Build Advice Spirit of Motion - Scratchbuild PC Log

[MaximumBubbleMods]

I'm new to modding forums and new to scratch building so hello fellow enthusiasts! Please offer any advice or ideas as I love new ideas.

This build is for my father. He loves early automotive design and I was inspired when I saw a 1938 Spirit of Motion made by the late Graham-Paige company. The design and shape of this build is heavily inspired by the "sharknose" grill the Spirit of Motion has.

Because of complexity and the number of parts I wanted to model the case first. Modeling also is helping me keep sense of the scale. I want this to be as small as possible as it will probably be displayed on a desk top and we all like space! I will also need the drawings/schematics for cutting metal parts out.



I wanted it leaning forward but unlike the original car I also wanted it widening as it goes up in height to give the sense of moving onward and upward! Very "Spirit of Motion" of me I know.



Next was the grill design itself and the "panels" (do i still call them panels?!). I chose a color scheme at this point with: candy apple (red), silver, and black.



Started stuffing generic standard size components in and creating the needed mounts and fixtures for parts. Because this is a car grill it only seemed natural to put a 280mm radiator right in front where it belongs.

The big kicker for this case will be how you access your components. This choice is also why the motherboard is inverted and mirrored and the GPU will be vertical mount. To keep the I/O below the hinge point.



Next up is creating the 2D drawing files for waterjet cutting the raw aluminum grill pieces, lasercutting and bending of the sheetmetal for the rear I/O, aluminum frame, rad mounts, mobo mount, ect ect. Update coming real soon!

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

The 3D and 2D models of the one sheetmetal piece I am having made are sent and the part is in the que. The twenty three unique files for the grill pieces are being cut via waterjet and I'll have those soon.

I traded some work for time in a machine shop so this update is covering a couple days I was able to spend working on the first aluminum parts.



The first day was focused on making the large side panels from 12 x 12 x 1/2 inch 6061 aluminum I got off ebay. Because each panel has many threaded holes in different locations on the inside, I started by drilling and tapping all those. I then flip the side panels over and use those threaded holes as my alignment and way of mounting the side panels to a fixture plate so I could cut the final outside shape and the roundover. So below you can see my finished right side panel being held down by the threaded holes that will eventually be where my motherboard is mounted!



Day two I needed to machine the two 1 x 1/2" bars that connect the two plates together. Because the case widens as it goes up the ends were cut at a 92 degree angle on each end. Once made the main body could be welded. I made it beefy and welded this main body because the entire grill (hood?) will hinge off the rear of this. It needs to be a little heavy and to be stiff.



Last thing I did was to machine a few more pieces that will be needed. I cut the profiles of these all with the CNC and then using a manual mill I drilled and threaded the holes on the perpendicular plane. These pieces are two lower radiator mounts, the air spring mount, and the grill backplate.



I don't know how much detail (photos) you want with the machining so let me know if you would like to see more or less detail in future posts as there will be more still to do!

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Update time!

With frame welded up I started filing the welds that needed to be flush because it is either going to show or there would be sheet metal mating against it. Some that will show I went ahead and used a round file to create a nice radius between the pieces instead of my less than perfect TIG weld

​

I followed up with some rough sanding. This gets my shape right and now I will just leave it raw aluminum for a while so I don't have to worry about scratching paint or anything while assembling/ mocking-up stuff etc.

​

I then 3D printed the motherboard mounting bracket I designed. It would have been easiest to simply mount the motherboard to the aluminum side panel with threaded holes and standoffs but this bracket holds the motherboard further away and adapts the angled side panel so the motherboard will be truly vertical like the other components. I used 3mm black oxide screws and 1/4" standoffs.

​

I currently have a mATX board that is going in this build but it would be super simple to 3D print a different bracket for any other size board. The board is a msi B450M Pro-M2 MAX (really rolls off the tongue)

​

 

[GarrettL]

Nice work so far and love your design concept, it's gorgeous!

 

[DSzymborski]

Really enjoying this one. I wish I had this level of competence in this area!

 

[DSzymborski]

Does your dad have any antique cars? Or maybe a car that was important to him when he was younger? It might be fun to source and re-use some element as part of the design.

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Nice work so far and love your design concept, it's gorgeous!

Oh man, thank you so much! I hope the final product meet or exceeds the concept now haha

Does your dad have any antique cars? Or maybe a car that was important to him when he was younger? It might be fun to source and re-use some element as part of the design.

He has a 1963 Falcon which he loves but nothing from the era of car design that is nearing art deco style. I really like this idea though and it would have been cool if there was something I could repurpose or integrate into this build

 

[DSzymborski]

How about something like this?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/63-64-Ford...286832&hash=item2cb684165c:g:TYkAAOSwLVZV6NbL

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

How about something like this?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/63-64-Ford-Falcon-Sprint-V8-fender-emblem/192040670812?fits=Model:Falcon|Make:Ford&epid=2025286832&hash=item2cb684165c:g:TYkAAOSwLVZV6NbL

Thanks for the idea! An emblem or something like that would not be too difficult to incorporate I bet.

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Water jet cut grill pieces arrived! There are 25 pieces that make up the grill and each one is unique from the rest. These are all 6061 aluminum with the majority of them being 1/4" thick. Three of the grills are 1/2" thick and the spine is 3/8" thick. This is going to be the most labor intensive part of the build (and probably least fun haha).

​

I started by using a big square and laying out a little template on my work table with a sharpie. The grills get longer and wider as you work your way up the computer (until the very top) so I made a little grid that I could quickly lay any pieces on and find center.

​

From here forward, and ESPECIALLY with this very first process of filing the fitment, I have to be so careful not to cut too much or slip. Since each piece is unique and these will be raw polished aluminum, there isn't the opportunity to hide mistakes with a filler or paint. Water jet cut aluminum has a slightly rough surface so I started by cleaning up the spine notch faces so the pieces could slide in more easily.

​

With the spine cleaned up I grabbed the bottom grill piece and took it to the band saw. The angle of the front of these grill pieces changes as you move along the spine so the angle was free handed iniitally. very gently I ran the piece back and forth along the blade, then I test fit to see how the angle was. If it was close I would hand file the face to a tight fit and if it was still a little off I would head back over to the band saw and get myself a bit closer.

​

The next two pictures show a rough cut fitment and then after filing to a final fit.

​

The rest of the curve really does not need to be so perfect as it is out in free space and not mating against another piece of metal. The rest will simply need to be very smooth shaping so the polish doesn't look super wavy and distorted. This took me a few hours to shape them all.

​

I then squeezed all the pieces in the spine so I could check it out for the first time and it definitely got me excited to keep up the pace!

​

So this was the first step in a lot of work on these. Next steps:

1. Polish the top, bottom, and back side of all of these pieces.
2. Fit the pieces back in the spine and weld them all on the inside of the spine.
3. Fit the back mount and side bar that will hold all the loose ends together.
4. Weld those to the grill on the inside.
5. Using files and sanding, shape the front contour.
6. Polish the outside of the grill.
7. Celebrate.

 

[DSzymborski]

Thanks for the idea! An emblem or something like that would not be too difficult to incorporate I bet.

And there are all sorts of wacky things you can do. Perhaps find a small switch that you could fit into one of the holes on the 8 on the V8 on the emblem and wire it down to the PWR_SW pins.

Either way, definitely looking forward to seeing how it works out. I am envious of your fabrication skills.

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

And there are all sorts of wacky things you can do. Perhaps find a small switch that you could fit into one of the holes on the 8 on the V8 on the emblem and wire it down to the PWR_SW pins.

Either way, definitely looking forward to seeing how it works out. I am envious of your fabrication skills.

Thank you man! Hiiigh chance I use your idea to come up with a creative idea for a power switch now

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

So I spent a couple hours working on the platform that supports and/or mounts the SSD, optic drive, and GPU. I decided to include a track along the side of the platform where I can run my cables for the optic and solid state drive in a cleaner configuration.

The optic drive cables will sweep back 180 degrees into the track and the SSD's cables will do a smooth 90 degree bend into the track. I didn't want to make the channel large enough to fit the connectors through so I made a slit along it's length. It is just wide enough to press each cable into the channel and the channel just large enough to fit all the cables (theoretically haha).

​

Now at the back of the case, the sata connectors will run behind the motherboard mount, come out at the motherboard's edge where the connectors are, and plug in there. Nice and clean. The power cables will stay low and run along the side and to the front of the power supply.

I like this a lot more as there will not be any of these cables now crossing in open space through the case.

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Life has been wild. Travel for work pulled me away for a week and naturally the kitchen would flood while away.

​

Keeping my two little boys mostly out of the demo/construction area and washing dishes in the bathtub are some of the new fun activities I've been occupied with.

I carved enough space out in the garage by my water damaged cabinets to get back to work on the scratch build in my free time again so expect an update this weekend!

 

[GarrettL]

Wow, good luck!

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Thanks! Now, mistake time!

So I got the one sheet metal piece that I had made by a local shop. The lightly textured black powder coat and workmanship look sooooo good.

​

The excitement was short lived though as I instantly noticed that I messed up pretty badly. BUT... fixable. I forgot the power supply fan hole so I measured it and marked where I was going to need a big hole in my brand new sheet metal part.

​

I put a scrap piece of wood behind the cavity, clamped it to the corner of the table and I grabbed a metal blade for the jigsaw. This is the bottom of the case but I could have preserved the powder coat finish better if I would have lay masking tape or painters tape all over that bottom surface. Hindsight. Applied some oil and went to carefully cutting out the hole.

​

I took my time and the jig saw did a pretty good job besides some scratching of the powder coat. I grabbed a couple files and smoothed the edges just a little before sanding the inside edge with some 80 grit sandpaper. Ended up being nice and smooth to the touch once I was done.

​

Could have all been avoided work but I'm glad it was something easily fixed without compromise.

 

[GarrettL]

Glad you have time in life again for a fun project.

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Glad you have time in life again for a fun project.

Me too! I'll have more updates for you soon

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

I'm back with an update!

First thing I did after the fun I had cutting that giant hole in the sheet metal was to actually mount it up. I cleaned the metal dust and cutting oil up and squeezed it in the frame. It is a snug fit but I'm happy to say all the holes line up and it looks fantastic!

​

I'm not sure what to call the middle shelf/mount thing but I printed it up in the same filament as the motherboard mount. This print took around 24 hours but came out clean. There was some support material on the bottom and within the cable channel that needed to be removed but it popped out nicely and you can't see any of those areas regardless.

​

I mounted this to the main aluminum frame but the bracket did not line up perfectly with the sheet metal cutouts. I didn't want to re-print the part so I found some small washers and simply spaced the bracket out by a washer width. Lined up well after that and I tightened it up. I want the alignment close because of the optic drive.

​

I kept almost all the threaded holes in this case 3mm so I picked up a cheap box of 250 various length 3mm black button head cap screws for cheap. Just under $11! Super nice just grabbing the length I need for each different location and I think they look great.

​

I grabbed the power supply and slipped it under the bracket and mounted it up.

​

The optic drive just slides into the back and the bracket. It has a cutout for the cables as well as the three holes for mounting it at the rear. The drive cables will come out, do a U-turn, and go into the cable channel along the bracket's edge.

​

Further out on the bracket is the SSD mounting location. This is lifted up so the cable can come out the bottom and turn 90 degrees into the channel. These cables will run with the optic drive cables to the back of the case. I made a couple cutout on the 3D printed bracket so the SSD wasn't insulated against plastic. Better airflow even if it isn't needed was my thought.

​

The picture below shows why the alignment of the 3D printed bracket needs to be pretty close. The optic drive doesn't have huge amounts of space around it. No large panel gap on this vehicle!

​

I slid the GPU in the sheet metal cutout and noticed that the PCB sticks out proud of its plastic housing. Along the edge that sits on the 3D printed bracket. This holds the GPU up a little so I will need to make a little cutout along the 3D printed bracket so it can sit down the tenth of an inch or so that it is being held up.

​

Because the case is so open and the cooling will be coming in the front and out the top, the rear of the build I think looks simple and clean and I'm really happy with it.

​

 

[GarrettL]

Your attention to detail is top notch. Excellent work that is very clean and professional looking.

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Your attention to detail is top notch. Excellent work that is very clean and professional looking.

Thanks man!

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Back with an update on the build!

It is time to start working on the grill portion of the build again. The spine and individual grill pieces were all filed to fit one another tightly the last time I worked on the grill. So before I can weld them together I need to polish the top, bottom, and back of each grill since it will be impossible to do this after welding.

I started with the inside of grills. This doesn't need a full polish so I went ahead and left this all a brushed finish. The grit was 120. I used some bee wax on the sand paper every once in a while to really extend the life I got out of the paper by limiting how much it gummed up (If you have sanded much aluminum you know the struggle I'm talking about). I was able to get all the sanding done with a single sleeve.

​

Because most of the material I'm sanding is only 1/4" thick I grabbed a couple pieces of wood to use as spacers so that I could utilize as much of the sleeve as possible. It did make the process a little bit slower but I didn't want to waste so much of the sleeve.

​

I think it will be almost hard to notice that the inside is not polished like the rest and it saved me a tremendous amount of time by not having to polish out the additional material.

​

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Time for the real time consumer work of getting these ready for welding. Polishing

The fronts will all be shaped and polished after welding and assembly is complete so I just needed to polish the top and bottom of each grill and the complete spine.

I started by doing some some prep with both sand paper and some of those fiber discs in a die grinder. It was 150 grit paper (wet sanding) and the discs were medium and fine grades. The aluminum is the cheapest 6061 I could get so there are some defects and scratches that needed persuaded out.

​

Next up was hours and hours of work at the grinder that don't lend themselves to interesting photos very well haha

​

After some testing I had to make a choice on how far to take the polish because you can really lose yourself in days of polishing if you commit to a mirror polish and so many pieces. Since you will not see direct reflections on the top and bottom surfaces of the grills I could also not worry a tremendous amount. I settled on a polish that gave me a reflection of something like a blurry mirror for these surfaces so I used a spiral sewn sisal buffing wheel and black emery polishing compound. The outside surfaces of the grill will get a more serious polish.

​

Because of the cheap aluminum and some damage from the waterjet cutting, there are some small marks and scratches on most of the pieces that are just not going to come out unless the piece was remade. I honestly kind of like them as they look a ton like mild pitting and marks that you see on old chrome! They will give you the relief of not crying when the computer is whacked or scratched later in life lol

​

I 3D printed some little spacers so I could load these polished pieces into the spine and hold them all at the appropriate spot. These will hopefully hold up the the heat of the welder long enough that I can get tack welds before they soften.

​

I only assembled up the this point because I need these welded first. I can then shape the ends of them to match the curve of the main case body.

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

Alrighty, I got the chance to use a welder so I could tack all the lower grills to the spine. I am not skilled at TIG welding so this isn't what good welds look like but they are effective all the same. I would really like to get more practice TIG welding aluminum!

I put the 3D printed spacers in and they worked only if I tacked the grills pretty quickly. If I heated the grill much the PLA plastic would soften which wasn't a huge deal but was annoying as I had to check my spacing periodically. I don't want to have to be bending my welds into shape later on.

​

Once I got the top of each grill tacked to the spine I could lay the entire assembly down and get the under side of each piece as well. (The weld with black around it is because I touched the tungsten to the pool of molten aluminum right as I was finishing my weld. The weld is fine)

​

 

[MaximumBubbleMods]

So with the lower half welded I need to shape the ends of the individual grills to match the contour of the main chassis.

The 3D prints didn't hold up to the heat of welding well and they deformed a little. My spacing between grills is 1/2" and 1/4" conveniently though so I cut some scrap MDF I had into little squares to use as spacers between each grill.

​

I set up some foam to hold the assembly upside down and fit the MDF squares into the grill followed by painters tape as a clamp, squeezing the grill tight. The lower most grill had a weld that needed to simply be filed flat before shaping the contour could begin.

​

I measured the height of the half grill with the spacers and it measured over sized unfortunately at just over 11-3/8". It should be 11-1/4" to match the main chassis height so I set to sanding each spacers just slightly to lover the overall height evenly. After a round of sanding on each side, the height was nice and the grill fit nicely over the chassis.

​

With the spacing all set I slid the half welded grill along side the chassis, placed my grill end cap (this is what the grill ends will be welded to), and traced the curve along the face of the grills so I could simple grind them up to those lines for a nice tight fit.

​

I started the shaping process with an angle grinder that had a flapper wheel attached. It was 40 grit I believe. It wasn't fun and felt clunky to handle so I was uncomfortable, thinking I may mess up since the wheel didn't grind very predictably.

​

So I switched to a belt sander with some 60 grit paper and it went much better for me. It was a little slower I think but I felt like I had more control over the material being removed and it felt a little safer to boot lol

​

It is coming along and it is great to see the build emerging!