....plexiglass is far more flexible. I would suggest...if you can find it....to go with an acrylic sheet personally. I'd say that the side panels on my case are approx 1/8" maybe a little thicker __________________ HTPC/file server: Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit - AMD Phenom x4 9850 - 4GB OCZ DDR2 800 (2x2GB) - 1TB WD Black - 4 x 1TB Hitachi DeskStar in RAID 5 - ATi TV Wonder Digital Cable Tuner - HIS Raedon 4850 512MB - ASRock N68C-S UCC mobo - OCZ ModExtreme Pro 500W PSU GF's Gaming PC: Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit - AMD Phenom 9850 - 4GB OCZ DDR2 1066 - 500GB Western Digital GP - HIS Raedon 5770 1GB - ASUS M3A78-EM - Zalman 650W PSU Media Streamer: Win 7 Pro 64-bit - AMD Athlon x2 3200+ - 4GB SuperTalent DDR2 800 - 250GB SeaGate Barracuda - MSI K9N6PGM2-V2 - ASUS Raedon 5450 SILENT - FSP group 250W PSU

Sep 9, 2007, 11:46 PM	#4
ChaosMinionX USB 3 dot oh Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 1,911 Rep Power: 47 System Specs	Lexan > Plexiglass... Plexi is very hard to work with especially when doing side panels. Its very fragile when used for that. __________________ ::Heatware:: How you can help DriverHeaven by using Digg!

Sep 10, 2007, 02:31 AM	Thread Starter #5
rash219 DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 2 Rep Power: 0	Is acrylic, lexan and plexiglas the same thing

Sep 15, 2007, 06:03 AM	#6
H3X4D3C1M4L DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 6,794 Rep Power: 0	No.... lexan looks the same but is much easier to work with. Plexiglass is good but harder to worth with. Acrylic scratches easy (as I have learned with fish tanks)