[glend (Glen)]

I have seen that link some time ago, during an internet search, i think he was located in Singapore. He seems to have disappeared and i did not save the link. I do recall he removed some of the camera modules and repackaged it in a smaller cooled box. However, he had to have a camera control system to make it all work. CentralDS do much the same thing (professionally) in their cooled 5D models and they have plenty of photos you could look at but are not sharing about how to do it. My own experience tearing down 450Ds to mod, repair or get parts, like shutter replacement, tells me there are only marginal gains in weight savings to be had. In the 450D you need to retain the metal frame, the shutter, the processor board and the sensor board. The problem with removing something like the memory card, the top controls and flash unit, etc is that one single ribbon cable missing, or even misaligned or not locked down, will produce the dreaded "Error 99", and it will not function. Error 99 is the Canon catch all phrase none of us want to see, it gives you no information and you need to tear down the camera to find it. Pereonally, unless your very experienced with Canon software control, or could get the firmware and make sense of it, i would stick with the internals in the original case. There are plenty of modification you can do within the existing body: ie, cold finger/TEC cooling, full spectrum filter removal, debayering to mono, and removal of the redundant connector board.

In regards to your Error 99 camera, assuming it has never been opened and hacked by a previous owner, it can probably be fixed. However, ribbon cables don't just come loose thanks to the locking bars, so a board level failure is more likely or a control failure. Board level replacement is not cheap but can be done. A processor board for a 450D will cost you about $100USD, a sensor assembly can be found from $40USD (from China) to about $70USD from the US parts suppliers. Either of these boards can produce an Error 99.
As to debayering, be prepared to destroy some sensors in the learning process. There are several good utube examples of how to do it, Luis Campo's are maybe the best. JTW publish a guide on how to do it but i have found their polishing technique more difficult than the scratching method. Good luck it can be done.
I am very happy with my mono cold finger 450D which is now being used for narrowband imaging, and my cold finger full spectrum colour one. I need to get a set of RGB filters next.