Source for project enclosures ?

[Chancy99]

I know it's kind of off-topic, but I would think that this would be a good group to ask this question of.

What is a good source for project enclosures ? One that can provide a good idea/drawing/definition of the boxes, so I can design the pcb and mounting holes appropriately. Not Rat-Shack ...

Digi-Key has some, as do a few others, but it's awfully hard to get a good sense of their construction in the little diagrams. I'm not to keen on spending $15+ each on a bunch looking for the "right" one.

Specifically, I'm looking for an aluminum box, with pcb mountings inside, and a nice clean outside. About 7"x3" or 6" x4" x 1-2" high. Preferably no protruding screw heads, etc. This is for the infamous Datalogger project (I'm back after 10 days vacation and two weeks offsite business

Dean.

 

[buzzp]

This is a good question. I generally end up designing a prototype without knowing the final package dimensions. This is not the most efficient way because final testing can not be done without the final PCB. Usually I request SAMPLES from the vendors to select an enclosure. By this time, the design is hardened (barring any PCB layout issues). And the final design can be done. I would be interested in hearing other ideas as well. If package size is an issue then it is difficult to select an enclosure without knowing the smallest size you can use(based on PCB dimensions). Anyway, good luck.

 

[melone]

Try Hoffmann Enclosures

 

[uWaveFDL]

http://www.atexelectronics.com/hammond.htm.

http://www.connect-tech-products.com/products/diecastgifs/100.html

http://store.yahoo.com/webtronics/general-supplies-for-electronics-enclosures.html

Here are a few spots to try.

 

[dydt]

or try rittal and hammond enclosures..

dydt

 

[Chancy99]

Yup. The original box I had chosen wound up being just a tad too small. This was basically a good thing, since it was a plastic one, and I really did need to go with an aluminum one.

After some searching, I finally went with the 1455k1601 series from Hammond

http://www.hammondmfg.com/1455.htm

- nice simple extruded one. Make the pcb mounting much easier. It's a little larger than I had wanted, but it was the closest thing I could find. Should have a sample here shortly.

Several others that looked OK just didn't appear to be available from distributers

Dean.

 

[indi]

Here some links to enclosures vendors:

http://www.budind.com

http://www.techmar-enclosures.com

http://www.okwenclosures.com

Good luck!

 

[buzzp]

I can not complete a design without testing the final product. This means the supposed final PCB. If all emission and immunity standards are met then I have done well. Generally, I like to start these tests ASAP, even if the PCB is not final, to find out early problems that are much less costly early in the design to fix. This generally leads to more than one PCB layout. Good luck.

 

[Chancy99]

Heh - I hear a lot of that ...

"Good Luck"

I think for this datalogger project I'm down to two enclosure choices. The Hammond 1455 K 1601 and the 1455 N 1601. One is a 6x3x1.7 and the other is 6x4x2. They sent me a sample of the smaller one.

Smaller is better ... So I'm biting the bullet and converting most thru-hole to SMD, and placing parts on the bottom layer as well. I *think* it will all fit on the smaller one.

Dean.