You remember Arnov Sharma, he of PALPi and SNES controller for giants fame. Well, he’s up to his Raspberry Pi-powered shenanigans again, this time with a wooden desktop PC featuring a Pico-driven fan.

Arnov’s latest build is a 5V to 12V DC Pico-powered motor driver. He designed a custom PCB to house the Pico, the MOSFET transistor, and the AMS1117 voltage regulator. There’s also a LED which acts as an indicator. I especially like the design choice of a yellow solder mask, which is extra jazzy when the green Pico is added on top. The first press of the PCB’s button activates the setup, a second press kicks the motor into action, and a third tap deactivates it. Arnov’s detailed Instructables post walks through the assembly of all the electronic components as well as the code to get them all working together.

Woodworks Fusion PC

Now to mount the Pico-powered fan onto Arnov’s wooden PC to improve ventilation and keep it cool. Arnov 3D printed an enclosure for the fan, PCB, and wiring, then fastened it to the top of the PC’s body with wood screws. He designed the system to draw air from the top and circulate it around the PC.

Arnov’s Woodworks Fusion PC is a cool build in itself. It’s a custom all-in-one computer, and Arnov assembled it from scratch using wood and 3D-printed parts. It’s purposefully outdated in terms of hardware, featuring an i3 fourth-generation desktop CPU, mounted on a Mini ATX motherboard with 12GB of DDR3 RAM and a GT710 GPU. An old LCD monitor completes the low-end vibe the maker was going for. The focus is on the aesthetic of the wood and filament combo, and it’s easy to upgrade the internals if you wish.

Custom PCs

This timber-based undertaking reminds me of a couple of other excellently weird custom PCs I’ve seen over the years. Like this Alien-inspired one (pic below) by Mick Black. Or this steampunk-themed build (pic above) by David Wieland, featuring copper piping, CNC-machined metal, 3D-printed parts, and a custom matching keyboard.

Drop some links to custom PC builds you like in the comments below. It’s the kind of internet fodder that makes our day delightful.