Making of Mach3, lots of pics
This whole project started when I saw a brand new AC condenser on e-bays for just £10, I eventually got it for £21 after the bidding and P&P. I already had some scrap metal which I got from a skip so I got to work. Firstly I measured and cut the pieces for the frame.
Now the pieces had to be welded together.
Then I cleaned it up with an angle grinder.
The frame is very strong, I tested it by standing on it!
Next the pump, after speaking to you guys here I decided to go for a more powerful pump, the Hydor L30 because I already had the fittings for it from my old L20 and it's alot cheaper than the Eheim 1250. Using these pumps out of water shortens their life due to the lack of cooling so I strapped some fans on it, now its cool to touch.
The radiator is MASSIVE 23cm X 31cm X 5cm, I had to braze on some 8mm copper piping to adapt it for my compression fittings.
Now I had to make a shroud to get the most out of this rad. I made a template out of card first and tested it for size, then I just traced around it on some scrap sheet metal I found.
Welded together and painted black.
At around this time the panels were ready. I had given the designs to a friend of mine who got them made at his work place, cheers Taz.
The panels where very shiny...
...so I had to try and dull them down a bit and try to get a brushed aluminium effect. I rubbed them down with some scotch brite, still needs work here in this area.
Now for the reservoir. I had some acrylic cut to size to make a side panel res. Checking for size before sealing with silicon.
Sealed with silicon.
At about this time I got my block for my 6800 Ultra from Germany, thanks to Andreas V. for being really helpful.
Fitting all the bits in...
At this point it's worth mentioning DONT RUSH. Well that's what I did, I filled the reservoir after 24 hours only instead of 48...
...the silicon started to dissolve as its had not fully cured. So I had to drain the whole system and take the reservoir to bits. It took six hours to clean all the silicon of properly
I resealed everything again and now I'm just waiting...
Still needs some work to get the panels matching properly, any ideas anyone? I've run it a couple of times using a tub as the reservoir and everything seems fine. Just need Phil to get some Crystalfontz 3.5" Lcds in now to finish it of
This whole project started when I saw a brand new AC condenser on e-bays for just £10, I eventually got it for £21 after the bidding and P&P. I already had some scrap metal which I got from a skip so I got to work. Firstly I measured and cut the pieces for the frame.
Now the pieces had to be welded together.
Then I cleaned it up with an angle grinder.
The frame is very strong, I tested it by standing on it!
Next the pump, after speaking to you guys here I decided to go for a more powerful pump, the Hydor L30 because I already had the fittings for it from my old L20 and it's alot cheaper than the Eheim 1250. Using these pumps out of water shortens their life due to the lack of cooling so I strapped some fans on it, now its cool to touch.
The radiator is MASSIVE 23cm X 31cm X 5cm, I had to braze on some 8mm copper piping to adapt it for my compression fittings.
Now I had to make a shroud to get the most out of this rad. I made a template out of card first and tested it for size, then I just traced around it on some scrap sheet metal I found.
Welded together and painted black.
At around this time the panels were ready. I had given the designs to a friend of mine who got them made at his work place, cheers Taz.
The panels where very shiny...
...so I had to try and dull them down a bit and try to get a brushed aluminium effect. I rubbed them down with some scotch brite, still needs work here in this area.
Now for the reservoir. I had some acrylic cut to size to make a side panel res. Checking for size before sealing with silicon.
Sealed with silicon.
At about this time I got my block for my 6800 Ultra from Germany, thanks to Andreas V. for being really helpful.
Fitting all the bits in...
At this point it's worth mentioning DONT RUSH. Well that's what I did, I filled the reservoir after 24 hours only instead of 48...
...the silicon started to dissolve as its had not fully cured. So I had to drain the whole system and take the reservoir to bits. It took six hours to clean all the silicon of properly
I resealed everything again and now I'm just waiting...
Still needs some work to get the panels matching properly, any ideas anyone? I've run it a couple of times using a tub as the reservoir and everything seems fine. Just need Phil to get some Crystalfontz 3.5" Lcds in now to finish it of
