The project

The title says it all: my project is to build a watercooled Silvertone TJ-07 and I'd like to keep as much as possible everything black and white.
This is my first ever case mod and also my first ever water cooled PC, so it is quite a challenge. But hey, there is always a first time.

My goal is to have a nice and clean system and try to keep the modding at a minimum. I don't like the *bling* and since I have no modding experience, I won't go for extensive modifications (at least for now). This is also the reason why I chose the TJ-07 as it has lots of room and can be used for water cooling with little modifications.

The purpose of this worklog is more to get help and suggestions from more experienced forumers rather than really share my knowledge, since I have pretty much everything to learn. But I hope at the end, this worklog will help inexperienced users and maybe help them to take the jump into building their own project.

The Hardware

For the rig, I am reusing the components I have currently as I have a limited budget and pretty much everything is going for the purchase of the case, the water cooling components, the tools and other bits needed in the project.

SYSTEM
CPU: Intel Quad Core Q6600
Mobo: GA-X48-DQ6
RAM: 2x1GB Ballistix tracers DDR2-800 4-4-4-12
GC: Sapphire HD 4870
HDD: WD Velociraptor 150 GB (system) + WD Green 500GB (data)
PSU: Corsair TX 850W
Case: Silvertone TJ-07 Black with window

I am planning to get a new GC and mobo with black PCB to fit with the theme, but I'll wait for a worthy upgrade, like the ATI 5870 and either the Core i5 or the 32nm Core i7.

Water cooling (ordered)
(1) Heatkiller 3.0 LT LGA775
(1) Heatkiller LGA775 back plate
(1) swiftech MCP655 vario (5 speed control)
(1) Swiftech MCR320-QP Triple 120mm Radiator
(3) Scythe 120x25mm SlipStream SY1225SL12H - 88 CFM
(10) feet of 7/16" ID (5/8" OD) tygoon Tubing
(1) EK-Multioption RES 250 rev.2
(1) Swiftech MCW-60R GPU waterblock
(8) 1/2" DTEK High Flow Chrome barbs

I welcome any comment on the WC stuff, but since it is already ordered, I cannot change it anymore. Having done a lot of search, I think it should perform quite well though.

The Tools

As I said, it's my first case mod, and since I work as a software developer, I have never really had the need to buy tools other than the ones required to build furniture from IKEA. So currently, my tools are quite ... limited



The worst is that most of the junk in that box will be useless for this build. The only really useful tools are the short (worn out) philips screwdriver and the "T" shape (worn out) multi head screwdriver.

It's not easy to actually works with so little tool so I'll probably get some more as the project requires. But meanwhile it is interesting as you have to make your brain work hard to find solutions to problems which would be solved in 1 minute with the right tool. Surely not the fastest way, but it is a lot more fun

The Goals

My main goal is to have fun. I have always been fiddling with my computer, being it on the software side or on the hardware side. I have done some soft and hard mods on it, but never got into the whole case mod project. Same goes for water cooling. I have been reading a lot on the subject but never take the plunge. It seems a lot more fun that air cooling though (just slap the cooler and be done with it), that's why I decided to go water on this project.

In term of end result, I would definitely want to have something which some close to the murderbox (http://www.murderbox.com/gallery.html) and it is when seeing the gorgeous builds of Charles H. that it made me wants to build my own TJ-07. But seeing how awesome are this TJ-07, even if I end up with a build looking half as good as the murderbox, I will be more than satisfied.

Ok, enough talk and let's start with the project.

15 august 2009

I got the case today. Prior to the start of the project, I had a lot of hesitations as to which case I would use. After seeing the TJ-07 from up close, it erased all my doubts. This case is really gorgeous and there is a lot of room for all the WC gears.

click on the pictures for higher resolution



Something I don't really like about the black TJ-07, it is it's shiny aluminum interior. So one thing was clear in my mind from the start, I have to paint the interior, and I decided that a flat back would fit nicely with the black brushed aluminum exterior.

So first thing to do, is to take the case apart.



This case is not only beautiful, but also very practical. Unlike most cases, almost everything is held by screws rather than rivets, which make it very easy to deconstruct for painting. The only thing which is held by rivets are the parts of the motherboard tray and the rails of the motherboard tray.

So now I already encountered my first interrogation in this project: how should I paint the inside of the case ?

1) My first thought was to have it powder coated. It will definitely looks good but the problem is to find a place that can do it for an affordable price.
2) I can have it professionally spray painted, should be easier to find for a better price than the powder coating
3) I can spray paint it myself. The problem is I have never painted anything. But this solution has the advantage of being a lot more fun than having it made by someone else

16 august 2009

So the idea of painting the interior myself grew up on me. After some "painting 101" reading on the Internet, I decided to go to the hardware shop and grab a can of primer, a can of flat back, a can of rubbing alcohol to clean the surfaces before applying the primer and some 2000 grid sand paper.



Oh and while I was there, I also decided to start my collection of "real" tool:



Ok, that's still a bit light
But it will make a big difference for me as I had a hard time with some of the screws yesterday, since my screwdrivers head were all worn out.

Ok, so as I said, I have never painted anything in my life, so rather than go straight for the interior of the case and possibly screw things up, I am going to do some testing first.

My victim will be the hard drive cage (when I told you my painting skills were questionable at best)



I chose the HDD cage for two reason:
1) There are two in the TJ-07 and with the WC gears, I will have at best only place for one of them in the case.
2) I might have to relocate the HDD in the 5.25 bay because of the radiator taking most of the space at the bottom of the case. So I might not use the HDD cage at all and buy some 5.25 to 3.5 adapters. Although after a quick look at it, I might be able to fit the the HDD cage into the 5.25 with some slight modification.

For the result, either my painting skills will suck badely, and I still have the spare HDD cage if I need it. Or the painting will turn half good and the HDD cage being in a spot not really visible, I might still be able to use the painted one. Or the painting turns out good enough to use the painted cage and it will give me confidence to do the rest of the interior.

So first I have to wet sand the HDD cage:



And this what it looks like up close after cleaning:



I just sanded it slightly to ensure the primer and the paint would stick properly to the bare aluminum. I might have been able to just apply the primer without sanding, but from what I read, even if the end result may look okay, chances that it will chip easily and not last over time.

Next was to setup my spray boot (any resemblance with a plastic table cover with newspaper is purely coincidental )



Then I wanted to apply the primer, but realized it was night already. I think it will be better if I spray during day time as I will be less likely to make mistake.

So that's it for now. I'll probably apply the primer and the paint tomorrow and will keep you updated on the result.

Meanwhile, I welcome any comments or suggestions on my project.
I am still not sure whether I will paint the interior myself. I guess I'll have to wait to see the result of the HDD cage. So if anyone knows a place in PJ where I can have the interior powder coated or spray painted, please let me know.

I am already in the process to get a quotation for spray paint, but I would definitely want to have several quotations to have more choice.

17 august 2009

see post no 3: http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=27995884

18 august 2009

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?act=ST&f...0#entry28030588

21 august 2009

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28098768

22 august 2009

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28118838

24 august 2009

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28169449

25 august 2009

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28193583

27 august 2009

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28246423
http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28246780

28-31 august 2009

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28325470
http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28325502

12 september 2009

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28593654

This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Oct 8 2009, 01:01 AM

17 august 2009

Today, I have painted the HDD cage.

After 3 (thin) layer of primer:



And after 4-5 thin layer of paint:



I'm quite happy with the result. The first layer of primer was not that great as I tried to apply too much paint and from to close. There was 2-3 spots with too much paint. So I waited ~30 min and sanded very lightly these spots to ensure they were flat. After that, I applied very thin layer of primer/paint and waited ~10 min between two applications. I have waited about ~30 min between the last application of primer and the first of paint.

Since the result is quite good, I think I'm going to paint the whole interior myself. So, the rest of the week will be for sanding and painting. It will keep me busy while waiting for the WC stuff to arrive.


This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 17 2009, 06:33 PM

I personally don't like the shiny aluminum since I am going for a clean "stealth" look. But I guess it all comes down to personal preferences.

Lol. Thanks.

Flat black, that's what written on the can anyways

UPDATE: see post no 3: http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=27995884

This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 17 2009, 06:37 PM

No, the brush effect disappear with the paint. When looking up close, there is actually a slight "orange skin" texture due to the spray painting:



That would be bad if I'd go for a shiny/mirror black finish. But since I am going for a flat black, it actually helps to give the "stealth" effect to the paint (the flatter the paint job is, the shinier it looks).

Thank you.

Yeah, I saw your thread when I was looking for information about case painting. The paint job on the case when you got was so horrible, it is almost impossible to fix it
I think you did a good job when taken that into consideration

I think for the front panel, maybe you applied too much paint. I tried to apply very thin layers. So thin that even after the 2nd layer of primer, I could still see the metal through at some points. Same for the paint, after 2nd application, I still could see the primer through at some spot. The result is generally better when you apply more thin layers versus less thick layers.

Thanks.

But I have only done one (not so important) piece. So I guess I will be able to say the paint job is a success only once I will have painted all the important panels

This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 18 2009, 12:12 AM

Thanks guys

18 august 2009

I haven't had time to do much yesterday evening as I was busy working, so not a big update for today. However, it's a good news as before to be fully confident to paint the case interior myself, I wanted to some "scratch resistance" testing on the HDD cage. I was worry that the paint would chip easily.

So after 24 hours of drying, I tried to scratch the paint with a screwdriver ...
It kinda hurt my heart to do that, but I had to be sure the paint wouldn't chip easily. I did it on a part of the HDD cage that will not be visible at all (it will be hiddent under the HDD):



First, I tried to scratch the paint with my nail and I can put as much pressure as I want, it won't leave any mark. Then I use the screwdriver.
The long scratch you can see at the bottom is when I applied a "normal" pressure to screwdriver, and as you can see, it does leave a slight mark, but you can't see the bare metal under at all, you can't even see the primer.
As final test I tried to put a "very strong" pressure on the screwdriver (upper mark on the picture) and event then the paint didn't chip nor I can see the bare metal.

It actually looks worse on the picture than it is in reality because of the macro mode.

I am now totally confident that I can handle the paint job and that the paint will last over time, so tonight I'll sand as much as possible. I might have the time to sand everything, but I prefer to take my time anyway

This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 18 2009, 07:17 PM

Thanks.

Below is what I do:
1) Sanding with 2000 grid sand paper. I use a piece of wood as sand block, and I finish by hand the part not accessible with the sand block.
2) I use an alcohol based cleaner to remove any sanding dust and oil/grease from the surface
3) I apply 3 thin layers of primer, about 10 min interval between each application (3 layers is what it takes so I don't see at all the bare metal)
4) I wait about 30 min after the third layer of primer
5) I apply 5 thin layers of paint , about 10 min intervals between each application
6) I let it dry at least 24 hours before to manipulate it by hand. But you need to count 48 hours to consider fully dry.

Note:
- I start directly with 2000 grid because I'm painting bare metal. If there was paint, I think you'd need to start with a lower grid (300-400) to remove the paint and then go progressively go higher in the grid to get a smooth surface
- If you go for a shiny mirror finish, I think you would need to sand slightly between the primer and the paint, and also after the paint to remove the slight "orange peel" texture due to the spray painting. You would also need to apply a clear coat at the end.

Concerning the update on my project, I have sanded and painted more parts today.





This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 20 2009, 12:35 AM

Primer: Anchor spray paint no 5" => I was a bit worry at the beginning as it is not written primer on it, the only difference with the gray paint is the code and a "P" next to the code. But it seems to do the trick.
Paint: "Toa spray: flat back (not sure if the code is 29 or 21)"



Each can cost around RM 5-6

Today I did a big mistake though. Yesterday I bought more paint and mistaken the "black" with the "flat black". Result I have to repaint what I did today as I only realized too late, once I started the use the new can I just bought

This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 20 2009, 04:38 PM

Because it's a lot more fun to do it by myself

Hehe, when I'm not having a satay-TT session with you and the rest of the MSR crew, No. I don't have anything better to do


May I know how you painted it ? Yourself or in a shop ?

I have painted almost everything I need, except the motherboard tray (I will post pix later). But the motherboard tray is actually chromed, not brushed aluminum. There is another chromed part I have painted which is the PSU bracket, and after checking, the paint chip easily unlike when I paint the brushed aluminum.

So now I'm stuck. From what I've read on the Net, I'd need "self etching primer" which is a special primer that reacts with the metal and grip firmly. The problem is last time when I asked 2 - 3 shops about it, I clearly saw that they didn't have a clue as what it is. I tried to look for it on the Internet but could not find any supplier in Malaysia, except for professional stuff where you need to buy 4-5L and need a spray gun :/

Anyone knows where I can find "(self) etching primer" in spray can ?

I will try to find that tomorrow, if I can't find it, I might have to go to an auto paint shop and ask them to prime the motherboard tray ...

This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 21 2009, 12:25 PM

I see. Not a bad idea indeed. I might steal your idea if I don't find etching primer

21 august 2009

So this is what I have been up to this week:



I have to say I'm quite happy with the result. After my mistake with wrong black yesterday, I just sprayed two coats of "flat black" over the coat of "shiny black" and it did the trick. No need to sand and repaint the middle plate.

So too illustrate my problem with the chromed piece, below are some pictures:



On the left, it is the PSU bracket which was chromed. I tried to scratch the paint with a screwdriver, and it chip very easily as you can see on the picture ... So I am a bit worry for the motherboard tray (picture on the left). The plate where the PCI brackets attached is in brushed aluminum, so no problem. But the motherboard backplate is chromed with a mirror finished. So if I use the same process as PSU bracket, the paint will definitely chip after I slide in/out the tray few time

I will try to find a solution to this problem this WE. If I don't, I might just paint the brushed aluminum part and left the chromed as it is so I can continue the build. Once I'll finish the first revision, it give me time to search and find a better solution for revision 2

May I know where you did the powder coating ? How much did it cost ?

EDIT: nvm, I found your thread and read the answers.

This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 21 2009, 04:47 PM

I might try that. I guess you bought the carbon fiber sticker in automotive parts shop / automotive parts department of a supermarket, isn't it ?

22 august 2009

Big update today



Got all the WC stuff today. Thanks clawhammer for the very fast delivery

Yesterday I also got this in the mail



I can start on the PSU sleeving: Thanks as well to niclasteoh for the fast sending

I also wants to have fans with white blades and black frame for my build, but couldn't find at a reasonable price, so I bought this:



Tamiya flat white paint. Cheap alternative but it should work as well as original fans

And finally I decided to pass the mobo tray to an auto paint shop so he have it primed and painted. There is just nowhere I can find "self etching primer" and after some thought, I really wants the tray to be painted in the same color as the rest of the interior.

Alright, so I got lot of toy to play with this WE, now I'm not sure what to do first
I think I'm gonna sleeve the PSU, but my first attempts to remove the pin for the ATX plug with staplers where not successful ... It is harder than it looks, so I might finally have to buy some sleeving tools.

Yes, it is a mcr320-qp. And I didn't take the thermochill because there is not much difference in performance, but there is a very big difference in price

But know the the D5 got the primochill typhoon III res/top. Check out the flow you are getting with 1 D5 used in a dual loop: http://skinneelabs.com/Pumps/D5/TyphoonIII...chill-TIII.html

This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 22 2009, 08:57 PM

Actually in that case it is more like RM 500 for 0.5-1C:



Image taken from here: http://martinsliquidlab.i4memory.com/Swift...320-Review.html

Where the thermochill really shines compares to the MCR, it is when using low RPM fans and quiet oriented system. With mid to high RPM fans, there is very little difference.

At the end, you are probably better off buying two MCSR 320 than one PA 120.3 in terms of performance. Although it will obviously take more space and be more restrictive.

This post has been edited by r4st4m4n: Aug 23 2009, 12:22 AM

Hmm actually is good you talk about it because my idea completely failed

the tamiya paint is too thick:
1) it leaves paint brush marks clearly visible and give a cheap look (might also be my paint brush skill not that great )
2) as you mentioned, I am a bit worry as the thickness of the paint seems to add quite some weight.

You can remove the fan blades from the frame ? I didn't know actually. I will look into that. thanks for the tip

Thanks ! I'm going to try it

Not a bad idea. But generally fans are designed for a matching blade and motor. So I am bit worry by mixing two different references it may adverse effects like becoming noiser and/or lowering the CFM ...

24 august 2009

I haven't done much this WE as I didn't have the motherboard tray. I started to put back the case together (without mobo tray), and I can tell you that with the black interior, it looks gorgeous. But I'll post pix only once I get back the mobo tray to manage the suspense

I have also battled for 2 days with my PSU trying to remove the ATX pins. I tried the staple solution thought here and there, but I don't know why, I couldn't make it work. I didn't even remove one single pin using this technique. So I spent some time trying to figure another way to do it and I found a very easy and cheap way to do it. I won't post it here but I have have made a post there: http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=28145278
This way is like 100 times easier than the staple way (at least it is for me )

I have also flushed the radiator after battling to find distilled water (if you follow the WC thread on LYN you'll know what I am talking about).

I also started on the cable sleeving. I started by sleeving and mounting in parallel the fans that I will use for the radiator:



But I am not happy with the result. The sleeving I got is too transparent. As you can see on the picture, we can easily see the wires through.

So after two trips to Jln Pasar yesterday and today, I finally found something much better:



This is 2mm diameter cable sleeving. I found it at melectron shop (40 jalan pasar, one of the shop next to the shopping center). Luckily for me, the only color they had was white.

They also have 2.5 and 3.5mm, but these sizes feel more like plastic tube (a bit like a heatshrink, but without the shrink ). This 2mm however feels more like a cloth, is slightly extensible and it is just perfect for sleeving ATX and PCI-E cables: it fits like a glove.

So I started to sleeve the ATX cables:



As you can see I just made one ... 22 to do

Oh and one more thing, I tried to remove the blades of my fans to spray paint them like mADmAN suggested. However, when I removed the sticker there is no plug hiding any washer/o-ring holding the blade. It means I cannot remove them. I think the silverstone fans are press fitted unlike the one in the tutorials.

But not willing to give up, I decided to use masking tape to mask the frame. It takes a bit of time to do it right, but I think it should work. I have already painted the fan:



It is drying as I type, but I think the result should be okay. The fan I painted is actually my "testing" fan that I cleaned up after trying the Tamiya paint. I didn't want to use the fans that will in the case as I was not sure of the result. I will let it dry 24h and see tomorrow, but the first impression is good.

So to conclude, I'm quite happy as of now. Sunday I didn't have a cable sleeving which was pleasing me and also failed on the tamiya painting of the fans. My mood was quite down are these are the two main elements supposed to bring some contrast in the case with their white color. Without it, I felt like it would just look like a regular case ...

With these two problems solved now, I'm fully motivated to finish this project. The only small let down today was that I called the shop and my mobo tray will only be ready by tomorrow noon, but it is not a big issue as I am busy with the cable sleeving tonight.

Still, I am impatient to get back the mobo tray so I can start on the WC setup