Thermaltake’s latest PC case modding contest had contestants put their own spin on its Core P5 Tempered Glass V2 Black Edition ATX case (currently selling for $190). On February 11, the vendor revealed the 2019 Thermaltake Case Mod Invitational Season 2’s winning builds, a trio of rugged, 1980s action movie-ready systems that look like they’d eat other PCs for breakfast.
In addition to using Thermaltake’s open-frame case, the contest also required the modders to use Thermaltake's ToughRAM RGB Memory DDR4 RAM and F1 ARGB Platinum - TT Premium Edition power supply. Participants also had unlimited access to Thermaltake products and products from sponsors AMD, Zotac and Plextor.
Cyborg Helmet
Thai modder Juggapat Thonglue’s entry, the Cyborg Helmet, marched into the winner’s circle with a striking red design fit for a robot battlefield and enough RGB glam to inspire awe.
Components used include:
- AMD Ryzen 5 3400G CPU
- Zotac Gaming GeForce RTX 2070 Super Amp Extreme graphics card
- ASRock X570 Steel Legend motherboard
- Thermaltake WaterRAM RGB liquid cooling memory DDR4-3200 32GB (4x 8GB
- Plextor M9Pe 256GB M.2 NVMe SSD
- Thermaltake Pacific Core P5 DP-D5 Plus distro-plate with pump
- Thermaltake Pacific P1 Black pump
- Thermaltake T1000 Red transparent coolant
- Thermaltake V-Tubler PETG tube
- Thermaltake WaterRAM RGB liquid cooling memory
RoboCop
Taking the silver is Filipino modder Jesse Tiongson, who after careful consideration ended up drawing inspiration from the ASRock X570 Steel Legend motherboard for a rig paying tribute to RoboCop.
“It took me a lot of time to choose which theme or concept that I'll be using,” Tiongson told Tom’s Hardware. “I had three mods in my mind: the Pyramid Mod, Thundercats Vehicle and the RoboCop. When I saw the ASRock X570 Steel Legend motherboard, that's when I realized that I had to go with the RoboCop theme as it perfectly matches with the color."
The RoboCop build features:
- AMD Ryzen 5 3400G
- Zotac Gaming RTX 2070 AMP Extreme
- ASRock X570 Steel Legend
- Thermaltake WaterRAM RGB liquid cooling memory
- Plextor M9Pe 256GB
The build brought new challenges for Tiongson, who had to work with a rubber sheet for the first time to make the shape of RoboCop’s helmet.
“The rubber was difficult to measure and shape and even harder to put on a P5 case,” the modder said. Tiongosn said he had no idea where to start, but through trial and error and by measuring the width in proportion to the height, got the job done.
The RoboCop also represents Tiongon’s first time weathering, which is making a new object look old and worn. In order to make brand new PC components look like they’ve seen their share of shootouts, Tiongson painted the entire P5 case silver and then applied black accents to look like scratches.
“Weathering for the first time wasn't that hard at all. All you have to do is just control it, like not to put too much detail to maintain its simplicity,” Tiongson said.
The modder also used a 60-watt 4060 laser machine to make acrylic engravings.
The Vault
Get the Cyborg and RoboCop to team up, and you may have just enough power to break into The Vault, which took third place in Thermaltake’s contest. Canadian modder Erik “Bmods” Bergwest described the build as a “freestyle design” with a heavy industrial theme.
The Vault features:
- AMD Ryzen 5 3400G
- Zotac RTX 2070 OC Edition
- ASRock x570 Steel Legend
- Plextor M9Pe 256GB SSD
Cooling:
- CPU Block: Thermaltake Pacific W5
- Radiator: Thermaltake CL360
- Pumps: Thermaltake D5
- Reservoirs: Thermaltake R22
- Fittings: Mixture of Thermaltake
- Tubing: Thermaltake 12mm PETG and Thermaltake V-Tubler 3T soft tubing
Bergwest made about 20% of The Vault with 3D printing and the rest by hand. Materials included a 3/4-inch MDF (medium-density fibreboard) for the main body, a 4mm hand brushed aluminium to mod the core P5 section, PLA plastic for 3D printed parts and brackets and 6mm acrylic for various panels and covers.
But the hardest part was designing and building the sliding motherboard tray.
“I wanted the motherboard to really be the center of the project. In order to make everything work I needed to design various 3D prints to mount the 6-inch linear actuator that would power the movement,” Bergwest told Tom’s Hardware.
“Then using the adjustable/removable mobo tray that comes with the Core P5 [case], I attached the tray to some ball bearing slides and hinges that were guided by steel dowels to make the tray move from a 45-degree angle to a straight up 90-degree angle when the mod was opened.”
We’ll be sure to stay on these three mods’ good side. To see the rest of the entries, check out the 2019 Thermaltake CaseMod Invitational Season 2 page and Thermaltake’s announcement video below.
