Could i build a wolf in sheep's clothing type pc?

[HarrySE5GTE]

Hi everyone!
I want to do a super low budget gaming pc build, the family pc (dell dimension 5000) was recently retired from use and is sitting there, i think it would be pretty cool to have the ancient looking pc case, but a few hundred quids worth of fancy new internals.
Im used to working on cars and modifying them, have a fair bit of stuff lying around to 'adapt' the old case.
could i do it and have it work reliably, and if so, is it a good idea?

 

[Math Geek]

so long as the parts fit you can put anything you want in the case. that case has plenty of room that's for sure. i have an xps that uses this case as well and it has a massive cpu cooler and large gpu and they fit no problem.

as for a good idea? why not? the case is just a box to hold everything. if you have spare parts and don't mind the time it takes to get it all installed, then it's "a great idea" not like dell is gonna come in and get mad at you 😉

 

[USAFRet]

Older Dell's are often pretty proprietary. Not ATX standard.

Will the new hardware actually fit? Don't know until you try. If it doesn't, after that is all on your DIY skills.

 

[Math Geek]

that case does put the mobo onto the opposite side of the case. (left side looking from front vs right side normally used) this will cause you to have to flip the mobo around and possibly "adjust" the back of the case to allow the ports on the mobo to stick through. this is where your DIY skills will come in handy.