Kolink Satellite Mini-ITX Cube Case
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The first modification is to remove the metal panels from the side of the case since they limit the max size of the boards that will fit.
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To remove the small panel I first removed the foot and the front panel from the case and then drilled out the rivets.
Then using a pair of pliers and a moderate amount of force the panel will come out without any issues.
The second panel is held in place with screws and is easy to remove.
Next mod is to remove the build in standoffs, since they will not align with the mounting holes in the X16 board, when it's not in the position that the case was designed for.
They are spot welded in place and can be twisted free with a pair of pliers, without bending the bottom plate too much.
For the new standoffs I came to the conclusion that I couldn't drill holes precise enough and also I didn't have tools to make threads or nuts to attach the standoffs.
Instead I'm using a 3D printet mATX motherboard support, with threads inserted using a soldering iron.
Final mod is to expand the IO cutout hole to make clearance for the PS/2 connectors since the board will be further inside the case than what it was designed for.
Removing a strip of metal 1cm wide (with a rotary tool or similar) is enough.
I'm using the 3D printet X16 IO Shield by Seandj
I decided against drilling a hole in the case for the Pico ATX PSUs DC barrel jack and instead I'm using an adapter cable for the pass-through power cable and have attached the DC Power Brick inside the case with cable ties.
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- x16-4.jpg (365.89 KiB) Viewed 791 times
The X16 board is now in place as well as the IO Shield.
The 3D printet motherboard support is held in place in the case using thin 3M double tape and the board could probably be alligned so at least one expansion slot would work with the expansion card slots in the case, but due to a structural press in, in the bottom plate of the case this would require further modification of the bottom plate or the motherboard support to get a level surface to attach it to and since I don't need expansion cards with the back bracket right now I decided to worry about it later. (Edit: I'm using the contour only STL file, but the solution might be to simply use the full plate STL file.)
The IO Shield doesn't have any features to attach to the case and is very loose, so I might end up trying to make a remix of the STL file to let it attach to the case in some way.
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My X16 is now good to go : ) (and is in good company ; ) )