Reader's Drives - Blade Runner Showcase

Posted at: Wednesday 2nd July 2008 by John Nulty

John Nulty builds his own replicant case in tribute to the iconic film.

It took a while to get back on track. After glueing and reinforcing the faulty side panel, I built the basic open box shape. The rear section was formed from plywood, which was Dremelled into shape for the back panel and the PSU. The top of the pyramid was formed from more timberboard and included a 120mm blowhole for the exhaust. Screws topped by brass caps were used to provide rigidity and aesthetics. The drive bays on the sides were fashioned using bays from old PCs, and then mounted on the angled sides using piano hinges. I then made the external drive frames by hand and enclosed them in removable plywood sections to make future upgrading easier.

I hadn't yet decided on the dramatic effect I wanted to achieve on the front section of the case. I very much wanted the mod to be linked to the image of a massive, hi-tech building from the film. A simple window just didn't do it for me. It was while rummaging through my 'PC graveyard' box that I had a brainwave: I could use an old motherboard, desolder the components, drill holes to clear the debris and then backlight it to produce the effect of an occupied tower block. It would be important to use the appropriate copper-coloured motherboard in order to complement the visual style of the case. Below this would be the 'Blade Runner' logo, with the mood further enhanced by spotlights emanating from under the case. A frenzied session of work ensued, which included Dremelling, routeing, drilling, sanding and cutting Perspex to shape. The logo was produced by downloading the font, printing it out on some card and cutting it out with a scalpel. This was then set into the recessed window behind a strip of Perspex. Once the kit was moved from the old case and the two cold cathodes mounted inside, the resulting lighting effect was just what I wanted. I finished off the mod by facing the drive coverings with pieces of motherboard to accentuate the front theme.

After sanding and staining the case, I was happy with the final outcome. For a first major mod, this was ambitious, so I would recommend that new modders cut their teeth on an easier project. Another valuable lesson is to never be a slave to your original design - accept influence from any quarter. I'd like to thank CPC, the modding fraternity for its input and my family for putting up with the time I spent on the mod.  

See John's original project log at www.custompc.co.uk/blogs/Johnnn.

System specifications

CPU: 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E6600, (stock speed)
CPU cooling: Arctic Freezer 7 Pro
Motherboard: Asus P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe
Memory: 2.4GB PC2-5300
Graphics: BFG GeForce 7900GS Bliss
Hard disks: Hitachi Deskstar 250GB, Samsung 120GB x 2 in RAID 0
Audio: On Board AC97
CD/DVD: Sony DVD RW (DRU-500A), LG DVD RAM (GSA-4167B), Artec CDRW (WRR-52Z)
PSU: 450W Be Quiet!
Case: Proprietary
Input: Belkin Wireless Keyboard, Logitech MX Revolution Mouse