Experimental external cooling hardware for a 14-inch MacBook Pro M5 Max used in clamshell mode for sustained local-AI workloads and large code compiles.

The project started from the sealed-adapter approach demonstrated by Samuel Gregory with a llano V12 cooling pad, then branched into a smaller upright dock built around a standard 140 mm fan and a pressure plenum.

V2 STLs · Assembly guide · Validation

V2 is ready for construction and supervised fit checks. Cooling performance and the final M5 Max interface have not been validated. Start with the blank insert.

For V12-powered validation, use the separate V12 deck adapter. Its cooler footprint is unverified: print the small fit gauge and joint coupons before committing to the full deck. It reuses V2's upper parts without a second fan.

There are three prototypes in this folder:

1. V12 adapter - a split adapter for the llano V12, intended to test the sealed-pressure approach on the actual M5 Max.
2. Upright V1 - a 140 mm fan below a plenum and a narrow gasketed outlet. Preserved as the original concept.
3. Upright V2 - a tapered shell, removable fan cartridge, 10° cradle, padded stops, and replaceable center insert. The laptop interface remains provisional.

• cad/v12_adapter/ — current split V12 adapter STLs
• cad/upright_v1/ — canonical parametric OpenSCAD source and matching STL
• cad/upright_v2/ - V2 source, assembly guide, and verified STL snapshot; rebuilds go to build/upright_v2/
• renders/ — current previews
• docs/HANDOFF.md — project state, decisions, unknowns, and next steps
• docs/BENCHMARK_PLAN.md — proposed A/B validation plan
• docs/VENT_GEOMETRY.md — supplied GLB/glTF measurements, online evidence, and remaining fit checks
• tools/ — mesh validation and reference-model inspection
• AGENTS.md — instructions for Codex/other coding agents
• archive/early_cadquery/ — an earlier CadQuery exploration; not geometrically identical to the canonical V1 OpenSCAD model

The authoritative source for Upright V1 is:

cad/upright_v1/upright_macbook_140mm_pressure_dock_v1.scad

Key dimensions:

• Overall printed envelope: approximately 176 x 176 x 129.5 mm
• Standard 140 mm fan hole spacing: 124.5 mm
• Fan opening: 136 mm
• Laptop guide channel: 19 mm
• Pressure outlet: 142 x 10 mm
• Recessed gasket land around the outlet
• Four integrated feet leave space beneath a nominal 25 mm-thick fan

The checked-in STL is reproducible from the OpenSCAD file and is watertight.

Install OpenSCAD, then:

make stl

The rebuilt STL is written to build/upright_macbook_140mm_pressure_dock_v1.stl.

For a quick PNG render:

make preview

For V2's individual parts and assembled/exploded previews:

make stl-v2
make preview-v2

Install the optional Python validation dependencies and run make check-v2 as described in the V2 guide.

The project is optimizing for sustained performance, not minimum chassis temperature.

• Keep the machine closed and upright if possible.
• Prefer external cooling; do not assume an internal thermal-pad mod is required.
• Feed the Mac's native cooling system with a sealed/pressurized supply rather than merely blowing room air at the bottom shell.
• Keep hot exhaust paths out of the pressurized intake region.
• Make the fan module replaceable so quiet axial fans and higher-static-pressure options can be tested without redesigning the dock.
• Instrument the laptop and compare work completed / clocks / package power over sustained runs.

• Samuel Gregory's pressure-cooling experiment
• llano V12 reference cooler

This is prototype hardware. The supplied base-M5 visualization helped identify separate hinge vent banks, but it does not establish a final M5 Max fit. V1's 142 mm outlet would overlap the outer banks in that asset; V2 uses a smaller experimental center insert. Gasket placement, the closed-lid recess, and required static pressure still need physical validation. See vent geometry.