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| The Real Power Mac |
| Written by David Jackson | |||||
| Friday, 01 September 2006 | |||||
Something called "Power Mac” should look like a powerful tool, not a kids toy. Thus, in response to last years toy computer, I present “The Real Power Mac,” a diamond-plate, fire-breathing, water-cooled man’s computer! Built tough to live in the garage/shop, calculating everything from board/foot of lumber, to torque settings for the head on your Camaro. With iTunes blasting the 'Stones, it's there for work or play. Starting with my trusty G3 Blue & White (with custom liquid cooling), I start by removing all the plastics. 
Next, I pull out the heat gun and start to work on removing the Apples from the side panels. I will recycle these to help maintain that “Macintosh” look. Next, is a trip to the hardware store for some barn-door handles and cool aluminum casters. Also, the most important part, the aluminum diamond plate. A 2' X 4' piece should do. This stuff is expensive! I had a bit of sticker shock, but shop around online and you can get some good deals. Using the plastic bezel from the original parts, I lay out the cuts on the diamond plate sheet. This is a little challenging, as the plastic part is not flat on the back. Flip it and the diamond plate over to mark from the back side. I found this one part to be the toughest part of this mod. If you look at the photo below you will see there are many openings that have to line up or the part is ruined. So take your time in layout and cutting. 
This is the rough cut part, ready for the file and sander. The hole above the optical door was supposed to be for a power light access behind the upper panel. I didn't like the look, so this was omitted. Below the CD is the zip drive slot and eject button access. Below that lie the speaker and the power, reset and programmer button holes. 
Above left, you see the first hole being cut for the speaker. To the right is the same part with the power/function buttons cut out. After checking alignment, I clamp the bezel to my workbench and using a block of wood and hammer, I bend the edges over to conform to the case. 
Here you can see my layout lines and arrow to keep everything orientated properly. The white film protects the diamond plate until it is mounted. Optical Drive Bay Doors I wanted to keep the same drop-down, spring-loaded type of door as on the original. I think I got very close. Below is an early shot of the door being mounted. 
The casters were drilled and tapped to the bottom of the case. Be careful here as to what holes you drill and where they'll end up in the case. You don't want a screw blocking a critical part. The handles were mounted similarly on the top. Be sure to remove the power supply before drilling the rear one. 
The Final Assembly Except for the side door release, the plastic apples are painted gloss black along with everything else that is not diamond plate. I tried many ways to improve on this but no dice; the way Apple made it is perfect. So, I cut a couple of holes and bent the aluminum tabs out with a couple of holes drilled to receive the pivot pen, and mounted the original plastic part. It later received a coat of aluminum paint. 
I removed the top cover of the Apple keyboard and painted it aluminum, also to match the case as much as possible. My mouse was already a good match as seen in the finished photos below. 
Now this is a real Power Mac! Rugged and easily transported around the shop using the handles and casters. It looks like it belongs where it is meant to be, in the workshop. And what could be tougher than the nearly bullet-proof B&W G3? It may not be an Intel Core Duo, but for stability give me the Power PC! I really enjoyed doing this mod and am happy with the result. Being the "Tool Man", I think it fits my personality.
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