Putting my rad in the TJ09

[madmat]

I'd like to cover the proper way to put a rad in a TJ09. I say proper since the rad will be sealed all the way down the sides and the mounts will be tapped. there are no nuts to try to hold in place and no funky L brackets to fight with.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad1.jpg
Here's the bottom of the case roof.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad2.jpg
Here's the rad where it'll live.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad3.jpg
Wanna put a triple up there? just overhang the opening a bit

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad4.jpg
The third fan shows how much the rad will overhang in the rear.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad5.jpg
I've outlined where the hole ends and how much it'll overhang to the front. To make up for the overhang simply mount the rad 1/4" lower and seal it to the roof with some 3/8" thick foam weatherstripping.

[madmat]

Ok, to continue...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad6.jpg
I'm using 3/4" aluminum angle to hold the rad.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad7.jpg
It'll run along the fan holder mounts in the roof.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad8.jpg
Cut it to 11-1/4" long and mount to the rad.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad9.jpg
Setting it along the roof shows how it'll fit.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad10.jpg
There's a bit of a gap, nothing terrible.

[madmat]

Again, to continue...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad11.jpg
I cut out the bar in the middle. This case will be my main rig and will live with me for a good time.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad12.jpg
Again, the mock up from another angle.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad13.jpg
I drilled and tapped four holes in the brackets, two per side on the ends.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad14.jpg
Mounted! The roof holes are tapped so the rad cant slide side to side.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad15.jpg
Longer screws on one side...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad16.jpg
Standard HDD screws on the other side.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad17.jpg
And done! I could paint the angle black but I won't.

[NicePants42]

It looks great, but I would make a couple suggestions.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad8.jpg
Cut it to 11-1/4" long and mount to the rad.
Are you using anything other than the edges of those tightened screws to attach the aluminum to the rad? I would suggest screwing through the aluminum so that there is no chance for the rad and aluminum to separate. This will block some of the fins on the edges, but a dremel can fix that. You may want to use 1" angle instead of 3/4" to do this (more below). On the other hand, using washers would be good enough for me.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad10.jpg
There's a bit of a gap, nothing terrible.
But that gap will want to close when you screw into those holes, possibly pulling the aluminum out from under the screws holding it to the rad. Also, unless the holes in the case are tapped, (can't quite tell) the whole radiator+aluminum assembly can shift side to side. Screwing directly through the aluminum (as described above) will completely prevent this, but it will also greatly increase the size of those gaps - but using 1" angle will give you enough to drill through on top and maintain a tight gap on the side.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad17.jpg
And done! I could paint the angle black but I won't.
You might want to put some black weatherstrip between the aluminum and the top of the case to completely seal the sides and make everything uniformly black from this view.

[madmat]

No, the screws won't pull the angle out from under the rad screws. The holes in the case roof are threaded so that when the screws are run to the mounts on the case roof they're tightened to the case roof. You'd have to strip the holes in the case roof mounts in order to get the screws any tighter.

And yes the rad's being held to the angle by the edge of the screws. That's four screws per side and each screw has locking notches carved into the underside of the flange. It's not going anywhere.

Also, unless you're looking at the case roof from nearly straight on you don't see the silver from up top. The flash makes it look brighter than it really is.

The rad is close enough to the case roof that there's no real need for weatherstripping. With a triple the rad would be below the solid case roof and a further 1/4" down, this would make weatherstripping necessary.

[NicePants42]

The holes in the case roof are threaded so that when the screws are run to the mounts on the case roof they're tightened to the case roof. You'd have to strip the holes in the case roof mounts in order to get the screws any tighter.That answers that, then.

And yes the rad's being held to the angle by the edge of the screws. That's four screws per side and each screw has locking notches carved into the underside of the flange. It's not going anywhere.Teeth on the flange is an important thing to mention. I suggest noting it above. I agree that the aluminum is secure, however, being fond of overkill, I'll point out that there are toothed washers available.

The rad is close enough to the case roof that there's no real need for weatherstripping. With a triple the rad would be below the solid case roof and a further 1/4" down, this would make weatherstripping necessary.Agreed. Fond of overkill.

[madmat]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/Rad14.jpg
Mounted! The roof holes are tapped so the rad cant slide side to side.

I made mention of the holes in the case roof being tapped right here but I guess you missed it... ;)

Yeah, I could use toothed washers but I don't have any to hand and I don't feel like fighting traffic to get to Home Depot (it's over by the mall...terrible place to try going on a Saturday) and since I've literally got 10 pounds of PC screws in a box under my bed I made do with what was handy. The toothed screws won't slip off unless the angle shifts to the side and I'd destroy the PC to make that happen.

[Rob Williams]

mounts will be tapped. there are no nuts

Funny, I usually find all three of these things go together great! :o

Great stuff man, I love it! Could you show us a picture of the finished product (side view of the completed case)?

[madmat]

I plan to log the whole build in here as it gets completed. I just did the rad today. Actually the mobo and tray are on a shelf and I've got the res mounted in a HDD bay and the pump is in front of the fan duct in the mid case area. I've gotta unmount the mobo, route wires under it (I got an Ultra X3 recently) from the PSU and start running plumbing.

I doubt it'll be done until May.

[Rob Williams]

Ahh ok, looking forward man.

[madmat]

Ok, well here's the start:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ091.jpg
This is the air cooled version, I've already started tearing things down but you get the basic idea.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ092.jpg
The new home for the reservoir.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ093.jpg
The res will be held in place with the modder's friend: Velcro.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ094.jpg
Speaking of the res, here it is.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ095.jpg
And there's the pump.

It's also held in with Velcro. I've run some preliminary plumbing from the res to the pump but it's not pictured yet. I'm using a 90 coming from the res, going across under the lower edge of the drive bay cage and another 90 going back to the pump. The space under the front edge of the drive bay cage is big enough to allow two tubes to pass through.

More to come...

[Rob Williams]

Velcro is great, I need to get some for whenever I take on a project like this. Great stuff so far man.

[NicePants42]

What are your plans for fill/bleed/drain, Matt? That res location could make things a little interesting.

[DarkSynergy]

Looking great Matt. That's a sexy case.

[madmat]

What are your plans for fill/bleed/drain, Matt? That res location could make things a little interesting.

It's not that bad... you just lay the case on it's side and fill it. The res and pump are not tied down so they can be moved easily for filling and bleeding.

Looking great Matt. That's a sexy case.

Thanks man, I can't wait to get it finished :)

[DarkSynergy]

It's definitely going to look killer but what are the specs of the machine?

[madmat]

X2 3800+ at around 2.6Ghz, ASUS A8N32SLI Deluxe, 2 gigs Corsair PC4400 Pro, EVGA 7950GT KO SLI, Ultra X3 1KW, 500Gig Seagate 7200.9, WD WD1600JD 160Gig, Auzentech X-Meridian 7.1, Swiftech Apex Ultra w/ 2 MCW60's for the vid cards and 7900SLI ramblocks. Then there's the usual ODD's...

[DarkSynergy]

Bitchin'

Should look killer when completed.

[madmat]

I hope so. I'll get some pics once I get a bit more done on it :)

[madmat]

Well, it's sitting on the table doing the leak test as I type this.

I didn't take any pics in the interim simply since I was trying to hurry and get it finished but here's where it's at now.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ096.jpg
The loop is plumbed and I added a second auxiliary radiator at the rear of the case. This is to help with the added wattage from the second 7950GT being dumped into the loop. It's plumbed between the vid cards. The water flows from the res to the pump, from there it flows to the radiator in the roof and then to the CPU block. From there it flows into GPU 1 and exits that block and goes into the rear radiator and flows through it (Black Ice X-flow) and out into GPU 2. From there it flows into the res and it all begins again.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ099.jpg
Here's side on look into the loop.

[NicePants42]

Loving the single pass 120 on the back. Any chance you can mount that thing in the front bottom intake under the HDD cages without mauling the bracketry too much? It doesn't look like it - maybe if you used a rad based on 80mm fans?

By the way - have you used many UV additives? I'm currently rocking a red/black color scheme, but I haven't been able to find a red UV dye that works 1/10th as well as a decent green or blue dye - I've tried Fluid XP (mistake) and pentosin G12 (much better) but neither has anything like a decent reaction to UV lighting. If you know of any good red dyes, or could list your favorite dyes in order of brightness, I'd certainly appreciate it.

Here are a few (not so good) shots of my current setup. (http://www.hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1030579359&postcount=115)

[madmat]

Nope, I don't do UV additives as they have a very bad tendency to separate out of the water. I'm running a 6% mix of blue Zalman coolant to distilled water.

After I get home from work in the morning I'll get a few closer shots of the details such as the res and the GPU blocks, I was too wiped out to deal with it today.

Oh, yeah the fan extension wires running in front of the PSU are hooked to the clear CMOS header on the mobo and the jumper is on the fan end. The clear CMOS header is located under the latch of the lower PCI-e slot and I have no desire to unplumb my loop every time this board decides to take a dump.

BTW, nice rig!

[madmat]

Now, here's a bit more detail on the loop since my pics are so damn dark. Little did I know that this camera was pre owned by a film noire (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_noir) fan.

Anyways, this loop features SLI and I have the Swiftech Ramcool 79 on here. In this situation you run one F fitting to the first card and at the back run a crossover tube from block to block like thus:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ0910.jpg
This is made a bit more challenging by the fact that I'm running the sub loop for the rear rad in this area as well.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ0913.jpg
The F fitting is so large that I had to run it up closer to the CPU block in order for it to not hit the side of the case.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ0911.jpg
And here's a better look at the entire SLI sub area. I've got the temp sensors from the CFA635 CrystalFontz hooked up as follows: Sensor 1 is on the side of the CPU block baseplate. This will give me a good idea of the temp of the IHS, it should only be a few C off from it. Temp sensor 2 is on the input side of the rad so that I've got an idea of the water temp coming from the pump. Sensors 3 & 4 are running to the sides of the memory blocks on the vid cards. This will show me how much heat the CPU block dumped into the loop along with how much the ram is contributing in the case of no. 3 and in the case of no. 4 it'll tell me how well the rear rad is dropping the water temp coming from sensor 3. This should prove interesting.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ0912.jpg
Here's a look at the Ultra X3 that will be powering this beast. Yep, 1000 watts of goodness sitting on the floor of my case praying that the loop holds ;)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/madmat_2001/TJ0914.jpg
And here's a better look at how the reservoir is plumbed in. It's living in the space once taken by the drive cage. Now, if you're wondering why I pulled the cage out, look at the space where the tubing runs. You'll see that it's running under the duct for the front fan. When the drive cage in in that bay the plastic levers for that cage (the ones that release the locks on the cage) protrude into the area needed by the tubing. Yep, total buzzkill. Still though I like it and as long as I'm happy it's OK because in the end isn't this all about me? I mean I hope others like it to one degree or another but it's my PC and if I'm not happy that kinda sucks and if I am happy that's great. If after reading through here and you think it's horrible, please don't share if you can't be nice about it. I hate it when people treadcrap in ways like "It looks like sh!t, it's dumb and you're dumb!" and If you like it I hope it inspires you to try the road less traveled.

Enjoy!

[DarkSynergy]

Looking good.

[madmat]

It's up and running. I'm seeing 41/47 on the cores under load and the GPU's are hitting 39/35 under load. The lower temp is on the GPU after the rear rad so it does make a good difference.

Ambient temp at those readings is 28C.

[Tech-Daddy]

Nice work there bro! Looks VERY nice!

Taking lots of notes! I'll be working on my first WC rig on my next mod!
:D

[madmat]

Thanks, I got a 320 (Swiftech triple 120 rad) so one of these days it'll be going in there.

[NicePants42]

I'd like to know how effective you consider those RAM blocks to be. I had a couple of X1800XTs running under MCW60s a while ago, and guess how much RAM cooling I needed. Answer - None.

So I'm left to wonder if those RAM blocks are worth it. I mean, each RAM block costs ~$50, and has a very small scope of usefulness compared to the MCW60 since they can only be used on maybe one complete series of cards (that is getting a little dated). Add in the little factors like more, smaller hose and extra heat, and what benefits do you get?

If you've got any temperature data for the RAM chips or increased speed, I'd be glad to hear about it. If there are other benefits you've noticed, please enlighten me.

[madmat]

On air I was getting a max stable ram OC of 25Mhz effective (12.5Mhz DDR) and with the Ramcools I'm hitting 783Mhz (net gain of 58Mhz effective or 29Mhz DDR) in SLI. In single card I was hitting 810 stable for 85Mhz or 42.5Mhz DDR gain. As to temps, measured on the sides of both blocks (my temp probes are way too large to sit next to the chips) the ram blocks are running at 31.5C and 32.5C currently. Under load I saw a max of 36C and 37.4C running a heavy 3D load. The CPU temp (measured in the same method) is 30.4C ATM and during the same 3D load I was seeing 34.1C. The hot side of the MCR220 was registering 38.3C.

I'm convinced that they do the job that they're intended to do and if you're going to V-mod the board you'll see even better results.