Centroid Community CNC Support Forum

Has anyone enlarged the mounting holes on the Acorn board and relay board? I would like to drill out the holes to 5mm to facilitate mounting them to brackets for my DIN rails. Of course I could turn adapters out of brass but it would be a lot quicker to drill out the holes.

They are 2 layer boards, so there is no danger of hitting anything inside you can't see. Of course any warranty, swap out option, etc. is unavailable if you take a drill to the product.

Yes, it' a pity that the holes are not sized with an eye on metric fixings, as used by the entire world outside of the US. They seem to be around 4mm diameter or possibly slightly less, so an M4 won't quite fit, yet an M3 is a loose rattle fit and doesn't quite feel big enough to be fit for purpose.

I'd suggest the holes be opened up in the layout to somewhere around 4.5-4.8mm diameter range. Drilling out the holes removes the through hole plating which may compromise the grounding, although the fixing screw might provide some electrical continuity.

It's simple, they are a US made product that chooses to use US made fastener sizes

Black Forest wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 10:59 am mounting them to brackets for my DIN rails.

If you have a 3D printer, here are links to DIN rail mounts i made that dont require modification to the board
uses M3 bolts
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5232039

and fore the relay board
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5232089

Gary Campbell wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 12:36 pm It's simple, they are a US made product that chooses to use US made fastener sizes

Yes and with a tiny change, it would be a truly global product! Let's call this a feature request perhaps.

Referring back to the OP, DIN rails are of course a German invention

What's wrong with using an M3.5-0.6 screw?

I would not drill, M3 or M3.5 works well if you are not living in the imperial imperium

IMHO mounting with wobbly bracketts on DIN rail is not the best way to mount a board. I prefer long screws and spacers made from brass tubing for a more rigid mounting. Its easy then to screw the wiring without supporting the Board with a third hand, I only have two hands



Uwe

Gary Campbell wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 12:36 pm It's simple, they are a US made product that chooses to use US made fastener sizes

Almost every fastener I have seen in US Customary sizes was made somewhere else and exported. Also, are you 100% certain the Acorn boards are actually manufactured in the US?

suntravel wrote: ↑Thu May 19, 2022 12:03 am


Uwe

Do you have any pictures of your finished panel? And stop making everything look so easy. I have watched all your videos and you make everything look really easy.