Stari89

[MOC] PC Case With 3D Printed Parts

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I am building a custom LEGO computer case. To mount PC components to LEGO bricks, I require special 3D printed parts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by Stari89
new video

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My god, This is a very interesting project. 
Wonder what will like looks like with RGB on.

Also, will you consider having a glasses side panel?
It will be awesome if you can see through inside.

Awesome! And be aware of the weight when mounting the GPU(s).

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Unusual but very interesting project. Very creative with the custom parts.

Just wondering what do you plan to do to prevent heat damage? LEGO is just plastic after all...

 

Edited by Rudivdk
typo and weird self-quote...

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Thank you for your kind comments! :)

3 hours ago, SamuelYsc said:

My god, This is a very interesting project. 
Wonder what will like looks like with RGB on.

Also, will you consider having a glasses side panel?
It will be awesome if you can see through inside.

Awesome! And be aware of the weight when mounting the GPU(s).

I am not planning for RGB yet, but after everything essential is done I will probably go for something more "over the top". Same with the glass side panel.

The weight challenge has occurred to me (especially those chonky CPU heatsinks). This is why I am building with LEGO Technic bricks and I am confident I can make a very sturdy construction. Just to be sure, I plan to use brass insert nuts to properly secure motherboard spacers into the 3D printed plastic.

Brass-Insert-Nuts-Injection-Hot-melt-Brass-Nut-Double-Twill-Knurled-Brass-Nut-Hot-Pressed-into.jpg.33b5e1674d818e4778610468b22f47de.jpg

1 hour ago, Rudivdk said:

Unusual but very interesring project. Very creative with the custom parts.

Just wondering what do you plan to do to prevent heat damage? LEGO is just plastic after all...

 

Prototypes are printed with the PLA plastic which might indeed be a problem, because PLA starts deforming at ~60°C. Final 3D printed bricks will be made out of the ABS plastic (same as LEGOs) which starts deforming at around ~80°C. No computer component should reach this temperature, but I will make sure everything is ventilated properly anyway. This is the reason I started with PC fan mounts!

Cheers

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Just now, Stari89 said:

ABS plastic (same as LEGOs) which starts deforming at around ~80°C

Cool, I wasn't aware that ABS could withstand such high temperatures. And the fans should have given me a hint that you already thought about it :wink:

Keep it up, you're definitely on to something special here :thumbup:

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Good luck! Can't wait to see more of this project!

10 hours ago, Stari89 said:

Final 3D printed bricks will be made out of the ABS plastic (same as LEGOs) which starts deforming at around ~80°C. No computer component should reach this temperature

It might, on some high-end game CPU and GPU will easily get up to 70+C, specifically in summer. But if you're running at full water cooling it will better.
Just for reference, my spec is i7 8770k and GTX1070ti, running the COD:MW full setting on at1080p, the CPU is around 68C and GPU is 70C. My CPU is running water cooling. The room temperature is around 28C.
I will suggest upgrading the material of the motherboard backplate. Unless this computer build aims for some easy jobs but not gaming.

I just afraid the bricks will slowly and slowly melt after a long time running the computer.

I guess I am worrying too much.

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I agree some parts can exceed thermal limit for ABS. I will need to proceed very carefully in order not to damage anything. Although CPU and GPU are actively cooled with huge heatsinks and although I do not expect critical temperature to reach any LEGOs or 3D printed bricks, I still intend to take as many precautions as possible:

  • direct heat radiation on the motherboard backplate: The backplate will feature a huge hole so no plastic should be near the rear side of the CPU, VRMs and RAM. The hole will double as a CPU heatsink access point.
  • warm-up and cool-down cycle: The internal temperature of PC cases is usually considerably higher from the outside temperature. The case warms up and cools down each time the PC is used. As we know, materials expand when heated and contract when cooled. This may cause some plastic warping in the long run and I expect this to be the greatest challenge of this project. I currently have no solution for this issue except trying to build sturdily and then testing, testing, testing.

Cheers

Edited by Stari89

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On 5/10/2020 at 8:37 PM, Rudivdk said:

Cool, I wasn't aware that ABS could withstand such high temperatures. And the fans should have given me a hint that you already thought about it :wink:

Keep it up, you're definitely on to something special here :thumbup:

But the Parts exposed to heat will also degrade over time. If not structurally, then likely colorwise. The heat will promote discoloration/yellowing. But these parts can of course easily be replaced. Another thing which comes to my mind is dust. It must be horrible to keep everything clean. So many holes etc. :-)

Nevertheless cool project!

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IMG-20200615-113245.jpg

Due to the World Pandemic I am still missing few things from AliExpress to continue my work. Because I am very impatient, I can't wait to show my progress, so here's a photo of the motherboard tray prototype.

The tray is designed to accomodate any (standard) sized motherboard. Mini-ITX? Just take the white 3D-printed brick. Micro-ATX? Add yellow. Full-sized ATX? Add orange.

Brass insert nuts are very secure. I was not able to pull them out after they set in. The surrounding PLA plastic broke first.

Cheers!

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Nice project! 

I've just bought my self a 3D printer and I have som projects in my mind (not lego :classic:). 

How do you mount those brass  insert nuts? 

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How strong and compatible with Lego are the custom parts you're printing? It can be hard with 3D printing to match Lego tolerances. Just look at the quality of the parts produced by some clone brands...

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On 6/16/2020 at 4:19 AM, lmdesigner42 said:

How strong and compatible with Lego are the custom parts you're printing? It can be hard with 3D printing to match Lego tolerances. Just look at the quality of the parts produced by some clone brands...

I would say my custom parts are good enough for my application.

The PLA (which I use for prototyping) has enough strength, the ABS (which I will use later for final assembly) is even stronger (exactly the same material as LEGO). Although pins fit better in original LEGO beams, they fit well in my 3D printed bricks. This took some trial and error until I got it right. Everything is held together very securely. I did not print any studs, axle holes, gears, etc ... yet and for this project I don't think I will need to.

If I were missing an existing brick for some project I would rather buy an original LEGO brick trough 3rd party (like Bricklink) instead of 3D printing a replacement. Every time.

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The design for the rear expansion card slots is done. Today I was able to print the first of three pieces. When I'm done, I'll do another video. Cheers!

gpu-mount-1.jpg

gpu-mount-2.jpg

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1 hour ago, Mechbuilds said:

I find this project fascinating! 

+1.

I've been checking back here on every update, and although I could never imagine myself doing this (I haven't got the tools for it, nor the desire to stray away from being a purist), it is growing on me more and more. Can't wait to actually see a full cage emerging.

Fascinating is indeed the correct word for this!

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It looks pretty interesting, but actually how many parts will be Lego original parts? 

On most pictures you show custom 3d printed stuff and rarely regular liftarms. So all in all it will be Lego built or Lego inspired case? 

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@Ctan check the vids in the opening post ('part 3' is a good example). He uses the printed parts for mounting components in a 'normal' LEGO built case. The updates indeed focus much on the custom parts only...

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