Mod of the Month April 2011

Charge! by Frenkie

Project Log: Here
We're huge fans of Frenkie's work at bit-tech. His recent projects such as Stealth and Rover have proved hugely popular on our forums, and who can forget R2D2? Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of his projects is that they're often created on a shoestring budget - R2D2 cost less than $120 to make and claimed a top ten spot in Mod of the Year 2009. Frenkie started a new project in March and, given the headway he's made in the last few weeks, it's now eligible for a nomination in Mod of the Month.


Half-Life-themed projects never get old, and you can see that Frenkie's planning to combine several PC cases to make a fairly sizeable project. In the above-right image we can see the proposed size of the machine next to the man himself.


If you haven't guessed already, Frenkie is making a Combine power node from Half-Life, and the eagle-eyed out there will have also spotted the logo-clad reservoir - the project will be water-cooled too.


He's also made some significant headway with the external parts, which are already showing off some familiar features that will bring back fond memories for HL2 Deathmatch fans. The insides aren't going to be neglected either - the cables appear to be braided in steel tubing, and the pump has been test-fitted too.


In one of the more recent updates, Frenkie has taken a set of UV pens to a hard disk, tracing out the PCB on its rear to create an awesome glowing circuit. This great shot of the reservoir shows part of Frenkie's plan to use the lower ports for coolant flow, while inserting LEDs into the upper ports for illumination. It looks great, so we can't wait to see the final result.

Charge! is sure to look fantastic when it's completed, so make sure you check it out over the coming weeks. Plus, if it's your favourite project this month, head over to the forum to vote for it.