My custom aluminum Iphone case

I finished machining class this week. I learned a lot in the class, as it was mostly spent go over technique and practice with very little free time. We had a few hours of free time towards the end of the class, so I decided to machine my own Iphone case I wanted a way to prop my phone upright on my desk, as I can't see who is calling without picking up my phone. Since it has a plastic clear snap on case on it, I figured it would be near impossible to find a commercial holder that would hold the clear case and phone. I started with taking the rough dimensions of the phone and case.

I used a mill for the entire project. A mill is different than a CNC machine. A CNC is programmed with code (typically G code), then the computer comes in and grinds everything out. A CNC is good if your rich like Scrooge McDuck. They can run from $50K to several million. They are good for production stuff, but a waste of time for one offs. A milling machine is manual and can be had from $500 to $10K. I used the one at school which is a $5K model. To make this part, I milled a block down to size, then hollowed it out to the size of the phone (including my case), then cut a plate down to size, made a window in the plate, drilled and countersunk and tapped the 4 holes to accept machine screws.

I wish I had more time in the class. I wanted to make a hole in the bottom for power, and hole on the side for the volume buttons. It works for now. After scouring the web, I learned the cell antenna is on the lower rear of the phone. I probably should have created some slots to allow the signal out the rear. For now, the signal will be restricted out the front. Suprisingly, I tested the phone in a closed box situation (without the window cut), and it still got really good reception (only one bar down).

When I get my own mill in a few years, I can make some mods. I need to buy my property, and build my monster garage....I mean my labratory.....mmmmwhahaha.