Enclosure layout... without POTS to mount to.

[Rpschultz13]

I'm working on a guitar tuner pedal using ESP32 (built in OLED). The OLED (in Red below) will protrude through the top, but there are no pots to mount to. So I'm wondering if there are other ways fasten a circuit board to an enclosure. Off the cuff I was going to drill some holes in the (green) circuit board and use 15mm stand offs to bolt it to the top. Unfortunately then the 3mm screws are sticking out the top.

Ideas? Suggestions?

 

[jwin615]

Nutserts are an option. If you use them on top, they could also hold a protective cover.

 

[darwin999]

You could use adhesive plastic mounts, e.g.,

Board Mounting Hdw - Mini PCB Plastic, Bulk

Plastic board mounting standoff with adhesive 1/2

synthcube.com

This is just one example, there are lots of different mounts w/ different distances from the enclosure.
You just need the right size hole in the PCB.

 

[Feral Feline]

Get some thing more decorative than screws with Phillips heads;
find bolts with hex or knurled bits...

 

[Rpschultz13]

These 3mm threaded adhesive backed standoffs are nice from Amplified Parts... but expensive ($0.95 ea)

 

[Bio77]

You could use PCB mount jacks

 

[darwin999]

These 3mm threaded adhesive backed standoffs are nice from Amplified Parts... but expensive ($0.95 ea)

Cute! Very nice. Here's the manufacturer webpage:

ADHESIVE STANDOFF - AST series | PRODUCTS | TAKACHI - Manufacturer of electronics enclosures and industrial enclosures

TAKACHI is a manufacturer of electronics enclosures and industrial enclosures.We provide over 22,000 items : Plastic enclosure, Handheld enclosure, Aluminium enclosure, Diecast aluminium box, IP67 waterproof enclosure, Junction box, 19

www.takachi-enclosure.com

Maybe someone else has them for less.

Adhesive mounts stick best to clean, fairly smooth surfaces of metal or paint - less so to dirty, rough, or chalky surfaces (e.g., a poorly bonded primer). So pick the right surface and wipe it clean w/ alcohol (and let it dry) prior to sticking them in place. I've had good results with them for typical stompbox PCBs, since I'm not throwing them against walls or such.

EDIT: if you or a friend has a 3D printer, you could easily make those Takachi standoffs - after printing the base, then use your soldering iton to insert threaded inserts made for thermoplastic - just print the right size hole for the chosen insert. I use these all the time for projects:

McMaster-Carr

McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.

www.mcmaster.com

The resulting plastic mount could then be glued to your enclosure with silicone glue or HTV. If you design/print some small "lines" or "pits" into the underside of your 3D printed mount, the glue will adhere even better.

 

[Zanshin]

Any ideas on how to mount this one?



I have and like the plastic adhesive stand offs @darwin999 linked but there’s no mounting wholes. I suppose I could drill one …

 

[jcpst]

Good news- the ones Darwin999 linked do not require mounting holes. You line the mounts up in such a way that when you put in the PCB in, it passes that edge sticking out and clicks into place. Then it rests on that lip where it gets narrower.

 

[Zanshin]

I mean mounting holes in the PCB.

I use the ones @darwin999 linked with boards like this

https://a.co/d/ibc48Cf

For diode mods etc.

 

[ThePanda]

Any ideas on how to mount this one?

View attachment 79342

I have and like the plastic adhesive stand offs @darwin999 linked but there’s no mounting wholes. I suppose I could drill one …

16-20 AWG bus wire on the connections to hold it in place?

 

[Zanshin]

16-20 AWG bus wire on the connections to hold it in place?

Yeah that’s probably the ticket.

 

[darwin999]

As @jcpst noted, there are also adhesive mounts that require no holes, they hold by the PCB edge - e.g.,

https://www.tubesandmore.com/products/standoff-snap-pcb-adhesive-backing

 

[Zanshin]

As @jcpst noted, there are also adhesive mounts that require no holes, they hold by the PCB edge - e.g.,

https://www.tubesandmore.com/products/standoff-snap-pcb-adhesive-backing

Awesome!

 

[darwin999]

I use the ones @darwin999 linked with boards like this

https://a.co/d/ibc48Cf
For diode mods etc.

Cute! Thanks for pointing those out! Very useful idea.
Although I may look for another vendor for those, they seem expensive especially with shipping...

Note added: or make/drill my own, cut from a larger PCB...

 

[Zanshin]

Cute! Thanks for pointing those out! Very useful idea.
Although I may look for another vendor for those, they seem expensive especially with shipping...

Note added: or make/drill my own, cut from a larger PCB...

Tidy and useful. They are expensive for what they are. Same with the AES PCB clips haha. If you find a cheaper source for either please link it here

 

[Robert]

Any ideas on how to mount this one?

I usually mount the small ones like this directly to the 3PDT breakout board with rigid pinheaders.

 

[darwin999]

These 3mm threaded adhesive backed standoffs are nice from Amplified Parts... but expensive ($0.95 ea)

I found another source for standoffs in the US, after more searching:

McMaster-Carr

McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.

www.mcmaster.com

The black corner threaded standoffs seem to be expensive everywhere, so Amplified Parts' price actually looks better in retrospect.
But the white center threaded standoffs are less.

I also saw that Banzai Music sells them in Germany.

Adhesive Standoffs :: PCB Standoffs :: Hardware :: Electromechanical :: Electronic Parts :: Banzai Music GmbH

 

[Alan W]

Cute! Very nice. Here's the manufacturer webpage:

ADHESIVE STANDOFF - AST series | PRODUCTS | TAKACHI - Manufacturer of electronics enclosures and industrial enclosures

TAKACHI is a manufacturer of electronics enclosures and industrial enclosures.We provide over 22,000 items : Plastic enclosure, Handheld enclosure, Aluminium enclosure, Diecast aluminium box, IP67 waterproof enclosure, Junction box, 19

www.takachi-enclosure.com

Maybe someone else has them for less.

Adhesive mounts stick best to clean, fairly smooth surfaces of metal or paint - less so to dirty, rough, or chalky surfaces (e.g., a poorly bonded primer). So pick the right surface and wipe it clean w/ alcohol (and let it dry) prior to sticking them in place. I've had good results with them for typical stompbox PCBs, since I'm not throwing them against walls or such.

EDIT: if you or a friend has a 3D printer, you could easily make those Takachi standoffs - after printing the base, then use your soldering iton to insert threaded inserts made for thermoplastic - just print the right size hole for the chosen insert. I use these all the time for projects:

McMaster-Carr

McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.

www.mcmaster.com

The resulting plastic mount could then be glued to your enclosure with silicone glue or HTV. If you design/print some small "lines" or "pits" into the underside of your 3D printed mount, the glue will adhere even better.

With typical filament used in printers, I’d argue against using heat set inserts. After having many failures after product left us, due to fractures where the bosses eventually cracked around the heat set inserts, (and this was after my typically making the bosses larger than I would have for say, machined ABS), we started epoxying them in. Pain to do, in production, but no more failures.

 

[Robert]

As for @Rpschultz13 original question...

I would design a PCB that fills the entire space of the enclosure and use a pair of standoffs on opposite sides of the PCB (on each corner) that are flush with the top and bottom of the enclosure so it is securely suspended. A couple of the 1590A projects here are designed this way.

No external hardware, no adhesive to break loose later. The PCB can't move when the lid is on the enclosure, and easily drops right out as a complete assembly when the lid is off.