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Concept Project: Radian - 13 Liter Dual 240 Rad ITX Chassis

Biowarejak

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Oh! Did some math and it looks like the bezel would weigh about 1.43lbs in aluminum, or 4.26lbs in steel. Either seems reasonable enough for keeping the case in place :)
 

Mrvonwyl

Cable Smoosher
Nov 8, 2017
11
18
The PSU looks good. Now with it in place I begin to realize how small the case is. What are the current messurements? And how much space is there currently for a reservoir? With the PSU at the bottom you could probably move the GPU slots down a bit as well, so there is more space up top for the radiator. If you put a rad in front of the PSU would you still be able to plugin the cables?
 

Biowarejak

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Currently the dimensions are 310mm tall, 130mm wide (going to be adjusting), and 289mm long. So in total the volume is ~11.64L. Currently there's space for a 50mm Tube Reservoir (Alphacool has them) mounted against the X's on the motherboard tray. Hoping to bring that up to 60.

With the current situation, SFX-L compatibility is limited due to the the clearance the cables need - it definitely conflicts with mounting a radiator there. If you only want a single 240 Radiator, it's fine. Normal SFX would be fine for mounting a rad there, though. And of course using an HDPlex unit as originally intended allows for dual 240mm radiators and reference length GPU support. You could use AIO solutions or even do a fully custom loop - even dual loops if you used T-Lines instead of a reservoir.

Actually, the reason why the GPU slots are so high is because the HDPlex AC/DC mounts below the card. I've checked and double checked that the card actually does not interfere with a 35.5mm rad + 25mm fan at top. The problem with the SFX unit being where it is now is that it pushes the motherboard up and into the radiator space.
 
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Biowarejak

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Turns out I had accidentally swapped a few digits around during my early modeling of the PCIE Brackets :) Oops! Way longer than they needed to be at first. Fixed. Thanks for noticing that @Mrvonwyl! Still battling with getting the retention flange properly modeled for bending - just need to figure out where to put the hole in relation to the midpoints of the slots and then it's fine. Also looking for a solution for the retention tabs at the bottom, thinking I'll just have another bent peice take care of it.

That all aside, it's shaping up! Increased reservoir compatibility up to around 63mm from the surface of the motherboard tray. Also decided on how I'm going to mount the side panels. Really want to do tempered glass but it's like $130 a set :/ If this goes the production route like I intend, those will be an optional upgrade in both clear and tinted varieties. Mounting hardware should be equally capable between that and acrylic panels - lifting hinges and push to release latch for tool-less access to the case.

Oh, and I'm running with the illuminable acrylic on the front. Really an excellent idea and resolves my concerns of wear and tear due to insertion - replacing that bit would be comparatively cheap to the whole panel.
 

K888D

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Feb 23, 2016
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Turns out I had accidentally swapped a few digits around during my early modeling of the PCIE Brackets :) Oops! Way longer than they needed to be at first. Fixed. Thanks for noticing that @Mrvonwyl! Still battling with getting the retention flange properly modeled for bending - just need to figure out where to put the hole in relation to the midpoints of the slots and then it's fine. Also looking for a solution for the retention tabs at the bottom, thinking I'll just have another bent peice take care of it.

That all aside, it's shaping up! Increased reservoir compatibility up to around 63mm from the surface of the motherboard tray. Also decided on how I'm going to mount the side panels. Really want to do tempered glass but it's like $130 a set :/ If this goes the production route like I intend, those will be an optional upgrade in both clear and tinted varieties. Mounting hardware should be equally capable between that and acrylic panels - lifting hinges and push to release latch for tool-less access to the case.

Oh, and I'm running with the illuminable acrylic on the front. Really an excellent idea and resolves my concerns of wear and tear due to insertion - replacing that bit would be comparatively cheap to the whole panel.
If you need any Acrylic panels making I'd be happy to help!
 

Mrvonwyl

Cable Smoosher
Nov 8, 2017
11
18
@Biowarejak glad I could help you :)
Good job with the improved reservoir support! And I like the tempered glass idea, i would totally buy it even with the price extra.

BTW, do you support only 2 slot GPUs or even 2.5?
With only 2 slot support you would miss out on some of the great non-reference cards, unless you require the cards to be water cooled, which is the idea i guess? (sorry, complicated sentence, I hope you get what I mean. Just want you to have that in mind as well to perfect your designs!) And there is of course the increased height due to the connectors on the watercooler blocks.

Can't wait to see the next renderings!
 

Biowarejak

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@Biowarejak glad I could help you :)
Good job with the improved reservoir support! And I like the tempered glass idea, i would totally buy it even with the price extra.

BTW, do you support only 2 slot GPUs or even 2.5?
With only 2 slot support you would miss out on some of the great non-reference cards, unless you require the cards to be water cooled, which is the idea i guess? (sorry, complicated sentence, I hope you get what I mean. Just want you to have that in mind as well to perfect your designs!) And there is of course the increased height due to the connectors on the watercooler blocks.

Can't wait to see the next renderings!

Thanks! :) The idea is to have them be watercooled, absolutely, but there's also room for 2.5 slot cards. Max length is limited to ~ 280mm though. Slightly less actually since there's mounting hardware there. Fair point about the height of the GPU Waterblock terminals, I'll see how I can provide clearance for that.

Renderings will be soonish, haven't reworked several parts yet :p
 
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Biowarejak

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Finally broke the sheet metal tool in FreeCad :) Won't unbend things now, and Protocase doesn't have that functionality in their tool yet either. Hmmm, well I did create some mockups in their tool and the prices seemed alright. Exciting! Also managed to reduce the price of the tempered glass side panels to ~$90 a set which is awesome.
 

nero626

Average Stuffer
Dec 8, 2016
61
217
damn this project is exactly what i envisioned and wanted for my old build if i had the CAD and manufacturing skills to do it, but it ended up pretty unpolished with some wasted space, quickly finish this so i can migrate my case over XD
 
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Biowarejak

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Thanks for all the support! Sorry I haven't been updating recently, I've had to work an awful lot and had a bit of a crisis concerning the case.

Essentially I wanted to up the volume for the larger cards, but I now feel that's best suited for a larger sibling of Radian. In the meantime I'm going to attempt redoing the bit that broke my "unbend" function. New renders soon.
 
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Biowarejak

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Official Update #4




This was a laborious process, sorry about the wait. Everything I just showed you is WIP so don't pay too much attention to mounting holes and stuff. Went with neutral colors this time. Anyway, I've made changes!

What's New:
  • 1.98mm Stainless Steel Bezel
    • Magnetic dust filters, and can be powdercoated white!
  • Tighter Bend Radii
    • Due to the thinner material
  • Added in the front piece of acrylic for LED's
    • Needs to be able to diffuse the light though, not sold on this
  • Split Vent Design
    • Structural integrity concern prompted this
  • Dimensions:
    • Length: 288mm
      • I believe this was accidental...
    • Width: 135mm
      • Increased!
    • Height: 307mm
      • Reduced!
    • Overall Volume: 11.94L
      • Yikes!
Honestly I'd love to see this using the Sky Slots from Josh's S4 lineup, but I feel the current version is good for adjustability if the tolerances aren't exact on the bends of the bezel.

Also I found out why the sheet metal unfolding tool for FreeCad broke. It turns out that it requires the entire sheet to be the same thickness in order to work. :)

 
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Biowarejak

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These renderings look beautiful as always! I like the current state.
@Biowarejak It seems like you got rid of the SFX PSU idea?
Glad to hear it :) it's not gone quite yet, looking to see if it can be mounted via a bracket to the tray. Changing the material required me to adjust the height and now it just doesn't quite fit where it did before.