!nverse: A Highly Versatile Steam-Box Design

[EdZ]

True. I don't know how complicated it would be to swap the tubing on it, so I just assumed you'd remove the whole AIO assembly, thought that would be much more costly.
You'd still need a reservouir, though, right? Or is it possible to fill a loop without having one?

The tubing a[ppears to slide onto normal barbs so as long as you measure the ID replacing everything outside the block/pump assembly should not be too difficult. Filling & bleeding without a reservoir is always trickier though. You can use a long open T-line at the top of the loop to fill & bleed, then remove the T-line and cap off the T connector (to avoid trapping air you can submerge that section of hose in a small dish filled with water/coolant when putting the cap on) to keep things mostly compact.

 

[esplin2966]

THE PROTOTYPES ARE MADE!!!! Here are some pictures:

Our manufacturer sent us these pictures about an hour ago. Super excited!! Now all that's left is for them to ship it to us!

 

[ignsvn]

I'm not really a big fan of those slim & wide cases, but that thing is simply gorgeous

 

[michaelmitchell]

True. I don't know how complicated it would be to swap the tubing on it, so I just assumed you'd remove the whole AIO assembly, thought that would be much more costly.
You'd still need a reservouir, though, right? Or is it possible to fill a loop without having one?

Its possible to make your own AIO but requires you to spend time bleeding it with the loop open prior to using and reconnecting tubing with the radiator fittings submerged. You need to be sure to use the same kinds of tubing used on AIO coolers to minimize water vapor loss.

I actually have some ID Cooling parts sitting in my office that I am going to turn into an AIO for a small form factor case idea, but not sure when I will get around it to. When I do I will be sure to document the process well or make a short video.

 

[Phuncz]

Very nice, congrats on getting this milestone !

 

[esplin2966]

I'm not really a big fan of those slim & wide cases, but that thing is simply gorgeous

Thanks! ^_^

Very nice, congrats on getting this milestone !

Thanks man. Communicating with the manufacturer and waiting was hard, but I'm glad it was all sorted out.

 

[jeshikat]

Looks great! Now for the excruciating wait for them to make their way across the Pacific

 

[esplin2966]

Looks great! Now for the excruciating wait for them to make their way across the Pacific

Yeah haha. But at least there's a tracking number!

 

[Ricky]

Is this project dead...?

 

[Lutfij]

Well, is there a timeline when we can expect to pick such a beauty up? I meant to say that this case looks like the baumb! Great work!

 

[esplin2966]

Hi everyone, I think it's time we gave you an update.

I know that there hasn't been any news in months, and it's because there hasn't been any news. Our manufacturer basically gave us the runaround, telling us things like "We'll have the prototype ready next week" and "Our engineers are still working on it" over and over again. It took months for them to finally send something over, but a quick unboxing showed that the product was shoddily manufactured. Edges were not rounded, manufacturing tolerances are high, and there were even parts that were manufactured differently from what we specified.

We went back and forth with our manufacturer about these issues, and before we knew it, the summer was over. We had to make an executive decision: do we continue to deal with this or do we find someone new? The latter sounds appealing, but looking for a new manufacturer at this stage may result in design changes from something that we were fairly confident about. After much discussion, we decided that we cannot compromise on the quality of our product, and we do trust our current manufacturer to deliver that.

I do want to be fair to our manufacturer though. If what they eventually told us is true, their company just went through a huge restructuring, and they basically replaced all of their engineers. With all this going on, it makes sense for there to be a lot of delays. It would have been helpful if they told us right away instead of after many months, but I guess they wanted to be "nice".

Looking for a new manufacturer is a lot of work, but we believe that in the end it will be better for you, our customers. We started a new round of requests for quote, and after a down selection process, we narrowed the list down to three manufacturers in Guangdong, China. To try and speed up the selection process, one of our team members have flown out to China to personally meet and evaluate each manufacturer. We should have an update in the next few weeks.

Is this project dead...?

We are definitely still working on it. Searching for a new manufacturer will set us back, but we will work through that.

Well, is there a timeline when we can expect to pick such a beauty up? I meant to say that this case looks like the baumb! Great work!

Thanks! Unfortunately right now I can't promise a time. In a few weeks when we've heard more from our new manufacturers, I will be able to give an estimate.

=====================================================================

Last but not least, I had the chance this summer to take some nicer pictures of the !nverse prototype. Yes, the manufacturing is rough and some dimensions of the interior frame is off, but this should at least give you a better idea of what to expect of the final product aesthetically.

 

[Phuncz]

Quite the patience you have there ! This seems to not be uncommon: manufacturers oozing professionalism, only to be kept waiting endlessly. I'm guessing it's agressive planning that's the cause usually, with high-volume high-profit customers/projects being given priority with small case projects dangling at the back, waiting for a machine to become available for a while. Along with the lack of correct and professional planning going on, projects like these get pushed out to the side and end up forgotten in the huge mess of deadlines.

I'm hoping you'll land on your feet, this is an interesting case with very nice ideas ! Loving the prototype !

 

[esplin2966]

Quite the patience you have there ! This seems to not be uncommon: manufacturers oozing professionalism, only to be kept waiting endlessly. I'm guessing it's agressive planning that's the cause usually, with high-volume high-profit customers/projects being given priority with small case projects dangling at the back, waiting for a machine to become available for a while. Along with the lack of correct and professional planning going on, projects like these get pushed out to the side and end up forgotten in the huge mess of deadlines.

I'm hoping you'll land on your feet, this is an interesting case with very nice ideas ! Loving the prototype !

Thanks! In our case, I think the manufacturer also had the intention of designing and selling cases themselves, so they had even less time for us.

I actually really like the way this project turned out too! Working with manufacturers can be difficult though. I'm sure it's the same for every other case designer.

 

[Kmpkt]

I really hope you have some sort of written and signed agreement with these guys not to steal the ideas and case layout you gave them. Considering they are looking to do their own thing and they don't seem to have a tremendous amount of integrity, I'm really hoping you don't see JoeShmoe Machinist's Inverse coming to market in a few months.

 

[Phuncz]

If needed, I can provide a service that might help in that regard. At 'Thugs 4 Rent' we offer a "goon" squad of professional yet burly thugs, if any "force" needs to applied to any business deal. We do ship them internationally in sturdy, foam-packed crates and we offer discounts for returning customers. If your shipment of thugs arrived dead, please call our hotline at 1-800-THUG-4RENT.

 

[Kmpkt]

Totally fake. 1-800 numbers only have seven digits, not nine!

 

[esplin2966]

I really hope you have some sort of written and signed agreement with these guys not to steal the ideas and case layout you gave them. Considering they are looking to do their own thing and they don't seem to have a tremendous amount of integrity, I'm really hoping you don't see JoeShmoe Machinist's Inverse coming to market in a few months.

Actually, we don't have a signed agreement with our original manufacturer. I'm not that worried though, because the simple, understated aesthetic is not really a thing in China. The market there is more about the more flashy, gamer-y looks.

 

[iFreilicht]

in China

Oh boy. I hope you're right.

 

[Kmpkt]

In China I'm pretty sure there's no such thing as intellectual property rights anyhow. I guess since you were at the prototyping stage I assumed you were using a western manufacturer. I think that were you to take a look at all of the Ncase M1 rip offs floating around you might be a little more concerned.

 

[CC Ricers]

Would it be a big cost difference to go with a Taiwanese manufacturer vs. Chinese?

I think esplin2966 used the same manufacturer all throughout the development of the case. But I stumbled across a thread on /r/customcases that revealed to me that his design process was longer than I thought. I'm not sure why these designs weren't posted here but I like seeing that very first prototype going back to a shorter case. Was your pre-prototype home made?