Aiyooooo Ur an engineer lar bro. Of course u say Autocad easy lar. Anyway, the priority now is to get started on the mods and I dont haf much time to spare for learning to use Sketchup right now. I read the Sketchup site n believed their hype about "get up n running within a few hours". I'll just use my ol skool method with pencil n paper to get this project moving 1st. Later on I'll be sure to learn Sketchup properly.







Aiyaaa u never read my posting on the Arctic coolers properly kar? The Freezer 64 Pro was for my King Kong. GT40 is gonna use the Freezer 64 LP.





Thanks for the info. I'll gif pro-e a try later on too. Right now will jsut use pencil n paper to get started.

Ya lor. Ol Skool pencil n paper still easiest n fastest way. But that's only for my own work n reference. Later on if I need anything to be fabricated by CnC machines like custom acrylic or alu pieces, I will need to provide 3D sketches to feed the CnC machine's computer. So I will hafta learn those progs later on.

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. I finally had a brilliant idea today. I didn't hafta use Sketchup which will take me a looooooong time to learn. Then I remembered a favorite car racing game of mine on the PS2 last time. It used cell shading for it's graphics n I absolutely loved how the gfx looked like. Sooooooooo I decided to do a little cell shading of my own. Nonid for me to learn Sketchup now. All I need is sum cell shading looooooooooooooooove.


Here's the final concept I have decided on after many, many, many hours of thinking, sketching, coloring. There were quite a few concepts I had in mind but I've settled for this.


This is the air scoop side. The stock mesh air intake thingy will be removed n replaced with a car bonnet air scoop. I'll be sourcing this scoop in the next few days. Most likely over the weekend when I go over to the car parts shop. I will also buy an original blue oval Ford bonnet logo for the front mesh panel.














This is the other side of the case. Round acrylic window with my favorite number 3 on it. The acrylic will be externally mounted with screws or rivets just like the racing cars. White CCFL or LEDs will light up the internals to white so it looks like the GT40's white number plate. Those 2 thingys u c on the side panel r bonnet safety pins. These r used on racing cars to secure the bonnet from flying off. I will use it to secure my side panel.












Finally it's on to the top panel. There will most likely be a top exhaust but cant c in this pic coz it doesnt go far back enuf. All my sponsors will be given space here for their logos. This will be just like the racing car with sponsors' stickers on the bodywork. I will order sum custom cut stickers with the logos of Silverstone, Inter-Asia, Team Group, Arctic Cooling, e-Devices n they will all appear on the top panel.








Wokeh, now that I've finally settled on the final concept, I need to find just a few more parts, the bonnet scoop n pins n also an original Ford blue oval logo. After that it's mod mod mod. This weekend is gonna be an exciting parts shopping experience.

This post has been edited by ianho: Aug 10 2007, 02:24 AM

I'll be happy with just the Ford bonnet emblem.






Ya the XXX is the mesh.

Dowan ler. I want the real slim shady. I will go to the spareparts shop n order an original Ford emblem. No rush for that though coz it's 1 of the last items to go in the mod.

As for the rest of the parts like the bonnet air scoop. I went shopping over the weekend n jsut cudn find 1. The shops now only sell rough fiberglass types now. The units are very roughly finished n require an incredible amount finishing work. I'm gonna scrap that idea coz fiberglass dust is really really bad for health n I'm not gonna jeopardise my health over a project. I used to see nice molded plastic scoops all over the place but all of a sudden they've all gone extinct.

Anyone seen any nice molded plastic bonnet air scoops? I really need the scoop so I can start on the mods coz the scoop needs to go on b4 I start work on the surface preparations n painting. Helppppppppppppppppppppppp meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

Went shopping for more parts n I've practically given up on the bonnet scoop. I'll most likely mod the original or make a custom grill out of acrylic. Not sure which way I'll go. Haven't decided yet.


Anyway, here's sum stuff I just bought for the project. July issue of Octane magazine with special feature on GT40. This will help me with sumore ideas later on. The bonnet pins for the side panel mounting, scalpel kit for detailed cutting works, n the best toy I've bought in a long long time. A blowtorch! It has a 1300C needle tip flame for works which require lotsa heat. This thing can even bend glass. Yes u read right, GLASS.












Also got myself sum new goggles. The old 1 was all scratched so I decided it was time to buy a new 1. Bought a nice lovely goggle from ACE. Made in the USA! The lens is so clear now it's like I was watching Astro tru the old goggles n now with these new goggles it's like HD DVD. The ventilation system is so much better too. Hardly any fogging unless it's an extremely humid day.










Here's the torch.










Here's how I'm gonna use it in my project. As afterburners for the rear exhaust. Flame at max power.










Flame at minimum power.








While taking pix for this update, I even used the torch as a lightsaber. A pesky mosquito was irritating me n I turned on max power n started slashing around n got the bugger n roasted it. May the Force be with him.

This post has been edited by ianho: Sep 1 2007, 11:40 PM

LOL. Yes actually the flame is so pure u can use it on food. No joke. It's specified as a chef's torch too.




I will take it to the mamak to use as mosquito lightsaber.





Ya it's a pure flame. Leaves no residue. U can use it to heat non flammable items n it leaves no marks. U know what's the best thing about it? I use it for starting up my barbeque pit in like 2 minutes now. MMmmmmmm yummy yum yum, modding makes me hungry.



Here's a closer look at the box about what it's capable of. U guys shud go buy it too. Best toy I've bought in a long time.

Butane gas.





Ya I am a hardcore tools n hardware junkie.









No pix lar really. Blasted weather 1 day hot, 1 day cold gave me a bad flu for the past week. Din even do anything. Everyday sleeeeeeeeeeeeeep oni.

GT40 is my 2nd rig. It will sit at the table behind my King Kong rig.



My main rig is here.









Then directly behind that Matrix chair is this table. This is where GT40 will sit. I will use GT40 while King Kong is stripped for more modding.



This post has been edited by ianho: Sep 19 2007, 01:17 AM

Bcoz there's only 1 mobo in the whole world that does SLi n it took me such a long time to acquire it. I dont think there's MATX Crossfire mobo around also.

Absolutely right on. That was the game. I totally forgot the name. I used to play that game day n night man. Fantastic graphics. Loved the cell shading.

---

Added on September 26, 2007, 5:02 amYup. It's 7950GX2 Quad SLi. The mobo they're using is teh same 1 I have. Very very very limited production run from EVGA oni. Until today it's still the only dual gfx MATX mobo. I wonder y Asus or sum1 else dont do a new MATX mobo with dual gfx.

This post has been edited by ianho: Sep 26 2007, 05:02 AM

LOLZ. I just burned a few mozzies last night during a BBQ. Anyway, I'm waiting for sum new stuff from a certain new sponsor for Project GT40. Once it's all confirmed n the stuff has arrived, the project shall jalan full steam. I dont wanna leave the new sponsors too far behind in the log that's y I'm still waiting. It shud be in sumtime next week.

Abandon the scoop idea oredi coz I cant find it. I can oni find the fiberglass type. I dont like fiberglass as it has an imperfect finish. I was looking for the molded plasctic type.

Sry guys. I know there's been many delays but I've just been notified that the gfx cards have been delayed again. The cards shud b in sumtime next week. I don't like to stop n go after I start a mod hence I rather wait for all the parts to be in b4 I start n then go full steam ahead.

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. The gfx cards are finally here. The courier called me while I was away on holidays. I arranged for them to be delivered 2moro. I just came home from the hols last night n asked for delivery today but forgot it is public hol so TNT sed they'll send it on Friday.

The Double Dragons are here at last. The reason for the long delay was, Zotac didn't want to send me the reference cards which were green PCB n Qimonda chips in the initial batch. They wanted Project GT40 to use the very best 8800GT they had which is the new revision of the AMP Edition now. This version uses Zotac's very own trademark blue PCB and most importantly the new Samsung chips.


Here's what the postman brought today. The Double Dragons have had a long tiring flight all the way from Hong Kong. High class fellas only wanted to fly by Cathay Pacific Airways only.















Let's crack open the box shall we?














The Double Dragon's are peeking out.














They're out at last. Now let's take a closer look at these ferocious beauties.













Taking them out of the box.
















More pix coming right up.

This post has been edited by ianho: Dec 21 2007, 05:40 PM

Tadaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Ladies n gentlemen, may I present the Double Dragons.














Now let's take a closer look at the card itself. This Zotac 8800GT 512mb AMP Edition is pretty special. It's factory OCed to 700/2000. It comes with a nice full aluminum cooler which includes an aluminum fan cover. Take a look at this pic. U can clearly see the aluminum cover here. Normal 8800GT is using plastic for it's cover.














Here's a look at the back of the card.















Let's get on to stripping the Dragons naked shall we?














The naked GPU after cleaning with some good ol Zippo fluid. All nice n shiny now.














Here's the special thing about these Zotac cards. Zotac is the only 1 using Samsung chips right now. The others are still using Qimonda.














N finally, b4 putting it all back together, I applied my favorite thermal paste- Arctic Cooling MX2 on the GPU.








That's it. All the hardware is finally in. I can now proceed with the project full steam ahead now.


I'd like to say a big huge thanks to my new sponsors Zotac Technology HK for providing me with these wonderful cards. Also big thanks to E-Devices Technology, the local distributor for Zotac graphics cards.

I'm gonna install all the hardware inside the stock standard SG03 2nite. I've left it stock all this while coz i needed all the hardware b4 doing anything. The reason being, I want to test the thermal performance of the case with all my hardware inside. Then I will decide on the ventilation mods to be added to the design of the case.

Will update again later 2nite after I install all the hardware inside the stock SG03. Hopefully can post the update from the new rig itself.








Nonid jealous. U just dont spend so much on ur other "hobby" then u can buy plenty of hardware oso.






This post has been edited by ianho: Dec 21 2007, 06:51 PM

Wokeh. Here's what I did for GT40 recently. I bought lotsa cap screws recently so I can use these to replace the normal ugly screws. I'll be using all cap screws for this project.

That's 300 capscrews right there.













A closer look at the 3 different sizes I bought. The 1 in the middle looks horrible coz it's all whitish. I'll give them a fresh coat of matt black b4 using them in the case.













This is the heatsink I'll be using in GT40. A nice lil heatpipe heatsink from Arctic Cooling. It uses 3 heatpipes.















After taking off the fans for installation, I noticed the aluminum is a lil bit flat. Look at the top of the heatsink, the alu is like a matt grey color. Not very attractive eh?













Have no fear. Nothing a lil Autosol loving won't cure.













Wheeeeeeeeeee. It's all nice n shiny now. I didn't polish it all the way down to mirror shine. Just wanted it to haf a nice shiny brushed look.













Here's a look at the bottom of the heatsink. U can clearly see the 3 heatpipes in this pic. It shud perform pretty well. I didn't lap the base as I don't believe in the effectiveness of lapping.

Installed the heatsink onto the mobo.














Mobo in the case. Now u can really see the heatsink shine. It's a pity the PSU will b blocking it. Oh well, I did it just for personal satisfaction anyway. I just looooooooove shiny bits of aluminum.












Here's a close up showing the cap screws holding the mobo to the case. It's a very minor thing but I just love these cap screws coz they make things just a lil bit more special.












Let's move on to the bottom of the case now. This is where the HDD mount is. I changed out the normal screws for blue aluminum thumbscrews. Looks much nicer n also will make it easier for maintenance when I hafta remove the bottom plates next time.













N now to the part I mentioned in the Silverstone League about the ROM bezel. Silverstone doesn't make them so I had to make my own for King Kong last time. This time around, I managed to get sum nice Coolermaster bezels real cheap at the recent PC Fair. Only rm15 a piece. So I'll use it for GT40 this time so I dont hafta make a custom bezel like last time. Here it is.











The Coolermaster logo had to goooooooooo.............. So, after a lil magic it's gone.










A lot more pix I havent sorted out yet. Will update again with the Zotac 8800GT SLI install and also the thermal test of the SG03 case to help me determine if I need to mod the cooling.

This post has been edited by ianho: Dec 28 2007, 02:49 AM