I have acquired parts for a very strong personal computer. However, I’d like to trick out the case with art work, copper plumbing, brass gauges, re-paint the case, etc. However, as this is MakerSpace, I’d like some input from various crafts and am open to artistic suggestions. Steampunk is one direction, but I am open to suggestions.
I am a life-long programmer, not a computer builder. It will be a multi-CPU, 128gig ram, SSD, yada, yada, and needs a case worthy of an art project, yet technical of appearance.
My budget is flexible, but I already have the actual computer components, the base case, and some trinkets that MIGHT be included. I’d like to wrap this up by Thanksgiving. I can meet almost any time as I am semi-retired.
Myself and some others have done PC mods. I’d recommend starting with a decent PC case design like a Corsair or Cooler Master and adding to it. @David_K_Kessinger did some steampunk props just like you have described, he might be able to help. If you need any 3D printed custom parts I may be able to help with that.
I have a new Thermaltake Chaser A71 for a starter. Full tower. If it is a bad fit, I’ll get another.
This is probably my last PC and I want it powerful and up-gradable (I’ll handle that part) and a work of QUALITY art on the outside. I know that a few MakerSpace psychos can come up with ideas to blow my mind. I’ve done 45 years of software, am 70, and want this one to ride me for better part of a decade.
Besides, I have two grandsons to impress. I want them to wander off drooling and babbling after they see it in action. I have MB, video, ram, cpus, SSDs already.
Contact @Webdevel about any leather components you might wants as he does some great specialized steam punk leatherwork that might fit with your project.
You guys are scaring me. Tricked out, Steampunk or something different, all good. The Nuka Cola was waaaay beyond my goals. My office is vintage stuff, including a roll top desk.
I have Ouija boards on a wall for art work. (Ouija boards scared the hell out of my ex-wife and so they form a shield over Farmers Branch that she won’t enter.)
A conservative Steampunk, copper pipes, some brass gauges I’ve picked up, and painting the case might do the trick. HOWEVER, good ideas MUST be incorporated, real estate permitting.
Looking at the shot of your office, I would use some orange lighting inside the case to give the illusion that it runs on vacuum tubes. If possible, tie it into the fan controller so that the faster the fan runs (more heat to be dissipated,) the brighter the glow. Also, if you can build a mouse which resembles a Morse Code telegraph key.
I’ve harvested 3 small meters, thermometer, hygrometer, and barometer that work. Maybe embed them in the side panel? I’m trying to get a vintage telegraph sounder. I hope I don’t need wheels or a forklift to move it!
I have a RasPi that might be useful, maybe to drive the nixies?
I’m going to take it easy on the keyboard and monitors. Probably just some stick on brass or copper strips. None of the tricked keyboards look particularly useful.
Before retirement, I’d have meetings with the technical staff at companies. It was always difficult to get staff together to get a project started. While I am not asking for anyone to build it for me, I do need advice on many fronts how to get it done at DMSpace, to which I am brand new.
So I’d like to have a meeting to hear some ideas, sane, simple, advanced, insane, bizarre, perverted and start right-sizing the project.
The tech staffs I’d meet had a vulnerability that I could exploit to encourage them to attend a meeting. I’d bring an assortment of edibles.
MEETING!
As I am retired, almost anytime works. WHEN can we meet? Saturday at 10? Midnight? Can do any.
Neopixels could be used for some of the lighting. They are LED but you can tweak the orange color and the brightness of them to a nice soft glow using GPIO pins on a Raspberry Pi or interface pins on an Arduino.
The Arduino Pro Mini would be perfect for that and is extremely small.
