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This was my first attempt at a case mod, and also the first time removing the guts of a machine. It has been great fun and I am now eyeing my mac mini, wondering what it might look like next week.
I started with an B&W G3. Props to Adam Whitlocks Grey and White G3 mod guide from Sept of 2004, gave me the courage and walked me thru the process. Be sure to refer to Adams post to fill in any blanks I might miss. It was a bit nerve racking removing the motherboard (necessary to access side panel mounts) since I had never done it before. Once i had it out, I was once again in awe of how well Apple designs EVERYTHING. Taking the case apart was fairly simple, first the sides, handles, top, front and finally back. The side panels were a little tricky to pinch the plastic center mounts from the inside. Needle nose plyers made it possible. Also a bit tricky, the back panel could make a Bhudist monk curse like a sailor. Patience prevails. Lastly as Adam reports, poping out the apple logo is much tougher than it looks. Adam suggest a paper clip, I suggest a coat hanger. The plastic is much tougher than you think, you can apply a great ammount of pressure to pop the apple out. Just like that, i had a naked G3.
On to the painting. The spray paint (American Tradition by Valspar, bonds to plastic formula) suggests using it between 60 and 80 degrees with less than 60% humidity. I live in Texas. Those conditions don't exist in August. I waited till sundown hoping it might dip into the low 90's. This was not very smart, darkness descended and mosquitos attacked. Some even tracked through the paint. Live and learn. I later sanded out a few bugs stuck in the paint and repainted.
It was a little tougher than I thought to get even paint application, need a little more practice. Next I wanted to add the flames to adorn the Apple logo. In photoshop I created the flame paint mask.
I printed the mask, cut it out of the paper and taped it to the side panel. I did a very light spray to get the fading effect. This part was easier than I thought. Originally I was going to just use some adhesive backed vinyl for the flames but none of the art/craft stores had the material I wanted. They suggested a sign shop, sounded expensive, so I decided to paint the flames instead. I am really glad I did, great results and perfect color matching.
Putting the case back together was the easiest part, less than 15 minutes.
Well, that's it. I now fear I must do some internal mods to make this old dog run as fast as it looks.
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