Yo folks Ben Heckendorn here with some notes about case construction.

Symmetrical is Professional - Much like the human body, a cat or perhaps the Pentagon building it's always nice to have a unit with a equally shaped sides. If you're going for the best look possible it's the right place to start.

Engraving Plastic is Cool - Stop by a trophy shop and see if you can get some 1/16" thick engraving plastic. It's easy to cut and comes in a variety of colors and styles. Here's a place I use a lot:

http://www.maintrophysupply.com/

Don't be afraid to use hot glue - It may seem nOObish, but I use it all the time! It's a great tool and is a lot easier than messing around with screws and mounting brackets, especially for trivial parts. Also works great for wrangling and arranging wires.

CNC is a great way to go, but there's plenty of ways to build a case manually, as described in my book and as well as this forum. Good luck!

Thanks for the tips ben ,
I'm bragging my Design & Technology teacher to let me use his cnc...
Doesn't seem to be working thought.

hot glue is indeed quite extraordinary, and better yet, can be found ordinarily!

Seriously, I also use it all the time and it works wonders....of course, on some plastics, it doesn't stick as well, so epoxy would be a better choice .

Ben, could you show us how engraving plastic works, with close-up photos please? I, and I imagine most people here, have no experience with engraving plastic, or the results of using it. Can you show us some benefits of using it versus using a painted-back lexan sheet, like Apple does with their iPod? I understand that you use a stacked-cuttout assembly method; can you give us a protip on why that method is preferrable over other methods? Thanks.

Well, engraving plastic is the standard for all Ben's book projects; it's fairly easy to cut, glues/epoxies well, and it looks pretty nice when used right. However, many of us here feel it's a bit flimsy and unprotective. Personally, I stick with good 'ol fashioned ABS or polystyrene; they do the same job, only sturdier and sleeker in appearance, in my not-so-humble opinion.

CTFan

and a Box one

Could Ben or someone tell me how he made that laptop case. It looks cool. I get how to bend the metal and all but what type of plastic did he put on the outside???

pretty sure its made out of aluminum, and rewuired some machinery to make it

I think he did some welding of some sort, but I'm not positive; the link the the making of is dead.

Just mislinked, here.

What ply engraving plastic should i use from that website.

What ply engraving plastic should i use from that website.

there's no need for ply.
get some engraving plastic that is 1/16" thick. this stuff doesn't come in layers, except for color layers. the outer front is one color, but when you cut it it displays a different color.

EDIT- my mistake, 2 ply. it's already listed for you. get some two ply plastic

I think the "ply" means how many layers of colors there are. I'm pretty sure almost all of the plastics on that site are 2 ply.


Question for knowledgeable people: Is engraving plastic ok to use with vacuum forming?

I have sat at my computer for long hours, staring at the screen, refreshing, refreshing, refreshing, to see if there is an answer to this question. I have sat here for two years. TWO YEARS! And alas, there is no response. No response, no PM, no email, nothing. In light of these events, I have only one word:


BUMP