I built a 10 inch mini rack from aluminium extrusions(louwrentius.com) |
I built a 10 inch mini rack from aluminium extrusions(louwrentius.com) |
Check it out starting on page 2240 of your McMaster-Carr 132 catalog. They have all kinds of things you can mount up like monitor arms. It's an erector set toy for engineers. ;)
Makerbeam is also nice, they sell a 5x5mm, 10x10mm and 15x15mm version (normally the smallest cross section of t-slot is 20x20mm). The 5x5mm version is comically small when you hold it in your hand. When you order a set, it comes with tweezers to pick up the screws which are size M1.2.
https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/helmer-drawer-unit-on-casters-b...
> Aluminium extrusions are bars with a groove on all four sides. These bars have a standard format and you can slide all kinds of equipment in there and lock it in place with set screws. It seems to be used a lot for home made 3D printers, CNC machines and whatnot.
They're also called "T-slot" and 80/20 (from the brand).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-slot_structural_framing
Plenty of free 3D models for tiny parts for those that can be printed at home (careful though: most won't hold much weight).
Getting something with actual, standard rack-mounting points is worth it because you can use the huge variety of 3D printed hardware to match it very easily.
I agree with the other commentators that power bricks are a problem though. My setup is fanless and silent which is an extra challenge.
For a bracket I would look at a laser or waterjet service. Sendcutsend is one of the more well known web shops and the pricing is OK for the convenience. Also look out for local places that are linked to education. Some libraries even have laser cutters. One shop near us will do simple jobs for machine time + material cost, like you give them a DXF and they'll cut acrylic for a good price. Other option for metalwork is to join a makerspace. The dues are often very reasonable vs trying to get a lathe into your house.
Occasionally I need to be able to get physical access to it too.
I use esp32 for the remote UART/SPI, but don't really have a good setup for keeping a few projects tidy, and with the ability to move it from its remote location (a bookshelf) to my desk for physical access.
Does anyone know of any cheap and dense way to store these projects/boards?
Always thought extrusions were expensive. At least had found a company custom cutting them but the price was something like 20x what you got.
I bet these are old corporate scrap metal with something horrid like i3-9100T. Nothing a wall mounted Chinese NUC with 12-13th gen i7, 2x32GB DDR4, 2x PCI-e 4.0 NVMe, 2x LAN can't do much better for price of that NOT-rack and fraction of electricity.
I considered going the 10 inch route too but ultimately decided on a small 19 mainly because I also wanted to fit a ATX build in there and most gear is 19 standardised
FWIW the topic is quite a rabbit hole and for non-mobile metal cases (e.g. screwed on the wall) technically even an electrician seems to be needed.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=8tTG0TBM7ts
https://www.reddit.com/r/homelab/comments/1qh13nu/i_made_a_p...
Admittedly I can't be sure of the long-term reliability of the GaN charger, but its been running problem-free for over a year now.
For powering a handful of things that consume less than 100W they are quite useful because they typically provide 2 or 3 DC outputs, and replace between 2 and 4 power bricks.
They also provide an hour or two of backup, quite useful in my country where the power sometimes goes out for a bit.
The downside is that I cant find decent ones in my country, and so I end up replacing mine every 2-3 years.
I'm very surprised that nothing like this exists in the tech/IT space. There can't be that many form factors, voltages, etc. to deal with.
[0] I think something like this: https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=600062
You do have to solder, though I wouldn't be surprised if one can find sata power to barrel adapters on AliExpress.
And at that point, why not just chop up an old ATX case to house everything, assuming there's clearance.
Some are 12v. Some will take 18v. I have an oddball that takes 9V AC. Some are 9V DC but flip the positive and negative. It can be a mess too.
The product you link to has outlets for 9V, 12V and 18V.
If you stuck to one PC manufacturer, I’d imagine you could have your wish. Dell laptops were the same 19V and same DC pin for years and years.
I thought USB-C PD would save us but it has a few pitfalls, apparently.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/235241551377
The SD-500 is available in 12V, 24V, and 48V, none of which adjust to that range:
https://www.meanwell.com/Upload/PDF/SD-500/SD-500-SPEC.PDF
Also, not sure why you're suggesting a DC-DC supply here? His input is AC.
