Minimum volume ATX case V0.36

prusaprinters

I was looking for a small enough ATX case to either be carried in a backpack or fashioned in to a backpack and found nothing. So I figured I'd make my own. The case is 90% ATX standard compliant, as you can still add extension cards in almost every PCI-E slot( but the first - this is taken up by m.2 SSDs on a lot of modern boards though. The first PCI-Ex16 slot is actually in the second slot position on a lot of full size ATX boards these days). Thus, the volume is rather high for a SFF-case at 21.5 liters, but with the provided strap mounts, it can be fashioned in to a backpack. Keep in mind that I have printed one prototype with the enclosed .stls. You might find that the design needs adjusting on your printer. That said, the prototype is holding up well for 12 months now. Print settings: 4 circumferences, 5 top and 6 bottom layers, 15% infill, 0.2mm height, 0.4mm nozzle diameter, 0.45mm extrusion. 250°C nozzle temperature with a hardened steel nozzle(try 245° with brass), 85-90°C bed temperature. Some parts will only fit on a mini+ printbed if you skip the skirt. Tested with dry(!!!) Tinmorry and Prusa PETG. All parts are sized up slightly (0.5%) to account for part shrinkage after printing. Note: The AGB/reservoir parts need to be waterproof. Print them with 50% of your usual speeds ( roughly 20mm/s for circumferences), high temps and high infill levels and test them prior to assembling the entire case for leaks. You can use a soldering iron to melt and seal leaky spots. It will never be 100% leak proof, but you can get it sealed well enough where water will not drip out but slowly evaporate away between layers. V0.36:As promised, I finally adjusted the front IO panel so that the headphone jack should now work. I'd appreciate feedback on this, as I don't plan to reprint this part for my case. I've also changed the DDC cradle - the old part didn't nearly do the decoupling I wanted it to do, so the new one is designed around a shoggy sandwich. V0.35:The case now fits non standard compliant ATX PSUs. I'm not sure whether I like the design, but it works and makes cable and tube/hose routing easier. Testing has revealed that the Eisbaer LT is not powerful enough to pump water throughout the whole system at a high enough speed to have minimal delta ts over components.The GPU temps rise as much as 10K if you run prime95 on a Ryzen 9 5950X. Intel CPUs should fare significantly worse. Atomic Heart saw the GPU spike at 90+°C, which is way too high for a watercooled GPU with 230W TDP - which according to HWMonitor, didn't even reach the power target but hit its temp limit in my opinion. I have designed a sled/cradle to fit a DDC 4.2 pump in to the lower right mount that was originally intended for 2.5" drives. It has room for a 10mm high foam pad to dampen vibrations from the pump. I'd suggest an Alphacool XPX 1U CPU cooler so that clearances to the PSU will not be an issue.  There seems to be an issue with the front audio being too deep inside the case. This will be revised on V0.36. V0.34:The included .stl files have been adjusted to fit a motherboard after the print when printed with a mini+ with the print settings above. I have printed all components and it seems to be working. The main problem is precise printing over large distances with multiple parts. I've strengthened the radiator support on the PCI-IO part, as it was too flexible during printing and led to less than clean prints. V0.33:added more supports to the AGB, it was too flexible and thus the print would usually fail due to bending. Remade the entire front end of the case as I couldn't get the floor to be straight with supports. The mounts for the 60mm fans went the way of the dodo, but with the hexagonal pattern you could make some snap in pieces that you can mount just about anything to. V0.32:All .stl files have been reoriented and everything now has custom supports. I'm not entirely sure how easy it will be to take them off each model, that has yet to be tried. Sanding should be useful though. I have noticed a tendency of the mini+ print sheet curling up at the edges when printing large objects with PETG. To prevent this from messing with the prints, I suggest clamping the print sheet to the print bed. You can try these: https://www.printables.com/model/136182-prusa-mini-bed-clipV0.31:I noticed that the cross braces are modeled in a way that causes less than optimal bridging. This has been resolved. V0.3:There will be an assembly manual in the “Other” section (once I get to writing one, in the meantime use the FCStd file with FreeCAD for an idea of how parts fit together). The gist is this: print the four corners, clamp them together with top and bottom crossbrace, then install your motherboard to make sure it all fits. Cut the acrylic panels to size if needed, glue them to the sides an ONLY once the glue has hardened can you mount the PSU and other heavy second layer components like the radiator for the AIO. You may use the square nuts at the bottom of the base parts for securing the acrylic panels too, however, they are meant for future modular attachments I plan to make. Components needed(BOM): -Alphacool front I/O-panel for servers (https://www.alphacool.com/shop/enterprise-solutions-server/19-server-racks/zubehoer/28610/alphacool-front-i/o-panel-mit-usb-2.0-und-kabelsatz-fuer-servergehaeuse)-Silverstone front I/O kit ( f.i. https://www.silverstonetek.com/de/product/info/computer-chassis/G11313530-RT/)-Alphacool Eisbaer 240 LT ( I recommend getting better fans, the stock ones are very loud)-2x 4mm thick acrylic sheets or similar, measuring approx 170.5x276mm ( I suggest cutting these to shape once you have assembled the rest of the case)-8x M4x5mm socket head bolts( 6 are for PCI-E extension cards, subtract as needed)-8x M4 hex nuts (3.3mm thick)-12x M4 square nuts (2.2x7mm)-4x UNC #6-32x12mm screws-16x M4x16mm socket head bolts-8x M4x8mm socket head bolts ( M4x10mm also fit)-1x tube of some sort of Methmethylacrylate glue ( available at most hardware stores, check the epoxy section, or order UV curing Acrifix 1R0192 for a clear result)-2x 1kg spool of dry(!!!) PETGPC part requirements: ATX compliant motherboard with an m.2-Slot in the first extension slot (pretty much any modern motherboard)a GPU no longer than 276mm and no wider than 150mm ( check the precise fit of your card in the step file!)ATX compliant PSU ( highly, highly recommend a modular one)3.5" harddrives no higher than 7.5mm for the alt baywith a second radiator and reservoir:skip the Eisbaer 240 LT. - relatively flat CPU cooler ( no higher than 60mm)- DDC 4.2 pump- shoggy sandwich kit ( with 8x countersunk(?) M4 bolts and nuts )-2x Alphacool NexXxos ST25 240mm ( plus fans)-I recommend using 90° fittings for GPU, CPU and the out of the reservoir/AGB, the radiators and the in of the reservoir need straight fittings ( you can fit up to 10/13 ¼" alphacool fittings). -3mm thick acrylic tube, measuring 30x240mm -9x M4 square nuts (2.2x7mm)-9x M4x16mm socket head bolts-1x ¼" Whitworth cap for the reservoirI recommend 3m of 8/11mm EPDM hoses with fold protection springs for some bends. without a second radiator: -1x 4mm thick acrylic sheet or similar, measuring 158x309.24mm ( you may want to drill holes in to this so the GPU can get more fresh air and so you can bolt it to the top of the case)with 2 3.5" SSDs in the alt SSD bay:-4x M4x5mm socket head bolts-2x M4x16mm bolts For using the strap mounts: -16x M4 hex nuts (3.3mm thick)-16x M4x16 socket head bolts -4x M6 Hex nuts -4x M6x40 socket head boltsThis entire case is printable with a Prusa Mini+. The reservoir will have to be glued together, with the acrylic tube plugged in to both halves.  Remember to dry your filament and set up your mini correctly! If you won't dry your filaments ahead of printing, the radiator holder's hex structures will become an absolute stringing nightmare. Don't say I did not warn you.