Cable Management

    This is a very simple how-to guide that will show how to get your power and IDE cables in line.  Is there a window in your case?  Does the inside of your case look neat and tidy or are all your wires and cables in disarray?  If the inside of your case looks like spaghetti all you need is some split loom,  zip ties and a half hour of time and it can go from messy to managed.  By using split loom to organize your cables not only will the inside of your case look neater but it should also help improve airflow.  Rounded IDE cables have gone down in price to the point that anyone can afford them but if you are somebody that can't we have got you covered there as well.

    Split loom is quite inexpensive and comes in a variety of sizes and colors.  The sizes shown in the picture below are 1/4", 3/8", 1/2", 3/4" and 1".  Normally the only sizes that you would need for the inside of your case would be 1/4" and either 3/8" or 1/2".  In the picture below you can see that I have loom in blue and also chrome, the chrome loom is more expensive and a lot less flexible.  Another thing of note about the chrome loom is that the chrome sometimes flakes off if it is flexed too much, but it looks damn cool.

 

 

Tools Needed:

Scissors

Materials Used:

1/4" Split loom

Zip Ties



    Lets have a look at the inside of the case that is about to be transformed.  What a mess, wires going everywhere all disorganized and blocking airflow.  Time to break out the split loom and zip ties.

    Use the 1/4" split loom to cover the power cables, cut to length and put a zip tie on each end.  Repeat until all power wires are covered.  Told you this was a simple guide.  I had a rounded IDE cable lying around and used it to replace the single flat ATA133 cable that was in the case.  The picture below shows the finished product, it looks a lot better now.

    So you can't afford rounded IDE cables, well read on and learn how to round your own.  For this you will need the scissors, 1/2" split loom, zip ties and an IDE cable.

    Here is a quick drawing I made to show how the fold will look.

    Start off by folding the IDE cable in half as shown below.

    Then take the edges and fold them over so that a cross section of the cable would look like a W.

 

    Next take the 1/2" split loom and work the cable inside of it, cut the split loom to length.  Add a zip tie to the ends and cut them flush.

    And there you have it, homemade rounded IDE cables.  Now go get a job so you can buy some real ones.

Happy Modding

- Guide written by ARTbyTROY


Disclaimer: This how-to guide is presented for informative purposes only.  CaseModGod.com can not and will not be held responsible for damages to or resulting from anything that you may decide to do to your case or hardware and also can not and will not be held responsible for injury to your self or others as a result of attempting any of the things that are shown on this site.  Basically you are responsible for your own actions whether said actions were based on information garnered from this site or elsewhere, learn to deal with it.