Check out last week’s winner, “Batman Begins,” and last week’s runners-up .
Let’s turn it over to Brian as he describes his case mod:
Builder: Brian “Boddaker” Carter
Case Mod: UAL 737
Time to build: 6 months
.fa_inline_results, .fa_inline_results.left {
margin-right: 20px;
margin-top: 0;
width: 220px;
clear: left;
}
.fa_inline_results.right {
margin-left: 20px;
margin-right: 0;
}
.fa_inline_results h4 {
margin: 0;
font-size: 8pt;
line-height: 12px;
padding-bottom: 4px;
border-bottom: 1px dotted #c3d2dc;
}
.fa_inline_results ul {
list-style-type: disc;
list-style-position: inside;
color: #3769DD;
margin: 0 0 15px;
padding: 0;
}
.fa_inline_results ul li {
margin: 0;
padding: 0;
}
.fa_inline_results ul li.title {
color: #333;
list-style-type: none;
font-weight: bold;
}
.fa_inline_results ul li.articles {
color: #333;
list-style-type: none;
}
.fa_inline_results, .fa_inline_results.left {
margin-right: 20px;
margin-top: 0;
width: 220px;
clear: left;
}
.fa_inline_results.right {
margin-left: 20px;
margin-right: 0;
}
.fa_inline_results h4 {
margin: 0;
font-size: 8pt;
line-height: 12px;
padding-bottom: 4px;
border-bottom: 1px dotted #c3d2dc;
}
.fa_inline_results ul {
list-style-type: disc;
list-style-position: inside;
color: #3769DD;
margin: 0 0 15px;
padding: 0;
}
.fa_inline_results ul li {
margin: 0;
padding: 0;
}
.fa_inline_results ul li.title {
color: #333;
list-style-type: none;
font-weight: bold;
}
.fa_inline_results ul li.articles {
color: #333;
list-style-type: none;
}
I wanted to build my dad a case since I had already done one for my mom last year. He is a retired United Airlines mechanic, with 35 years of service. I figured it would make a great theme if I were to pay tribute to his long and illustrious career. Since he worked primarily on the Boeing 737s, I designed the case to resemble one with the United colors.
In order to keep the size relatively small and still fit all the components inside, I went with a pudgy, cartoon-ish look. I also chose to build only the right half so it could be set up against a wall, or hung up using a monitor wall-mount system. As such, it had to be reasonably lightweight as well. So I decided to use acrylic instead of wood or aluminum.
In order to make the case cover, I needed to build a special vacuum-forming table to bend the plexiglass sheet over the complex curves. And it had to be big enough to accommodate its 36″ length. After much trial and error, I finally got it to work. At this point I had spent more time and effort in the vac table than I had on the case itself! But it all started coming together quickly after that.
The center section holds the motherboard, the front nose houses the two hard drives, and the tail section is where the power supply is mounted. The DVD/CD drive is hidden in the wing, and discs are loaded through a slot in the leading edge. Also integrated into the wing is the keyboard and mouse receiver, and the Coolermaster Jet-7 CPU cooler is attached underneath and functions as an intake fan.
Since the motherboard was deep inside the main section, I needed to provide an easy way to plug everything in. So I purchased a standard case front-mount I/O panel and built that under the tail. In addition to the audio, USB, FireWire and gameport, I added a network port, custom United logo power switch, reset button, and the ac adapter plug for the mouse docking station (which I had integrated into the rear horizontal stabilizer).
Because of its shape, it wasn’t an exact replica. But still I wanted to add some realistic detail to it, so I added some navigational lights. I put a landing light on the leading edge of the wing, a light at the tip of the tail facing back, I used the red hard drive activity light on top to act as the beacon, and the green power LED for the green nav light on the tip of the right wing. Other lighting includes two 12″ blue cathodes to illuminate the inside, one white LED for the cockpit, red and blue LEDs to provide backlighting for the logo on the tail, and two 4″ blue cathodes in the base. Those CCFLs in the base get their power through contact points, and receive 12v from the airplane when it’s seated. I didn’t want any unsightly cables or molex plugs coming out of the base at all.
I went with the older blue/gray United color scheme because that is what my dad would relate more to, rather than their newer white/blue livery. Thanks to my friend Scott and Redding Paint Mart, I was able to get the exact Dupont color codes for an exact match. The keyboard and mouse were painted to match the case as well.
