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The worst G3 mod ever... I mean... best!

L

livingfortoday

macrumors 68030
Original poster
Nov 17, 2004
2,903
4
The Msp
Okay, I figure this should go under the pictures thread, because it's picture-oriented.

I just finished a "mod guide" on swapping cases for my old G3, and figured I'd post it here before attempting to submit it to macmod.com. Enjoy! Or at least try to!

Rebuilding Kronos

Well, I couldn't carry the PowerMac G3 Tower on the plane back home to Chicago, so I decided to take out all the parts and carry them like that. That case weighs at least 20 pounds empty, even! And it's huge!

This is my homemade G3 case, made out of high-quality cardboard. I placed a foam mat under the motherboard and put it in this awesome box. I also cut small holes on top to thread the cables through from the components above.

case1.jpg
case2.jpg


This ran fine from the System CD, and didn't heat up too much, but as I plan on leaving it on all the time for folding, I will be installing a 80mm case fan up with the power supply and a 80mm fan blowing on the processor heatsink. The hard drive is supposed to be on top of the CD-ROM, there, but the one I was using recently failed on me, so I'm waiting for a replacement in the mail.

Please also notice the front Power button. It's a hole in the box where you can reach the power pins. The computer lacks a button, so it is turned on by applying a flat-head screwdriver to the pins. Yes, it's a work of art, this case.

Specs:
300Mhz G3 Processor
192MB RAM
24x CD-ROM
Floppy Drive
30GB 5400rpm HD
ATI Rage 128 Video Card (16MB)
Two-port USB PCI card
 
pknz said:
It looks like a PC
Click to expand...

Well, on the inside we all look the same, ya know? Same goes for old Macs and PC's.

If you really don't believe me, I'll snap a shot from the inside, where the mobo has the little Apple logo on it.
 
pknz said:
It looks like a PC
Click to expand...
The port config on the back of the mobo does look a bit PC-ish mate.
Is that a 'printer port'? (EDIT: hehe scsi DB25 i suppose)

hmm
EDIT: definitely not a B&W or am i that wrong?
 
mbopy22 said:
Dude are you related to MacGuiver???? :eek: :eek:
Click to expand...

MacGyver could at least make it look a little better than that. He could probably create a nice G5-like case using an old WWII jeep.
 
redeye be said:
The port config on the back of the mobo does look a bit PC-ish mate.
Is that a 'printer port'? (EDIT: hehe scsi DB25 i suppose)

hmm
EDIT: definitely not a B&W or am i that wrong?
Click to expand...

No, not a B&W, it's a Rev B beige Powermac Tower. If it had been a B&W I woulda done whatever I could to bring that case with me, cause they're nice.
 
aquajet said:
MacGyver could at least make it look a little better than that. He could probably create a nice G5-like case using an old WWII jeep.
Click to expand...


And DUCT TAPE and some twisty ties! Duct Tape holds the world together dont you know!

Ed
 
Does this count as proof?

Well, I can't open the box without taking out all the cords (and they were a big pain to get in, so it's a last resort) so I just shoved my camera in and got a pic of the processor, and then took a shot of the CD-ROM which says is Apple OEM equipment.

G3.jpg

That's a G3 processor if I ever saw one!

cdrom.jpg

The proof is in the drive! Or, on it.

Edit: Oh, and you can see the little metal sleds on the CD-ROM in the original pic, and on the floppy in the pic above. Those are used to pull drives in and out of the beige tower.

Proof enough?
 
redeye be said:
The port config on the back of the mobo does look a bit PC-ish mate.
Is that a 'printer port'? (EDIT: hehe scsi DB25 i suppose)

hmm
EDIT: definitely not a B&W or am i that wrong?
Click to expand...
How soon we forget....

SCSI DB-25. Also see the round serial ports and the ADB port... it's a Beige G3 motherboard.
 
CanadaRAM said:
How soon we forget....

SCSI DB-25. Also see the round serial ports and the ADB port... it's a Beige G3 motherboard.
Click to expand...

Thank you. Yeah, I love this old G3, and hated the thought of it collecting dust in a basement somewhere, so I just had to bring it with me, no matter the cost!
 
Counterfit said:
Either you're really weak, or I'm ridiculously strong. There's no way an empty Beige G3 case weighs 20lbs.
Click to expand...

I don't know, that tower was pretty hefty. It might not have been 20 pounds, that's just an estimate, I'm pretty bad with weights, frankly. It was heavy, though!
 
livingfortoday said:
Proof enough?
Click to expand...
yes!

I was looking for some B&W pictures while i saw this thread. A short-circuit in my brain told me this was supposed to be a B&W mobo. Some things didn't add up that way. The other 'i think that's a pc' post just confirmed my misinterpretation...
And indeed CannadaRAM, how soon we forget. I was also looking for these 'paperclip' scsi connection fixers (you know what i mean, right?). Just to long ago since i had to use scsi - that reminds me to ask my 40 Mb syquest removable disks back. And reinsert a scsi card in my B&W.

anyhow, nice mod livingfortoday (even though i wouldn't do it myself).
sorry for disbelieving :eek: ;)
 
reminds me of when I had to put an Apple LC II in a shoe box to get it to work. I had the ports cut out in the cardboard, and it has a giant Adidas sign on the top, but hey it worked and was almost quieter when running than the original case :D
 
Well, this runs quieter too because it doesn't have that huge 120mm fan on the power supply anymore. I did attach a blue LED fan to the front now to blow on the CPU, and a small 80mm for the power supply.
 
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