MacintoshClassicIIIColorTVp™ Hack

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Just my $0.02 after tax, but I reckon you'd be better off installing a simple video switch to select between the DVD player and the computer video into the projector: that way you don't lose 75% of your pixels by routing through the QVGA Apple Video System.

The DVD's only got S-Video & Composite out and the Projector has only got VGA and Something or other not nearly as good as S-Video in, IIRC. So running the S-Video straight into the Tuner Card and getting the pixel doubled 320 x 240 as a progressive scan VGA output will very likely be better than any other possibility. I've been watching VHS and DVD movies on my tuner card thru composite in for years and it leaves very little to be desired on a 21" CRT. S-Video should be a big kick in the pants, in terms of image quality.

today's FREEBIE Conquest!!!! / a, cut to size, piece of "glare control" AKA: lightly frosted glass.

Nice freebie Flat, I assume? Did you pick up the plexi at the same time?

Nope, they didn't have any matte Plexi after telling me over the phone that they had it in stock, ergo, the flat anti-glare glass freebie!

12" CRT / in this case

:?: How is that going to fit?

My Bad! It was a 10" CRT and I'll take some shots of the slots I had to cut into the insides of the case for the trimmed down mounting ears! So far I've found all the 10" monitor's innards and what's left of the case. The @$$ END of which is a cantilevered goiter stickin' a fer piece out the back of that gaping maw in the back of the Classic Case!

I'll have USB /Not to mention a Card Reader Cage, if that's possible under Apple's (probably borked, per SOP within the InfiniteLoopiness™) USB implementation. :

Not borked at all, AFAICT. I've run generic cheapie media card readers under OS 9 before - the cards show up as drive volumes, as you'd expect.

Goodie, Goodie Gumdrops!!! [] ]'> )

how about preserving the floppy chain so you can connect an internal floppy drive (externally) should you need to do any floppy boot based debugging? A simple DIL header somewhere on the exterior (rear?) should do the trick.

I think I said I was going to do that in a post above, I'll either clip the harness pins to split the signals or just desolder them and then patch wire the external floppy ribbon cable and take it out the unused LCIII Card Port! I just LOVE thru-hole connections! [] ]'>

I hope the string of questions and suggestions doesn't suggest I'm in any way detracting from the awesomeness of this hack |) The way the DVD tray sits in the expanded floppy slot is particularly neat. Did you have to trim down the tray at all, or was that just good fortune?

NoPro, I thrive on collaboration and welcome any and ALL suggestions and questions!

As for the near perfect fit of the DVD's Tray, that was good fortune . . . and about seven years of watching out for the perfect Trayloading Optical Drive! The fact that it was a DVD Player w/S-Video Out and sitting right there at CrapShack when I was returning that first borked projector, was pure dumb luck/AMAZING GRACE! [] ]'>

I'll post an update later or tomorrow, the lovely young ladies of the Caribou Coffee Crew will be leaving soon, and so must I! [] ]'>

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Update; as promised! [] ]'>

Still no joy on finding my 10' Color VGA CRT, but i found the rest of the parts . . .

. . . no joy on finding a HobbitMac CRT either! :'(

However, my Compaq Portable II's CRT is a dead on fit for my Classic's Bezel/CRT Interface, the holes in the CRT Band line up perfectly for mounting it to the backside of the Classic's Frontspiece AND, ISTR, the Classic's CRT having a much more rounded face than the CPQPII's! IOW, it's almost a PERFECT vacuum forming buck for either a frosted or clear ersatz classic CRT! [] ]'>

Here are two shots of the rear end of what was to be my BenchTop DevNoteServer/TV-Monitor, let me re-iterate, I considered Fugliness to be a Big + for this hack. In a discussion about the impossibility of doing one of the fancier CC Hacks to a HobbitMac, I'd given someone my notion for mounting a Q630 Class MoBo upside-down in a Compact Macintosh Case. Was that you, tmtomh?

Whatever, i was bound and determined to do one after that!

I was intent upon grafting the Monitor's Knobby Chin onto this Classic Case, so that adjustments would be right where they were supposed to be! i obviously would have gotten the full measure of Downright Fugliness from this Ill-Fated Hybrid! [] ]'>

Here are shots of the two packages I nabbed from CrapShack for this hack:

Projector:

DVD Player w/S-Video + 5.1 out:

Meanwhile, back at the banana ranch! I did some more test fitting and methinks there'll be no ATX PSU-ification of this hack. I've just about stripped some nondescript 603e rev of the venerable Quadra 630 right to the bone . . .

. . . and stuffed its guts into my sub-basement expansion bay! }

The lowest PCI card drops neatly into the OPEN side of the case! :rambo:

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

I haven't had anything new to report until today, I've been trying to decide how to mount everything and decided upon Plexi as the easiest medium . . . and see through to boot! [] ]'> So I've been scribing/snapping, sawing and filing my way toward a protoype MacQuariumChassis. I MEK'd my first positioning piece on this morning and figured it was time for a progress report!

Voila! I'm happy with it so far. :approve:

The sides and snug up to the mounting guides for the shell in the front and butt up to the back almost perfectly, while the base plate in between positions them flush with the inside surfaces of the shell. With the shell in place, everything fits as snug as a bug in a rug! [] ]'>

If you look closely you can see where the monitor/bezel interface has been scraped to match the surface of my MIA 10" SVGA CRT. Many of the plastic positioning guides and mounting pads have been trimmed back/lopped off. While my 9" Compact Portable II CRT might be a perfect fit to the bezel, I'm not sure how a Standard Classic CRT would fit any more. =8-/

 

[Bunsen]

Looking good there

Is that transparent chassis to go inside the Classic shell? Because, looking at your first two pieces, and remembering the general flatness and angularity of boxmac rear shells, it occurs to me that fabbing up a transparent plexi rear shell would not be unpossible.

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Thank you, comrade B! [] ]'>

Actually, it's a lot harder to do an inside fit than the external shell from the way I see it. So, of course, the shell slips around mine . . . : . . . hence, the MacQuariumChassis™ moniker! [] ]'>

Actually, for a near perfect clear case fab, all it'd take is a vacuum forming rig for the front, top & back sections, a router-table-ized dremel (preferably a real router, if available) for rabbeting and doing the cutoff work using jigs, a plexi-bender for the rounded edges, and boom, the whole things done! [] ]'>

For a less perfect shell, just snap, bend, saw, flame polish the edges and it'd be plenty good enough for anyone but a . . .

. . . erm . . . never mind! )

A good version for anyone who can stomach the Mini's "styling" . . . . . . bleh!

Use a few pieces of aluminum angle stock for all the joints, give the front a perfectly flat face like the ProtoMacPic in my ShugartMac thread over on 'fritter (I found it online, but it might have been from AppleDesign originally) festoon the front & sides w/an incisor removal AluminumAppleLogo and it'd be a decent combo of the best of the pre-128k ultimate FrogDesignProtoMacLook™ . . .

. . . and the least apalling example of the IvesDesign/JobsDesignerWannabe™ era! } :lol:

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

ARGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 8-o

Bunsen, you sneaky lil' . . . erm? . . . INSTIGATOR!

I just spent more than a bit of my time at work turning a simple Isometric view of a Compact Mac (to do a wire sculpture for my son, who gifted me one father's day, with the most awesome little Ceramic Sculpture of a Compact Mac when he was a freakin' pre-schooler!) into a Wide Screen, Clear Plexi PseudoProtoMacMultiMediaCenter™ Hack!

I'm just gonna rough out some dimensions, post it in a new thread . . .

. . . and blame it all on YOU!!!!! } :rambo: )

 

[olePigeon]

Get a piece of velum or tracing paper. I use that for rear projection and it works great.

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

NoPro, got some, I've been using it since the old "LucyGraph" days!

The image is way bright as is, shining though a piece of regular printer paper! More than likely I'll need to add a Neutral Density Filter to my Optical Table LashUp's 3 Diopter Closeup Lens and whatever WA Adapter/Lens I choose in order to focus a rectangular image onto the funky curvature of the planned Vacuum Formed, Heavily Frosted Plexi, ersatz CRT!

Anybody got a source for small front surface mirrors? I don't want to buy a working Overhead Projector for one piece of mirror.

But if I can find a dead one . . . }

 

[Bunsen]

Try bgmicro.com. They often have odd bits of optical supplies, ie mirrors and lenses. Last time I looked they had a few surplus OHP heads for example.

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

THX, comrade, I was gonna check it out . . . really, I was . . . but then I snagged an ENTIRE (almost) working OHP with a $35 Lamp innit (hours on said unit unknown) with the perfect Beige OHP Head for $20 today! [] ]'>

I was spending a measured amount of my tax refund (only went a little over budget : )

Got lotsa other stuff, including a SparcStation20 and a certified DOA Beige Plus w/o ANY lettering on the front, but it has the BIG Rainbow /Apple and some swoopy/NIKE lookin' graphics embossed on the front bezel. It looked nothing like the standard Beige Plus sittin' next to it. No clue as to what's up, I've never even seen pics of one like this, but pics'll be posted later (or tomorrow) in the Conquests Forum. [] ]'>

Lots of other stuff to document and post, including an Altec Lansing Powered Sub/Computer Speaker System with SPDIF & Analog Inputs with Outputs for front and rear speaker pairs that sent me over my $100 budget by about $20.

Whatcha' call a setup like this . . . 4.1? :?:

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

I got tripped up by a SPARCstack™, an awesome, but seriously Borked 128k/Daystar/Plus/Microspeed (not exactly sure of the order of the changes) Upgraded "Beige Plus", a half dozen complete vintage KBDSs, 1.9 Sun SPARCstation KBDs and a couple of BunsenInstigatedHacks™/PlexAtrocities for a while, but finally, I've spent a lil' time on my primary hack du jour! [] ]'>

No piccies yet, maybe soon though. I've got the second side of the clear plexi inner shell/chassis bolted to a piece of 1/4" plexi w/tapped holes in the edge, which is then bolted to the Classic floor-pan's raised side panel, which I've also drilled & tapped.

This morning, before work, I cut down the floor-pan, presumably from a 6500 case, that came with my 6500 MoBo. I used my collection of tin snips and seamers for that step, then I then drilled pilot holes for three mounting bolts on each side, then re-drilled oversize holes in the sheet metal and re- drilled & tapped the pilot holes in the plastic MoBo Slides.

After bolting all that up, I sat the assembly on a piece of 3/4" blue foam so I could lop off the excess plastic from both sides of the MoBo Slide Rails by running the it through my Bandsaw. It should work out fine . . . I'm trying to retain the original stamped/bent mounting flanges for the MedusaCablingHarness™ if I can . . .

. . . we'll see! } After that and I've got the floorpan <-> floorpan mounting done, I'll take piccies of all the parts/assemblies for posting/documentation. :rambo:

 

[Bunsen]

Man, I wish I had your workshop

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Man, I wish I had your workshop

:lol: The wood/metal shop is almost exactly 1/2 of my fairly good sized kitchen . . . for a two bedroom apartment!

The Old School Delta 14 Bandsaw is just about the ONLY decent sized tool that wasn't lost in the great storage room fiasco. I used the AvSnips and Seamers because I was too lazy/hurried to put the Bi-Metal Blade on my baby and then change it back for a proper Plexi cutting blade . . .

. . . I've been using a 1/2" wood re-saw blade for everything so far . . . :I . . .

. . . all the Plexi Parts are just test-fitting prototypes anyway, so who cares? :rambo:

Maybe someday I can afford to buy a drill press again . . . I really miss having a drill press. :'(

 

[Osgeld]

read this, you might be interested in how he makes a fake screen using some plexi, a heat gun, and some spring clamps

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

read this, you might be interested in how he makes a fake screen using some plexi, a heat gun, and some spring clamps

Thanks for the link, I think my heat gun is somewhere in my apartment . . . I hope my heatgu . . . [] ]'>
. . . pairing his technique with vacuum forming, using either my Rigid-Wet-or-Dry-Vac or my compressor powered vacuum pump will probably yield a better result, especially with 3 mm Plexi! [] ]'>

 

[Osgeld]

yea, his with 6 mil came out nearly perfect but you can see where one of the y axis edges did not form fully, but 3 mil would be much easier

now if you had an old oven that would be best, but dont dare put it in an oven you want to use for food as it may fume it up with all sorts of nice toxins

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

yea, his with 6 mil came out nearly perfect but you can see where one of the y axis edges did not form fully, but 3 mil would be much easier

Yup! That's what he said! [] ]'>

now if you had an old oven that would be best, but dont dare put it in an oven you want to use for food as it may fume it up with all sorts of nice toxins

I'm not all that worried about using my oven/broiler if I want to, I live alone and my body chemistry is in constant flux, as has been my lifelong experience in handling of HazMats! Besides, vacuum forming takes place well before the boiling point of acrylic! [] ]'>

And fumes is fumes, they'll be evacuated nicely with the exhaust fan hood & an auxiliary fan blowin' into the oven! }

To paraphrase Admiral Farragut:

Damn the TechPedoes! Full speed ahead! )

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Haven't had any pictures to post, but I've reached another good documentation point. I always wanted to create a sliding mechanism for getting the shell off the clear plexi liner/front bezel and last night, during another bout of images flickering about in the 'ole noggin, up popped a real goodie. It seems half of the equipment installed in this hack is going to be either upside down, backwards, at right angles . . . or some combination thereof.

The shell for the ZFP HDD Case Cover has been inverted and the liner/chassis is going to replace plexi tracks as my sliding mechanism. This will be coupled with some plexi parts, pieces and connective tissue . . . so to speak . . . to hold the fronts-piece/inner shell to the ZFP HDD Chassis with yet another clear plexi inner shell. Now I've just got to install the real MoBo and a PSU mock-up The feets are still in place, nestled inside their own holes in the spacer. I can't decide if I want to paint the edge of the spacer black or install chase-lights all around the edge. Most likely it'll be black with the stationary curved front section having embedded LED activity indicators all across the front.

Oh, BTW, if you'll take note of the Medusa Mess, I've completed the most difficult portion of the hack! I'm not sure what the CC Crowd call it when you install a 6360/6500 MoBo in a CC, but I've managed the same thing in an actual Classic . . . that's gonna be Color! [] ]'>

This pic shows how I've joined the inverted 6500 MoBo slide/mounting plate to what little remains of the Classic Chassis. I'm planning on painting the "bottom" of the 6500 sheet metal a contrasting color, probably black, but I'm open to matching any other color that presents itself inside the clear plexi inner shells.

Here's the point of the whole thing, the cellar/sub-basement/furnace room under the walk-in basement/CPU/IO/MoBo/Family Room, and the high-ceiling/shed roofed/multi-media/optical playroom!

I'll document all the bits-n-pieces another time, this was much bigger news!

BTW, if anyone has a Classic/Compact Mac compatible LCD, the inverted Q630 Class MoBo hack would work just fine with the original equipment PSU installed in the Rafters of the CRT/Analog Board Cabin. [] ]'>

 

[Bunsen]

read this, / a fake screen using some plexi, a heat gun

It struck me that heating the plexi elsewhere and then transferring it to the CRT was a bit of an unnecessary step. I mean, a CRT is a vacuum tube, so it's not like it's going to heat up and explode, right?

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

True, however my broiler/heat gun don't have a very amicable relationship with flammable/lower melting point vacuum forming frame fabbin' materials. [] ]'>