EEVblog #644 - How To Design Front Panels On Extruded Enclosures - µSupply Part

[EEVblog]

Dave shows some techniques on how to build and mount usable PCB based front panels user interfaces with LCD displays and push buttons and capacitive touch buttons onto small cheap extruded aluminium enclosures.
In particular for the µSupply project. This is Part 14 of that series.
The uCalc project gets another look in, and does the Sharp Memory dot matrix LCD.

[Legit-Design]

The uCalc project gets another look in, and does the Sharp Memory dot matrix LCD.

It's this one?
http://www.sharpmemorylcd.com/1-17-inch-memory-lcd.html LS012B7DD01

Size   1.17 inch
Pixel Format   184 × 38
Outline Dimension   35.1 × 11.0 × 0.741 mm

If it is, then where to get some? Can't find it on octopart/findchip/ebay...

[DJohn]

It's this one?
http://www.sharpmemorylcd.com/1-17-inch-memory-lcd.html LS012B7DD01

Mouser have the 128x128 and 96x96 memory displays.  They claim the 184x38 is discontinued, which is a shame - it'd be perfect for calculators.  Small, easy to drive, and very low power.

[EEVblog]

Mouser have the 128x128 and 96x96 memory displays.  They claim the 184x38 is discontinued, which is a shame - it'd be perfect for calculators.  Small, easy to drive, and very low power.

That was the idea, I was going to use it in my µWatch II.
I got it as samples direct from Sharp.
I noticed it was discontinued at the time, but I recall they mentioned that it's not actually discontinued. Was some time ago though.

[EEVblog]

If you renamed it to take "µ" out of the name would you still feel the urge to make it so small?

Yes, I want a small unit.

Didn't you leave off with some obscure problem with one of the chips you planned to use? I am rewatching µSupply TOS (the original series) but haven't got there yet.

Yep, the LT3080 had some issues so I dropped it. But I never got around to shooting that episode investing it.

[JonnyBoats]

Dave,

Would you please provide a link where one can order these cases from China?

Thanks.

[nathanpc]

The µSupply is back!

Do you still have the links for anyone that might be interested in buying any of the cases (specially that "TO-220 compatible" black annodized one?) you showed for a next project?

I never heard of those amazing colored screws, I'm definitely going to use them on my next project. Thanks for the tip Dave!

[robrenz]

How do you type "µ"? I had to cut/paste it from the thread title.

hold Alt key and type 0181

[David_AVD]

I dunno about using a board mounted heatsink that radiates into such a small enclosure cavity.  Surely that would just heat soak the insides and then provide poor transfer to the outside?

[nathanpc]

I dunno about using a board mounted heatsink that radiates into such a small enclosure cavity.  Surely that would just heat soak the insides and then provide poor transfer to the outside?

Drilling some holes on the top and bottom (maybe add some standoffs) and let convection take care of it? If you want to be sure that it'll be cool all the time maybe add one of those super tiny fans on the back.

[bktemp]

Nice to hear that the uSuppy project is still alive.

But there are some points I do not agree with Dave:
When the lcd module is only mounted using its connector it is not as stiff as when screwed at all 4 edges. The lcd will bend a litte bit at the top, especially when there is no additional protection window in front of the display, so it can be touched and pressed in easily. This looks cheap and allows dirt to get into the case. The other lcd module from newhaved displays with chip on glass will bend even more and eventually break the backlight connections when the unit is dropped.
Using a 2 board construction is better in my opinion: The outer board mainly acts as the front panel and only contains some capacitive keys or some reverse mounted leds. The inner board contains the lcd and the buttons. The buttons have a knop or a longer shaft that goes through the front pcb. The lcd is sandwiched between the two pcbs, giving a very rigid construction.

Is there any benefit of using the sharp memory lcds? The ultra low current consumption is not really neccessary compared to the total consumption of all other parts in the circuit. The last time I have seen those lcds, their contrast was not great and strongly dependent on the viewing and light entrance angle. I would go for a standard 2x16, 1x16 or 2x8 or similar sized graphic lcd. The benefit of a standard lcd is the price and the availability of displays with backlight. A backlit positive mode lcd is readable under all lighting conditions.

[nathanpc]

When the lcd module is only mounted using its connector it is not as stiff as when screwed at all 4 edges. The lcd will bend a litte bit at the top, especially when there is no additional protection window in front of the display, so it can be touched and pressed in easily. This looks cheap and allows dirt to get into the case. The other lcd module from newhaved displays with chip on glass will bend even more and eventually break the backlight connections when the unit is dropped.
Using a 2 board construction is better in my opinion: The outer board mainly acts as the front panel and only contains some capacitive keys or some reverse mounted leds. The inner board contains the lcd and the buttons. The buttons have a knop or a longer shaft that goes through the front pcb. The lcd is sandwiched between the two pcbs, giving a very rigid construction.

A right-angle PCB mounted in some cutoffs on the main board with some headers for data and power would be even better/easier in my opinion.

[AmirTheGreat]

Dave,

Would you please provide a link where one can order these cases from China?

Thanks.

not the exact link, but this might be a good start http://www.alibaba.com/wholesale/search?SearchText=enclosure+aluminum&pid=1878732840

[nitro2k01]

How do you type "µ"? I had to cut/paste it from the thread title.

hold Alt key and type 0181

On Windows, yep. Also, start, run, charmap. Now you can select the µ sign and a bunch of other more or less useful signs. On some national keyboard layouts that are using right alt as alt gr, you can press alt gr-M or ctrl+alt-M to type the character. In OSX, I believe you can press alt+M with any keyboard layout to produce a µ.

[nixfu]

 
I have one of those EXACT cases I purchased off of Ebay for a project I am building right now, and they really are quite nice for the price.   I have used the plastic cases from Hammond etc before, but ONE THING that has always bugged me in making my projects look nice is LCD mounting. 

What is the best way for a hobbyist to mount a typical 16x2 LCD panel or something to it looks professional, the backlight does not leak out the edges etc.  Whenever I have just cut a hole, and stuck the LCD behind the hole it really does not look that good. 

Should I be making glass/plexi front screens and attaching those to the front of the panel and having the LCD behind it?

Anyone else have a good LCD mounting solution you use for making your homebrew cases look nice and professionally made??

[Asim]

Dave, what are you replacing the LT3080 with ? I remember you saying classic LM317 on the thread that discovered the problem.  I am curious or do we need to wait for a video to know   

[Pedram]

i think there is enough room for using two thumbwheel pots
like this one :

[EEVblog]

How do you type "µ"? I had to cut/paste it from the thread title.

hold Alt key and type 0181

I use Alt 230 for µ

[free_electron]

Nobody spotted that throughout the entire video dave is holding the lcd upside down ?
So it wouldn't work... You would have to mount the board on the top and the buttons would sit above the lcd ...

[rahandford]

Dave,

Would you please provide a link where one can order these cases from China?

Thanks.

Was just about to ask the same thing

[PA0PBZ]

Mounting a TO220 on the bottom and then having to slide in your pcb, how are you going to wiggle the leads trough the pcb holes? 



(Strange, I could not post it without changing the subject, it told me it had to be 80 chars or less - in Dutch)

[free_electron]

Mounting a TO220 on the bottom and then having to slide in your pcb, how are you going to wiggle the leads trough the pcb holes? 



(Strange, I could not post it without changing the subject, it told me it had to be 80 chars or less - in Dutch)

just make a hole in the PCB where the screw needs to go. solder to220 in , slide board in. stick screw through hole. simple .. no ?

or do a compression mount. use a piece of bergquist silastomer between board and to220. that has enough compression to keep the to220 nicely pressed against the case. we use that all the time in harddisks.

[PA0PBZ]

Mounting a TO220 on the bottom and then having to slide in your pcb, how are you going to wiggle the leads trough the pcb holes? 

just make a hole in the PCB where the screw needs to go. solder to220 in , slide board in. stick screw through hole. simple .. no ?

or do a compression mount. use a piece of bergquist silastomer between board and to220. that has enough compression to keep the to220 nicely pressed against the case. we use that all the time in harddisks.

I agree, but that was not what Dave was talking about, with the screw on the bottom outside and all.

[Monkeh]

Mounting a TO220 on the bottom and then having to slide in your pcb, how are you going to wiggle the leads trough the pcb holes? 

just make a hole in the PCB where the screw needs to go. solder to220 in , slide board in. stick screw through hole. simple .. no ?

or do a compression mount. use a piece of bergquist silastomer between board and to220. that has enough compression to keep the to220 nicely pressed against the case. we use that all the time in harddisks.

I agree, but that was not what Dave was talking about, with the screw on the bottom outside and all.

You put the nut on the outside and the screw on the inside.

Alternatively, you make a hole big enough for a nut driver.

[Bored@Work]

Should I be making glass/plexi front screens and attaching those to the front of the panel and having the LCD behind it?

Anyone else have a good LCD mounting solution you use for making your homebrew cases look nice and professionally made??

A typical construction is to have a front PCB, holding all front parts, like LCD, switches, sockets, etc. and then have the actual frond panel in front of it, in a kind of sandwich construction. In between some plexiglas inset/bezel for the display. For hobby stuff it is instead common to mount all switches, displays, etc. directly on the front panel.

If you have the manual skills, tools, etc. you can make your own front panel and LCD bezel. For the rest of us there are http://www.digikey.com/product-search/en/optoelectronics/bezels/

[German_EE]

With a small amount of searching it's easy to find hundreds of small enclosures but can anybody suggest a source for large enclosures? I'm looking for some 330mm x 330mm x 110mm (13  inch x 13 inch x 4.33 inch) boxes and the only things that keep on coming up are rack mount units.

[djacobow]

What is the best way for a hobbyist to mount a typical 16x2 LCD panel or something to it looks professional, the backlight does not leak out the edges etc.  Whenever I have just cut a hole, and stuck the LCD behind the hole it really does not look that good. 

I have had the same issue. I've been using the Hammond boxes with the clear top. Then I can just mount the LCD on my PCB. In some ways this is cool if you like looking at electronics, but it doesn't exactly look professional. But at least it is neat and you can read the LCD.

[Chipguy]

Ok the infos in the first 1:15 minutes of the video are pure gold to me.
Those encloses are exaclty what I need for several projects to come.
However I had no luck in researching a trustworty source abroad.

Could you post the link to the sources for those you found?
....hmm maybe  I should keep watching the video before I post... hehe

[telefunken]

   Probably too late for this project, but here's my suggestion. My preference would be to have the display and interface on the top. It's a huge area compared to the end caps, so there would be some advantages. The display would be more visible pointing up, where my face will be, instead of my belly at bench top level. Most importantly, the buttons can be spaced enough to allow sausage fingers like mine to operate the device easily.

[Refrigerator]

Hey, Dave, what do you think about those Nokia5110 display modules? They're dirt cheap and eBay is full of them!
Nice to see the µSupply project up and running again.

[David_AVD]

Probably too late for this project, but here's my suggestion. My preference would be to have the display and interface on the top.

Something to be aware of when choosing an LCD is the viewing angle.  Some displays are optimised for 6 o'clock (from below) or 12 o'clock (from above) viewing and are very hard to read from the opposite angle.

[max666]

I dunno about using a board mounted heatsink that radiates into such a small enclosure cavity.  Surely that would just heat soak the insides and then provide poor transfer to the outside?

My thought exactly. Plus using that nice aluminium case as heatsink surely must be superior to any heatsink you can mount inside, as long as you’re not drilling holes and use a fan.

   Probably too late for this project, but here's my suggestion. My preference would be to have the display and interface on the top. ...

I agree, but you can't do that without doing a lot of machining on the aluminium case. So if Dave is going to produce several hundred or thousands units, how is he going to that?

[EEVblog]

Nobody spotted that throughout the entire video dave is holding the lcd upside down ?
So it wouldn't work... You would have to mount the board on the top and the buttons would sit above the lcd ...

I was waiting for someone to mention that.

[EEVblog]

   Probably too late for this project, but here's my suggestion. My preference would be to have the display and interface on the top.

Then you can't stack them to get multiple supplies.

[senso]

With the display in the front, put a spacer under it and have it angled.
My single 6632B is angled up using the ears that came with the supply that are suposed to mount the supply in a rack mount, perfect angle.

[EEVblog]

Notwithstanding that this is Dave's "pet" project it still seems like he is designing it for mass production. No matter how clever it is electically I can't help but think that picking the smallest case and therefore everything else is going to compromise the usability of it. And therefore its ultimate success.

The benefits of a pet project, you don't have to care about success.

[wigman27]

Dave,

Would you please provide a link where one can order these cases from China?

Thanks.

Hi,

I think this is it http://www.aliexpress.com/store/group/Aluminum-extrusion-and-metal-enclosure/505449_211537741.html

[Royce]

Timely video for me. I'm investigating cases myself. For my first effort, I am trying out taobao.com via an agent.

I didn't buy this particular one, but there are a lot of oddly specific things there like this instrument chassis http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=2013.1.0.0.YSvCB7&scm=1007.10009.518.0&id=19699719516&pvid=07dcd755-0eb8-4128-952c-d5016c1595a3.

I should spend some time on AliExpress. I'll be curious to compare effective costs. AliExpress is certainly appears to be easier to use. And I get the impression from the video that one can grow into a direct relationship with the factory where customization becomes possible.

[sleemanj]

I should spend some time on AliExpress.

For one-off products (that is, one or more of a single item), Aliexpress or eBay is usually (but not always) cheaper than sourcing via an agent from taobao - mainly because of free slow-boat shipping, and you're not paying the fixed minimum agent fees and domestic shipping.

Taobao is cheaper for mixed orders of various products from various sellers at the same time (naturally, trying to get everything from as few different sellers as possible is better, to save the china domestic shipping costs).

For potentially heavy (or otherwise troublesome for international shipping) like these enclosures, I would tend to use Aliexpress because the international shipping will almost certainly be cheaper there than through a TB agent for heavy items, even if it is slow-boat.

I might import from 6 different TB sellers in a single order containing maybe different 50 products of various quantities each from 5 to 1000, pulling that order together on Aliexpress would be expensive and painful.  But on another week I might have a need to buy just 100 3.5mm plugs, for that I'd go to Taobao or eBay.

[rbs_phoenix]

I think the black enclosure is this one:
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/OEM-Custom-Wall-mount-Extruded-Aluminum-Enclosures-88-38-110mm-w-h-l/892642886.html

Another Case with nearly the same size (10mm shorter) is here:
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/88-38-100-mm-w-h-l-free-shipping-Customized-Aluminium-Extrusion-Enclosure/892571094.html

They really look like the case in the video

[FrankBuss]

I think the black enclosure is this one:
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/OEM-Custom-Wall-mount-Extruded-Aluminum-Enclosures-88-38-110mm-w-h-l/892642886.html

Dave mentions the prices at the beginning of the video at 1:30 and he says the anodized enclosure costs $5.60.

[rbs_phoenix]

I think the black enclosure is this one:
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/OEM-Custom-Wall-mount-Extruded-Aluminum-Enclosures-88-38-110mm-w-h-l/892642886.html

Dave mentions the prices at the beginning of the video at 1:30 and he says the anodized enclosure costs $5.60.

Yes, I know. I searched for "aluminium enclosure" and sorted the results by price. That was the cheapest black, 2 part aluminium enclosure with a size of 110x88x37mm (38 seemed close enough for me) I found. There were a few more offeres of the same case but they were all more expensive (up to $30+ with shipping). I would really like to buy it for only 5.60! So if someone have a link for that $5.60 offer.. I would like to find that offer dave mentioned.


edit: Maybe it is this offer. 5.19 Australian Dollar, but its not free shipping. So it is a litte cheaper, but not much (because of the shipping costs). And it is only 100mm deep, not 110mm
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Aluminum-extrusion-housing-enclosure-can-design-change-the-length/1850074314.html

[sleemanj]

FWIW, I had a quick look on Taobao for pricing of similar 110mm units, and estimating that the weight of each is around 185g, and plugging numbers into my fairly finely tuned estimation system (secret sorry), I come up with a landed price for 10 units from Taobao via an agent would be around $7 USD each (by EMS, but given the domestic shipping and repacking etc it's still 2 weeks really).

Compared to $10.73 each on Aliexpress.

But if you only bought one piece from Taobao and imported just that one piece, the price would be in excess of $15 USD. 

So that's a good example of where buying from Aliexpress is cheaper than Taobao.  Incidentally, the swap-over point is at about 5 units probably.

[Legit-Design]

What if you get 100 or more and 10% has problems with the anodizing? The blackness just falls off when you rub them with a finger because they just rushed everything through and didn't bother cleaning them? Or how critical is it to have perfect cases?

[EEVblog]

I should spend some time on AliExpress. I'll be curious to compare effective costs. AliExpress is certainly appears to be easier to use. And I get the impression from the video that one can grow into a direct relationship with the factory where customization becomes possible.

Yes, that's what I like about AliExpress, it works just like ebay, no mess, no fuss, price and postage options right there to see and buy right there. As the name suggests it's the express version of Alibaba where the same companies also list, but on there they generally either don't have prices, or some silly price guide that isn't accurate, you have to contact them to get quotes. Messy.
Almost all the companies you can then deal with direct for larger qty or custom stuff.

[Royce]

FWIW, I had a quick look on Taobao for pricing of similar 110mm units, and estimating that the weight of each is around 185g, and plugging numbers into my fairly finely tuned estimation system (secret sorry), I come up with a landed price for 10 units from Taobao via an agent would be around $7 USD each (by EMS, but given the domestic shipping and repacking etc it's still 2 weeks really).

Compared to $10.73 each on Aliexpress.

But if you only bought one piece from Taobao and imported just that one piece, the price would be in excess of $15 USD. 

So that's a good example of where buying from Aliexpress is cheaper than Taobao.  Incidentally, the swap-over point is at about 5 units probably.

Awesome advice! It helps to have a bit of a pointer when one is first wading through all this stuff. Thanks much!

[zapta]

This uSupply can be a huge hit and the black box has perfect size and look.

What is the planned output voltage/current range?

What's the input power?  (I hope a standard micro USB I can connect to a 2A charger).

[Phaedrus]

With a small amount of searching it's easy to find hundreds of small enclosures but can anybody suggest a source for large enclosures? I'm looking for some 330mm x 330mm x 110mm (13  inch x 13 inch x 4.33 inch) boxes and the only things that keep on coming up are rack mount units.

I'm also interested in this. I could use a 330mm x 225mm x 35mm(ish) enclosure for one of my products, and it's impossible to find non-custom.

[Chipguy]

Thanks for all the links guys.
I kinda ignored AliExpress because it always showed up in search lists with those dodgy part brokers.
Just realized what it actually is, someone (in this case Dave) had to grab my head and stick my nose into it, hehe.
They really have a lot of offers on there. Take it this way, my ebay purchased may drop in the next months

[EEVblog]

I kinda ignored AliExpress because it always showed up in search lists with those dodgy part brokers.

It's totally legit, the Chinese equivalent to ebay for westerners.
BTW, totally worth it to get the EMS postage option every time, unless you can really wait 3-4 weeks. Most sellers offer it in the postage drop down box and prices are very reasonable.

[Royce]

With a small amount of searching it's easy to find hundreds of small enclosures but can anybody suggest a source for large enclosures? I'm looking for some 330mm x 330mm x 110mm (13  inch x 13 inch x 4.33 inch) boxes and the only things that keep on coming up are rack mount units.

I'm also interested in this. I could use a 330mm x 225mm x 35mm(ish) enclosure for one of my products, and it's impossible to find non-custom.

Is plastic OK? Do the dimensions have to be exact?
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.14.38.npKFrq&id=13412814144&ns=1#detail

This one is metal and a good bit more expensive. And while it seems to have rack pull handles, it also seems to have foldout desktop feet.
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a1z10.5.w4002-68937905.14.Wyy0Gd&id=13421258272

[motocoder]

I should spend some time on AliExpress. I'll be curious to compare effective costs. AliExpress is certainly appears to be easier to use. And I get the impression from the video that one can grow into a direct relationship with the factory where customization becomes possible.

Yes, that's what I like about AliExpress, it works just like ebay, no mess, no fuss, price and postage options right there to see and buy right there. As the name suggests it's the express version of Alibaba where the same companies also list, but on there they generally either don't have prices, or some silly price guide that isn't accurate, you have to contact them to get quotes. Messy.
Almost all the companies you can then deal with direct for larger qty or custom stuff.

But unfortunately is not available for those of us in the US, Washington state. It is some sort of issue with their "escrow rules".

[Phaedrus]

With a small amount of searching it's easy to find hundreds of small enclosures but can anybody suggest a source for large enclosures? I'm looking for some 330mm x 330mm x 110mm (13  inch x 13 inch x 4.33 inch) boxes and the only things that keep on coming up are rack mount units.

I'm also interested in this. I could use a 330mm x 225mm x 35mm(ish) enclosure for one of my products, and it's impossible to find non-custom.

Is plastic OK? Do the dimensions have to be exact?
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.14.38.npKFrq&id=13412814144&ns=1#detail

This one is metal and a good bit more expensive. And while it seems to have rack pull handles, it also seems to have foldout desktop feet.
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a1z10.5.w4002-68937905.14.Wyy0Gd&id=13421258272

Ah, so close! The first one is pretty good on the dimensions, but it's plastic, and I need something fairly sturdy like metal. The second one looks great, but it's a bit out-size, it would be half empty and take up a ton of space. I'll look around, thanks for the links!

[mamalala]

BTW, totally worth it to get the EMS postage option every time, ...

Unfortunately, that is absolutely not true when Germany is the destination. EMS has a deal with some obscure courier service in Germany, instead of using the local Post/DHL like most others. That courier service does some really nasty stuff. They charge ridiculously high amounts of money for handling import related stuff. Thing is, in Germany they must give the recipient the option to chose: recipient does it, or they do it. Of course you get the notification about that _just_ before the time period in which it must be handled ends. Then, they charge quite some money for every day that package sits on their shelf. Also, their service is generally quite lousy.

That is to say, if you are in Germany try to avoid anything that uses EMS, since it ends up with a crap courier service here in Germany. The net is full of reports from people that fell prey to them.

Greetings,

Chris

[German_EE]

I agree with the comments about EMS. They use a courier here called Hermes and the last time I had a delivery handled by them the courier dumped the parcel in the flower bed and headed off back to his van. OK, I live on the second floor, but the parcel was only 3Kg

[FrankBuss]

I guess it depends on the employee, but Hermes works for me. Sometimes they deliver at unusual times, like 7 pm and it is not the fastest sevice. But once DHL needed 3 weeks for a packet within Germany, too. Maybe this will get better when they get paid fair with the new minimum wage law next year.

[mamalala]

I agree with the comments about EMS. They use a courier here called Hermes ...

I should have mentioned that it depends on the country of origin. EMS from China/Hong Kong usually ends up with the GdSK here in Germany, and that is what i was talking about. EMS from Japan, for example, usually ends up with DHL/Deutsche Post, so that  woudl be OK.

Just search the web for "EMS GdSK" to see what i mean. Complete bonkers.

Greetings,

Chris

[Chipguy]

I should have mentioned that it depends on the country of origin. EMS from China/Hong Kong usually ends up with the GdSK here in Germany, and that is what i was talking about. EMS from Japan, for example, usually ends up with DHL/Deutsche Post, so that  woudl be OK.

Just search the web for "EMS GdSK" to see what i mean. Complete bonkers.

Bonkers is a very polite name for what that is!

Yes I didn't even know that EMS works with Hermes. I actually don't think they do.
Everything from EMS I got was delivered by this GDSK.
It were "only" 2 packages in the last years because I either had no control about which carrier was choosen and the first time I just didn't even know what to expect. To make a long story short: I don't want any packages delivered by GDSK anymore. 

They are the worst ripoff and try to put 21,50 EUR (35 AUD) customs handling fee on an item that is worth 25 EUR itself.
They even want to charge a daily stocking fee, doubtful if that is even legal. They tried that with me when I ticked the box that I want to do the custom and then do it quick. I think it's even possible to do it via internet now.
It will need to be quick because they are also pretty slow in sending the notification letter so there is never much time to react.
If a package is delayed and arrives while one is away on holiday then you are pretty much screwed.

The day that carrier goes bust (I hope that day will come soon), many germans will be very happy.
If enough German victims complain direclty to EMS maybe they will cancel their contract with GDSK. Any other alternative will be better.

[Ross_ValuSoft]

Correct me if I am wrong.

1. Dave reveals, and discusses the relevant merits in great detail, a very attractive housing.
2. He states price, but no supply details.
3. This, now 4 pages of feedback/discussion, produces many requests to Dave for a link to the actual supplier/item.
4. Dave does not supply the requested link.

So I ask myself... why bother making the video blog?

[android]

I've seen plenty of these extruded aluminium boxes on AliExpress and I'm sure they're all very handy sizes, but I can't for the life of me find one that will fit neatly into a standard PC drive bay (5.25" or 3.5"). The actual aperture measurements are around 148 x 42 mm and 102 x 25 mm respectively.

My idea is to whack my project inside an aluminium box that will slip into a PC drive bay and use the PCB front panel technique described by Dave as the user interface. I don't want to order a 100 boxes just to make them produce a "standard" size 

[nitro2k01]

Correct me if I am wrong.

1. Dave reveals, and discusses the relevant merits in great detail, a very attractive housing.
2. He states price, but no supply details.
3. This, now 4 pages of feedback/discussion, produces many requests to Dave for a link to the actual supplier/item.
4. Dave does not supply the requested link.

So I ask myself... why bother making the video blog?

Probably because the market is volatile. Sellers come and go all the time and the link may not be valid in 6 months. Better go search for yourself on AliExpress.

[EEVblog]

1. Dave reveals, and discusses the relevant merits in great detail, a very attractive housing.
2. He states price, but no supply details.
3. This, now 4 pages of feedback/discussion, produces many requests to Dave for a link to the actual supplier/item.
4. Dave does not supply the requested link.
So I ask myself... why bother making the video blog?

a) Because the video contains IMO potentially useful design info. It's not just a "here is a nice cheap case, here is the link, go buy it" video.
b) The link to the box vanished after I bought it, perhaps they ran out of stock or something, I don't know, it has only just come back online it seems:
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/2014-new-Aluminum-project-box-for-electronic/1828456375.html

[Richard Crowley]

I'm a big fan of using aluminum "U-channel" for the short sides, and sheet metal (or plastic) for the top and bottom.
One of my favorite suppliers is Orange Aluminum: http://www.orangealuminum.com/bar-stock/channels.html
They one of their stock sizes is 1.75 inches which is exactly 1 rack unit.

I like sheet ABS for the top and bottom panels.  If shielding is required, I glue aluminum foil on the inside with spray adhesive.
http://www.tapplastics.com/product/plastics/cut_to_size_plastic/abs_sheets/524

[Ross_ValuSoft]

1. Dave reveals, and discusses the relevant merits in great detail, a very attractive housing.
2. He states price, but no supply details.
3. This, now 4 pages of feedback/discussion, produces many requests to Dave for a link to the actual supplier/item.
4. Dave does not supply the requested link.
So I ask myself... why bother making the video blog?

a) Because the video contains IMO potentially useful design info. It's not just a "here is a nice cheap case, here is the link, go buy it" video.
b) The link to the box vanished after I bought it, perhaps they ran out of stock or something, I don't know, it has only just come back online it seems:
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/2014-new-Aluminum-project-box-for-electronic/1828456375.html

Thanks Dave.

[Michael Rempel]

Anyone else have a good LCD mounting solution you use for making your homebrew cases look nice and professionally made??

Doing industrial stuff for keypads and displays we always print onto overhead transparency sheets and mount it behind some thin glass or plexi. Try reverse printing and showing the back side for a shiny clean finish. If you dont want to use plexi over it, then reverse print it so the ink wont wear off. That means buttons might need to be through hole on the plexi/plastic. Alignment is a pain then but epoxy before reflow will get it if your buttons and or plastic can stand the abuse. Most transparency plastic CAN stand the heat of laser transfer.

Another technique is to do some nice wood working. Make the usual plastic or steel and then create a veneer wood top. You need to account for wood's characteristic expansion/contraction though.

[Michael Rempel]

BTW, totally worth it to get the EMS postage option every time, ...

That is to say, if you are in Germany try to avoid anything that uses EMS, since it ends up with a crap courier service here in Germany. The net is full of reports from people that fell prey to them.

Same sad story for Canada. $15 ish to clear customs with Zero other fees. Regular postal mail works just fine with no extra charges most of the time. To quote Dave; UNBELIEVABLE!

[Porto]

Eventually saw this video from Dave this afternoon and recognized that black anodized split casing he bought from China;
I have the silver version in which I have build a project this summer!   
Cost me some 7 bucks a piece on Ebay from China.

It's a LCF/ESR meter and this case with its specific dimensions were just what I was looking for!
The PCB is a just fit. Was only afraid I couldn't place the 9v battery but with a bit of grinding work on the inside
to make a bit more space that wasn't a problem after all!

Some pics:






I'm in the progress to use another case for another project; these cases are certainly really well build!

Thumbs up!

[fenclu]

I think I found the exact one from Dave's video if somebody's interested:

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/88x38x110mm-3-46-x1-49-x4-33-wxhxl-electronic-project-boxes/949026965.html