The 40p enclosure (cheap project box)

[nexekho]

I was after a fairly roomy standard enclosure for my projects.  Seeing them mounted in cardboard boxes was annoying, but I don't have a workshop or the drilling equipment, and to be honest, with my practical skills, probably a bit unsafe to let me loose with one.  So I needed something easy to modify using office-safe stuff with a lot of interior space.  And also, taping a PP3 to the inside of the box didn't cut it really.  Presenting, courtesy of Wilkinsons:

It's a tray-based pencil case with a clasp.  Unclip the front, pull, and it all slides out:

Squeeze the sides slightly while pulling and it should come out completely.

So first I set about making that sliding part into a suitable battery hatch.  Roughly twice as much length as required to hold a PP3 was cut, and then slots were cut with scissors into the two sides and folded down to stop the PP3 falling into the rest of the box.

This little tab stops the tray coming out, so we don't need it.  Cut it out, bend it twice, and staple it behind the PP3 so it doesn't slide side-to-side.  End result should be a small tray that retains a PP3 battery when sealed into the tube and comes out easily when not.

Next, the actual circuit.  An advantage to having a double layer case is that you can experiment with layouts on the tray and only make externally visible holes when you're sure it's all right.  The plastic is reasonably thick but will cut with a standard hole punch, making an easy way to cut holes for switches/jacks/etc.  It will flex at this point too.


Make matching holes on the tube, slide in and put the nuts/etc. on the jacks/switches/pots/etc.  They will hold the tray in place.  The plastic should be three layers thick here because it's tray + the two ends of the tube glued together and it's reasonably sturdy.  It's not solid enough to stomp on and is no match for a proper metal enclosure (heck, a standard ABS enclosure feels stronger) but if you just want to tidy away an old project it seems to work.

Anyone else got any nice cheap simple easy to make enclosures?

[arawn]

no but that gets the creativity award for the day

[Hides-His-Eyes]

Am I the first to spot the holwer though?

[LucifersTrip]

it's cool to see builders get creative with different enclosures!

Outside of standard enclosures, my favorite inexpensive one is easily the raco 211, which I can usually find for ~ $1.50

When I first found it, I couldn't believe how perfect it was:

1) heavier duty than standard enclosure

2) a little deeper than standard enclosure for extra headroom

3) almost perfectly positioned pre-drilled holes that only need enlarging. the only holes necessary to drill from scratch are the ones for the jacks, and they are easy to center since you can position them right in the middle of the 2 knockouts on back...and a 3rd in the center if you want a DC power jack. not only are there 4 holes drilled in a diamond formation perfect for pots and the 3PDT, but there is a small hole drilled right above the one for the 3PDT perfect for an LED and another one opposite if you want a 4th pot or a switch.

4) since it is a square enclosure, a perfect 3 x 3 gridded perf fiits perfectly into the corner between the pot and the 3PDT

5) a metal  battery holder fits perfectly on one edge

6) it's one of the only raco enlcosures with only one knockout on top so it doesn't look bad

It's almost like Raco had pedal builders in mind for these...Here's a Sam Ash Fuzz with a couple mods. Every hole on the top was pre-drilled.   I was thinking of writing a how-to for these racos, but it's just too easy.

[nexekho]

Isn't it nice when things line up perfectly?