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Pimp Your USB Drive

by Robotrix on January 10, 2007

Table of Contents

intro: Pimp Your USB Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

step 1: Gather Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

step 2: DE-STROY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

step 3: Cut some wax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

step 4: Cut to fit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

step 5: Carving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

step 6: Wax Cleanup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

step 7: Drill and clean up metal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

step 8: Case Closed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

step 9: Polish it up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

step 10: Bling! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Related Instructables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Advertisements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
intro: Pimp Your USB Drive
You like to store data. Sure you do. But when you take it out on the street, people are laughing at you! Yeah, I know, they just don't get you, right? Well, maybe you need
to help them. Give yourself a little street cred by building a sandbenders-inspired case for your USB drive.

step 1: Gather Materials

Basic list:

-wax
-USB drive
-carving tools + saw
-Casting house

This can be tricky. You're going to need a block of wax to carve (actually some woods will work too, as long as they burn away cleanly and don't leave too much ash
residue.) Wax by Kerr or Ferris is designed for carving and clean burnouts, it's what i'm using here. There are different hardnesses, in this project I'll be using green wax,
which is both hard and brittle, but takes detail well and allows for very thin walls.

You will need a USB drive. You probably won't ruin it during this project, but you could, and it will probably void your warranty. Feel free to try it with an old 32mb drive or
something first if you're unsure. I'm going ahead with my 1G drive because what can I say, I'm fearless.

You will need a place to have this cast. You can take it to a casting house (easy, fast, and pretty inexpensive) or you can cast it yourself. I won't cover that here.

You will need carving tools. You can make do with some scrapers, pointy utility knives, or dental tools, but the real king of speed and flexibility here is a rotary tool like a
dremel or a foredom. You'll want some ball burrs, but try not to get anything too fine-toothed because it will gum up with wax pretty fast. A jeweller's saw frame with a
spiral wax blade is reccomended, but if you've got a bandsaw or something that can do it, by all means use that.

That should be it.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
step 2: DE-STROY
Or, carefully take apart your usb drive. I pried mine apart with the bottle opener on my leatherman. Use something thin and strong, and please be careful. You don't want
to stab yourself or ruin the drive, at least not this early on. Don't become a failure like my father always said you would.

step 3: Cut some wax

Use the pre-existing case as a guide to decide how thick you need your new case halves to be. Go ahead and cut a slice of wax off the block, keeping the thickness
consistent. You can use a strip of masking tape to help keep your cut straight. Cut it to size, and mark the dimensions of your drive's board on the wax so you know
where to carve. Layout is probably the most important step in wax carving. Keep adding layout lines as you carve away old ones.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
step 4: Cut to fit.
We're working with the interior first, because it's the more important stage. Sure it needs to look nice, but if you can't assemble it without smashing your drive, you haven't
really won, have you? That won't stop them from making fun of you.

Remember to re-check the fit every so often as you carve, making sure not to get too carried away. You'll want to leave the drive a little breathing space, however,
because we're going to add a non-conductive liner later.

I started by making thin boxes that just fit the board, and added a layer on top of that afterwards to carve my design into. This helped to control the warpage i experienced
when hot-working a one piece shell.

Image Notes
1. an early design had these lumps to compensate for raised components. Better, i
found, was to cut holes and carve a little out from the top plate once it's attached,
using the holes as guide.

step 5: Carving
This step is up to you. I worked with beetle shell inspired designs and tried to shoot for something that fell between natural and technological.

carve up the top plate and attach it to the case. I attached them by heating up a wax carving tool blade and pushing it through from the inside of the case to about halfway
into the top plate. This draws them together. Then i went around the edges and melted them together, adding wax where i needed it.

The cap is hollowed out from a small block, with enough thickness left on the top and bottom to match the carving with the rest of the case. To merge the two halves of
the drive case, i wanted to extend the cap over the body, with a wingcase looking flange. I covered the top of teh drive body with tinfoil and worked the hot wax directly
over it, ensuring a great fit.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
 Image Notes
1. i added a bunch of melted wax, then carved it up once it was cool

step 6: Wax Cleanup

The smoother you get your wax, the easier it will be to clean up in the metal. Also, anywhere it's too thin or you have missing areas, FILL THEM NOW. It's practically
impossible to add metal, but it's so easy to add wax. Do it now, or regret it FOREVER.

take the wax to a finished stage, and then take it to a casting house. This set me back about $50 i think.

Image Notes Image Notes

1. smooth and shiny! 1. gross and oxidized!

step 7: Drill and clean up metal

This is really the tedious step.

First, tape some emery paper (i used 220 grit for this brute task) to a desk or piece of glass. Grind the inner face of the drive case until it is flat, using a figure eight motion
to keep the wear even.

Next, use a small ball burr to clean out the inside of the drive case and cap until your board fits snugly again. The case will shrink during the casting process, so remove a
tiny bit of metal until you can pop the board back in there.

Drill the rivet holes in the four little leg posts.

Clean up the case a little. I had a hole in my cap, so i melted a big blob of silver solder there and filled it up (not very professional).

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
 Image Notes
1. gross blob of solder, but it worked!

step 8: Case Closed

BEFORE YOU RIVET THE CASE SHUT: make sure you coat the board in something non-conductive, because if your components short on the silver drive, your board is
toast and it's going to be a messy job getting another one in there. I coated my board in hot glue.

Like me, you may have been unable to get your seams to match up perfectly. It's ok, it happens to everyone, and you don't need to feel ashamed. You're not alone.

There's a simple and elegant solution to this. Once your case is riveted shut, take your punch or chasing tools and use them to close the seam! The process is dead
simple, though a little hard to describe. What the punch is doing, essentially, is just massaging the metal into a different location. Using little taps of the hammer, just push
the seams closer together. This was really useful in closing up the gaps around the usb plug. Take your time and make it as perfect as possible, because when people
can't find the seam they really can't figure out how you've built this.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
step 9: Polish it up
My polishing array included emery paper up to 600 grit, various abrasive wheels on my flex-shaft, engraving tools, and buffing wheels.

Make sure you clean out all the polishing compound when you're done, because it looks gross.

My skin is really acidic. I learned this after i finished this project. My finger prints etch metal a fair bit more than average, and if you find your polished works always look
smudgy and fingerprinted, try wearing nitrile gloves while you polish. They're not as dangerous on the buffer as regular gloves because if they catch they'll just break up
before they suck your hands in. Careful.

step 10: Bling!

You're done! Now take that drive and staple it to your face because everyone wants to see it. I promise this will net you compliments on your skillz, your genius, and
probably your breath and visage. Since i made this, people can't stop telling me how great looking I am.

probably.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
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Flash Drive (video) by dpg10 Thumb Drive by USB flash drive USB flash drive. keychain flash USB key by DRIVE WITH
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by flavour by victorhugovaldezsoto
killerjackalope by cesarscavone
lukethebook333 thearchitect

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Comments
50 comments Add Comment view all 89 comments

nitrox027 says: Oct 12, 2008. 11:24 PM REPLY

use epoxy instead of hot glue epoxy is almost indestructible and water proof

cornflaker says: Dec 2, 2008. 1:18 AM REPLY

As long as you don't plug a flash drive in while its still wet nearly all flash drives are actually waterproof. Ive had one of mine go through a washing
machine 3 times! and it still works.

Gamer917 says: Feb 28, 2009. 3:23 PM REPLY

my sandisk cruzer titanium survived a washing machine, a dryer and being taken out of the computer without "ejecting" it about 10 times

cornflaker says: Mar 4, 2009. 12:45 AM REPLY

I NEVER eject, unless you still have windows 2000 or earlier then you don't need to, your just wasting your time.

Gamer917 says: Mar 24, 2009. 7:54 PM REPLY

my sandisk cruzer is indestructible.too bad i cant find it :-(

cornflaker says: Mar 25, 2009. 5:31 PM REPLY

Haha don't you hate that

nitrox027 says: Mar 1, 2009. 5:17 PM REPLY

no one actually ejects there flashdrive

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
 Rs master says: Mar 3, 2009. 2:12 PM REPLY
damn that eject thing i have never used in my life(i have used in a pc at least 400-700 times)

Bright Shadow says: Jan 31, 2009. 11:53 AM REPLY

I remember leaving a memory stick (not a flash drive) in my pocket... it went through the washing machine, and fell into a lake on a fishing trip in the
same day. Surprisingly, it still works.

Rs master says: Mar 3, 2009. 2:54 PM REPLY

wow this looks really nice but i would like to know some things
A)what metal is it silver?
B)how do you get the cap to stay on?
C)why rivets why not something else?i dont have rivets
D)and last of all about how much did it cost to get it cast?
i loved this im going to try to make it

Robotrix says: Mar 3, 2009. 6:29 PM REPLY

In order of asking:
1) Yes, it's sterling silver.
2) The cap is friction fit. Once the steel of the usb connector wore down the silver i had to integrate some shims to make it snug again.
3) My rivets are pieces of wire that i hamemred, not pop rivets. I used rivets because i had to use a cold joining technique, and using rivets allowed my to
disguise them into the final mess. I glue doesn't stick very well to polished metal.
4) I spent about $50 on the whole thing. I think i cast it myself, but i had a full workshop at school and so that was an option. You can get an estimate
from a casting shop based on weight - wax has a specific gravity of 1 and sterling 10.36. Just weigh your wax model and multiply it, and then ask how
much it would cost to get something that weight whatever amount in silver cast. You could also try casting it yourself with some basic sand casting
techniques and aluminum or tin, i guess, or pewter, but sand casting isn't great for details.

Rs master says: Mar 4, 2009. 6:59 AM REPLY

well from what you said you should try out some O-rings for your capyour sliver will last longer

clemsonguy1125 says: Jan 31, 2009. 10:58 AM REPLY

wont the wax melt

Robotrix says: Jan 31, 2009. 11:25 AM REPLY

The wax i'm using here is a carving wax designed for jewellery. Actually, even if you used parafin wax it wouldn't melt while you were working with it, until
you heated it up. It does melt during the casting process, though, so if you're not sure about it it's a good idea to make a cold mold of the wax before
casting, so you can make more waxes from the mold if you need to try again.

Cyberscann54 says: Jan 6, 2009. 9:24 PM REPLY

I made a 1Gb tarantula named SpyderByte

Cyberscann54 says: Jan 6, 2009. 9:06 PM REPLY

I made A 1Gb Tarantula Named SpyderByte

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
 KasChartreuse says: Dec 17, 2008. 1:47 AM REPLY
This is WAY CRAZY! I wish I was that creative!!! Coolest USB Drive I've ever seen!

ajmf says: Dec 10, 2008. 9:02 AM REPLY

A great way to polish the wax and get out any unwanted minute lines etc is to rub it gently with an everyday terry cloth towel. This green wax is plenty hard
and allows for a terrific shine.

Robotrix says: Dec 10, 2008. 12:30 PM REPLY

that's a great idea! I was using a wax solvent product and a soft cloth with this, but i think i would much prefer using a piece of regular towel.

Plasmana says: Nov 14, 2008. 11:29 AM REPLY

Wow!
That is the best hacked USB pen I ever saw! 5 stars!

corey_caffeine says: Sep 3, 2008. 1:56 PM REPLY

now i want a frostmourn flash drive that way i can rule the world and store data

TwinEdge says: Aug 19, 2008. 11:07 AM REPLY

Just thought of doing one,and thought I'd ask how the casting was donel...but no biggy...I'll look around there should be some kind of intructable
around...Thanx...Actually this came out very good...Very original...Thanx again for the instructable....

Robotrix says: Aug 19, 2008. 12:40 PM REPLY

what you need to look up is lost wax casting. There is a ton of information on it available on the web and you should have no problem finding out how to
do it.

TwinEdge says: Aug 14, 2008. 9:19 AM REPLY

this is a very nice job but you missed a step or something...if i'am not mistaken it's the part where you make the casting...there's a step between 5 and 6,you
needed to show that,so everyone here can make the casting (the mold of you casting).....thanks

ExtraMedium says: Aug 14, 2008. 9:35 AM REPLY

as he says in parts 1 and 6 he doesn't do the casting, he took it to a casting house.

Robotrix says: Aug 14, 2008. 12:47 PM REPLY

actually, for this one i did end up doing it myself at school. However, for most people, and for me now that i'm out of school, taking it to a casting
house is the most efficient option.

ExtraMedium says: Aug 14, 2008. 2:22 PM REPLY

lol, sorry TwinEdge, I feel like a willy.
So what metal did you use anyway?

ExtraMedium says: Aug 14, 2008. 2:31 PM REPLY

Also Im thinking of pimping my Ipod. Seeing as its highly likely that at some point i'll need to take it out of its case for whatever reason im think
that instead of riviting the halfs together I'll put grooves and rails on so that the two halfs slid into each other. The problem is im not sure if the
wax will be strong enough not to snap and theres the problem of the casting process changing the dimensions to the point where its doesn't fit
together as seen when you had to hammer the seams together. any ideas how to fix this or any other methods? Im thinking of simply tying the
halves together with some string. now that i think about it if the metal is bendy enough then I could do that thing you see on some purses
where it snaps together and locks.

Robotrix says: Aug 15, 2008. 4:01 AM REPLY

I usde sterling silver. You have a couple of options for joining the sides. What you can do, if you want them to have rails that slide and
actually join up, is cast the main body of the piece and add the rails afterwards. Just file the sides flush with both pieces clamped together,
which will ensure the edges match up. Then design a rail system that will hold them together and solder it on (sterling silver, brass or
copper soldering is really brazing). It will give much cleaner results than trying to cast something like that, but there will be moer clean up
on your part. You could also do a hinge/snap closure, but hinges are a whole extra instructable in themselves. If you're really interested i
can recommend The Complete Metalsmith by Tim McCreight.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
 ExtraMedium says: Aug 14, 2008. 6:39 AM REPLY
sorry for being a bit of an r'tard but what happens in the casting process? Im guessing they make some kinda mold (or is it spelled mould?) and then pour
teh hot metals over and in that. I'm just not sure what to ask them to do.

Robotrix says: Aug 14, 2008. 9:00 AM REPLY

Anywhere you take it that does casting will know exactly what to do, you shouldn't have to ask him anything. FYI, what happens is this. Starting with a
wax model, the model is surrounded with a plaster. Then the wax is melted out leaving a cavity that's shaped like a negative of what you're casting.
Finally, hot metal is poured into the cavity and when it cools you have your finished product!

ExtraMedium says: Aug 14, 2008. 9:19 AM REPLY

I figured as much on the process but i wasn't too sure about how much heat plaster can take before cracking/melting/burning/rapidly expanding so i
started having radical and probably heretical ideas about polymers. Thanks for the help and great idea.

Robotrix says: Aug 14, 2008. 12:48 PM REPLY

there's a special type of borosilicate plaster you can buy for this purpose called investment plaster. It's a very fine consistency so if flows into
smaller details, and it withstands all the heat of casting. You can get it from any jewellery supply house / store.

msweston says: Aug 14, 2008. 9:33 AM REPLY

I don't know if this was mentioned or not, but get some two part epoxy and brush it on, then let the drive hang and you get a very even coating that is really
protective too.

adamcakis says: Jun 9, 2008. 10:10 AM REPLY

that is really cool. i like how it doesnt really look like a usb any more. they all look the same and urs is really unique. nice job. have you seen these:
www.blingdrives.com? they are funky too, and thank god, they dont look like usb drives.but they are!

M F says: May 26, 2008. 9:23 PM REPLY

I made a fashionable beltclip style cigarette lighter into a holder for my usb thumbdrive. got tired of the chain around my neck. my first upload instructable

http://www.instructables.com/id/USB-Thumb-drive-flash-drive--MAKE-A-COOL-BELTCLIP-/

thermoelectric says: May 10, 2008. 6:04 PM REPLY

aWESOME,but i don't think im gonna spend $50 on it

ghostrider2 says: Apr 21, 2008. 7:20 AM REPLY

what is it supposed to look like?

Robotrix says: Apr 21, 2008. 12:25 PM REPLY

a beetle. What do you think it looks like?

Tobita says: Apr 21, 2008. 5:25 PM REPLY

it looks like a freaking cool dragon!

hondagofast says: Mar 2, 2008. 7:37 AM REPLY

Last time I tried to make an awesome thumb drive, it ended up wrapped in black duct tape.

It had no dust cap and it eventually stopped working because of the stress on the USB connector.

I think I'm going to embed my new one in rubbery epoxy...

hondagofast says: Mar 14, 2008. 10:25 AM REPLY

And I did put epoxy on it.

I took a tube of Elmer's Stix-All and I brushed a layer on the outside of the case. Before it dried, I wrapped blue masking tape on it. I then wrote my
initials and the drive size on the tape.

After it dried, I brushed another layer of glue on the tape. Viola! Blue epoxy flash drive.

I included a photo of the finished product...

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/
 Valche says: Apr 1, 2008. 11:44 AM REPLY
Stix-all isn't an epoxy, is it?

hondagofast says: Apr 1, 2008. 12:21 PM REPLY

It's a rubbery, quick drying epoxy. It sets in about 12 hours.

Valche says: Apr 1, 2008. 1:44 PM REPLY

I'm totally being a tool and splitting hairs but... it's a siliconized elastomer, not an epoxy. Not really important knowledge, but hey, it might be
useful down the line for those who come across this.

pocketwatch says: Feb 23, 2008. 11:28 PM REPLY

I hope loads of people try this because then in 100 years at the museum of technology through the ages posterity will not think all our stuff was plastic.

Robotrix says: Feb 24, 2008. 6:06 AM REPLY

I just wish a team of researchers would come and friggin' find the thing for me. I have no idea where it went.

w00ty32 says: Apr 1, 2008. 10:51 AM REPLY

someone probably stole it cuz they were jealous(sp?) of you awesome drive.

peteohms says: Feb 25, 2008. 9:06 AM REPLY

Step 6 you have wax. Step 7 you have metal. What happened in between?

Robotrix says: Feb 25, 2008. 1:40 PM REPLY

check out the wikipedia article on lost wax casting. It's enough extra information that i didn't want to throw it in the middle of this instructable. You could
either do this step yourself like I did, or take the wax to any casting house and they would be pleased to cast it for you.

view all 89 comments

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pimp-Your-USB-Drive/