Best technique to cut case

[jcoffin1981]

Hi. I have seen a few pictures of this done but I'm not sure what method was used. In my quest for PC silence I've replaced my 80mm case fan with a 92mm Noctua fan. It moves a lot of air and is very quiet. I used the attachment to decrease the voltage- the "Low Noise Adapter." Even though the fan is virtually silent I can hear the air moving past the fan grill. The whooshing is rather annoying. The grill is not a very thin mesh but is rather thick and probably difficult to cut. I was thinking tin snips but it may be too thick to cut. Does anyone have any recommendations? Besides buying a new case... lol. Which may make more sense than buying tools. Oh one more thing. Does anyone have any experience with using the rubber grommets to mount case fans? They are a freaking pain in the arse to put in and after ripping a few just screwed it instead. The Noctua fans hardly seem to vibrate. There may not be an advantage to this technique. What are your thoughts? Thanks!

[Fire-Flare]

A rotary grinder is my weapon of choice for cutting cases. Make sure you use the TOUGH wheels designed for hard metal.

[flemeister]

Even though the fan is virtually silent I can hear the air moving past the fan grill. The whooshing is rather annoying. The grill is not a very thin mesh but is rather thick and probably difficult to cut. I was thinking tin snips but it may be too thick to cut. Does anyone have any recommendations?

Wiss snips. Used them to cut the fan grills from my P182 case with minimal effort, and while the case was fully kitted out with components. No need to gut the case of components, and no need to transport the case to a workbench. It's quick and leaves no mess.

Does anyone have any experience with using the rubber grommets to mount case fans? They are a freaking pain in the arse to put in and after ripping a few just screwed it instead. The Noctua fans hardly seem to vibrate. There may not be an advantage to this technique. What are your thoughts? Thanks!

You're using crap ones. Try the ones that Nexus include with their Real Silent fans, they're the gooiest, softest and toughest ones I've come across so far.

[ces]

Take a look at this:
viewtopic.php?p=537088#p537088

[alleycat]

Wiss snips.

I've got some of these and they're surprisingly easy to use. Not expensive to buy either.