Design a custom super small ATX computer case? Help

Hello,

I have some light experience with semens IDEAS and Autodesk from highschool, and have been wanting to build my own computer case.
Now I know this sounds crazy, but the school I currently go to gives us free access to 3D printers, welders, a waterjet, cnc machines, planers, and other metal and woodworking equipment. I currently have a Thermaltake G3 which I love but want to build the absolutely smallest ATX compatible case possible. The reason is that atx allows a ton of ram, and often has the best features on the market compared to matx or ITX. ITX is kinda a joke to be honest, and unfortunately, there aren’t many options out there with 10gbe and thunderbolt 4, and an optical audio jack. I’m not opposed to making an mATX case but figure why not try the big boy first to see if that works.

SO TL;DR, what is the best program to design layouts, and case schematics in? Autodesk has wayyy too many options to choose from, and all are free for university students. ATX has a very particular layout for mobo standoffs and after factoring in power supply space and optimizing the space for the GPU, it’s going to need to be something that’s easy to rapid prototype in.

Any ideas/ thoughts.
I know there are plenty of ITX options and even some MATX options out there, but I just want to see what I can accomplish. A

Also, on a side note, does anyone know the maximum height needed for mobo components over the PCI slots? Like can I put a GPU mounted parallel flipped on it’s back 1.5 inches above the PCB?

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Theres nothing crazy about what you’ve described. You can find ITX cases on Thingiverse, go have a look for them and see if it gives you any ideas. Then remix them and share your remix. I just wouldn’t make it out of PLA if you can avoid it, I’ve seen enough large PLA prints warping and twisting just because Cura and or my filament wasn’t dialled in perfectly.
Personally I use Tinkercad to do what little model editing I need to when remixing someone else work or I’m trying to create something new. Its very simplistic in comparison to a full blown Autodesk CAD program but its quite fast and easy to use so I can usually bumble my way though it to make what I want.
As for the GPU yeah you can place it pretty much anywhere as long as you have a riser cable flexible enough and or long enough. I’m toying with the idea of mounting a low power GPU (like a Radeon 250) to a chunky semi passive CPU cooler to make a sandwiched GPU/CPU combo for my nephews dinky ITX case and then printing a new case lid with PCI bracket. I don’t think I can find the right kind of FM2+ compatible CPU cooler and I’m not going to try making one so its just an idea for now.

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Ah I’ll take a look. Do you think 3d printing is a better solution than trying to mess with cutting out/ rolling thin sheets of stainless or playing around with wood segments? Is there plastic out there that is sturdy enough to handle the weight of all the components without snapping in half?

PLA, PETG, ABS are all strong enough for a PC case, you might just use some nuts and washers to give add some strength here or there and give your screws something to bite into. You’ll just have to up the density of the 3d print with PLA and PETG to something close to 100% which means it could take a long time to fully print each part. ABS is generally much stronger but you have to nail the higher print temperatures and keep the temperatures consistent during and after printing or else the part will warp, makes it a bit of a chore to work with and it produces some pretty nasty fumes that you have to be careful with.

Personally if I was going to try this kind of project and I had the tools to cut and shape metal I’d go with metal. Maybe 3d print some of the more fiddly parts like let say the HDD cage, front panel surround for headphones and USB ports, any fan ports as well. Only for the sake of speed and accuracy you can get out of a 3rd printer while the bulk of the case can be made out of metal. Maybe 3d print some fan ducts to help direct airflow across your CPU heatsink so you can go with something ultra low profile without a fan directly attached.

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That’s exactly what I was thinking! lol. Will look into it :slight_smile:

This is what I ended up building. I am going to start on a new 3U rackmount case for my gaming PC soon since the 4u workstation one I am currently in was designed 20 years ago and does not fit water cooling well.

I plan to follow up my last build with this new one once I get started.

When I built this one I just did a basic layout in Visio because I was hand cutting everything. I google the size of the motherboard I wanted, I google the size of large PCIe cards and added a bit, and just added it all up.

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If you can come across a CM Q500 – that may be your min. backplate tolerances

Wouldn’t have a immediate clue on vertical GPU - guestimate off modular cases?
Back case fan / IO, can roughly be such a measurement [ex. O11 mini plate]

The best CAD program IMO is SolidWorks, although I know some people will fight me over this. Second place is Catia I’d say.

If your budget is tight and school won’t let you get a decent CAD license, give FreeCAD a whirl, it’s pretty decent for the price. It’s not even close compared to SolidWorks from a usability/productivity perspective (it’s like Photoshop vs Gimp), but works well enough for hobby projects.

As for more professional small ATX cases, have a look at the SFFTime P-ATX and N-ATX.

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Wouldn’t shipping cost a fortune for someone in OH USA

I think it’s $50-$80 or so across the pond. Not the cheapest of cases but if you count the hours you will spend rolling your own, it’s well invested money.

Of course, feel free to roll your own, it is a good learning experience. I am currently looking at making an ATX / dual mATX/mITX 3D printed case myself, the basic idea is to place it inside an IKEA Kallax Bookshelf with support for dual radiators, but it’s a slow process. I have done the easy parts (front grill, backplates) and now it is time for the rest… :slight_smile:

picoCAD begs to differ.
Hi5LnO

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Nice for tiny details, a case usually consists of 20-50 parts and atleast 300 details though, so then you want something that can do more.

Especially for 3D printing, you need to consider the fact that the larger the object the worse tolerances will be, as well as the maximum height and width of the printer, how much support material and how much you can stress the material.

I would build a metal frame that can then take plastic (or wood) panels. That way you could change the way the fans are mounted or add a GPU-support bracket should you need one later.

Maybe my custom case project as inspiration:

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