So I'm not sure if this is a common occurrence in pcbs or maybe in very small scale pcbs, or if ones I'm showing are just more budget level of design. Can anybody help me with feedback on my two possible ways provided in terms of it being a extreme No-No that I'm not aware of because of a beginner state. Also if anyone can explain why it would be a No-No or if it actually is fine to do, as well as any other suggestions on being able to secure these types of through holes without resorting to an absolute permanent adjustment such as glueing the entire board or some other permanent method. This is a picture is showing the mounting holes that have metal inserts that are unthreaded [20230728_100946] This one looks to have 4 mounting holes, but tge inner 2 are clearly merged with an other component. [20230728_102433] The two bolts in the picture beside the boards I am able to very carefully line up and slowly turn it in and it creates a snug tight fit and I'm able to carefully unscrew it and there seems to be a slight formation of the threads allowing me to put it back in a little bit more smoothly. Is it okay to do this with the metal through hole mounting spots? If I was to use isopropylene and a air duster to gently blow away any metal flakes that may have come off? An alternative to doing it this way is my idea of this: [20230728_102153] [20230728_102110] Taking a breadboard that's meant for actual soldering and then cutting out a little chunk on the edge such as where I marked so that I can solder this junk to the pins on the component with having a little hole drilled out in the mark spot prior to the soldering that is providing ample room for washers and bolt heads. Then on the other side I could take these male breadboard jumper pins and cut the wire off a quarter of an inch or so away and then solder it to the pin on the bottom and crazy glue the three jumper bodies together to replace the perfectly aligned three horizontal pins that can go into a breadboard or controller directly. I don't consider this to be an extreme permanent method as I've used solderwick on much more complex Corrections so I feel at a beginner level this is an easy method of being able to return to default if needed. [20230728_102857] Mounting holes like this that are not manufactured with an included metal insert and are like the previous or even worse leaving you absolutely no clearance for a washer or head. Without resulting to a 3D printed custom enclosure what could I do to make use of this Mounting hole that will allow me to use it with a better supporting method then just having a nipple that will not hold it in place if it tips upside down. This hole is on an UNO R3 compatible clone model that I picked up for ease of mind allow me to not shortout the proper boards that cost quite a bit more which came as the controller in some of the kits. [20230728_102452] And finally some of the modules like this only have a single hole somewhere that is quite large and gives off the feeling it is a functional aspect of the board and not meant for shoving a bolt through, is that correct or is this actually a mounting hole? I know 3D printing an enclosure designed for this specific component is probably what most people are going to generally recommend, but I just don't have access to a 3D printer to make something for this scale because of minimum print costs required and the amount of time it would take to 3D model the enclosure of such a case when I have at least 28 different little boards like this that all have similar holes for diameter but zero consistency in the spacing and Alignment between the various holes and location from the edges. Any other suggestions on mounting this type of very small scale piece please try to keep a concept that you can undo without damaging the board at a beginner level, as I'm trying to make these pieces still work on a breadboard but also conveniently able to fasten on to some kind of a rail or Surface. Thank you very much for your time to read this.

[image] mythn7: is this actually a mounting hole? Yes, it is a mounting hole. The idea is that you would attach it at the perimeter of a robot chassis. The board looks much too big for a single hole, It might rotate in place. I would say, a lot of modules seem to have mounting holes as an afterthought. You could make your own modules using ECAD and have boards made, with any mounting arrangement you want. Frankly, the circuits on many of those modules are less than ideal, could use updates as well...

[image] EmilyJane: think you missed the point of @J-M-L’ s suggestion to use the plastic nuts/standoffs. They would not create any chance of short circuits as they are non conductive. There is no need to “tap” the circuit board mounting holes as there is a nut on the other side from the threaded standoffs thx My post was just sharing really what I found convenient to use and is somewhat a no brainer. I never investigated more complicated way of getting things tied together. Nylon is relatively easy to cut so the washers can be adjusted if components get in the way [image] mythn7: But this still does not address the requirement that I show a few examples of using a washer/head that secures the PCB from both sides of the hole being the issue as this will to some degree cause the bolt to want to not go through the hole at the proper orientation when tightened because there is a interference that the lip of the fastener is being interfered with I'm not sure I get what you are saying. probably lost in translation [image] mythn7: And finally some of the modules like this only have a single hole somewhere that is quite large and gives off the feeling it is a functional aspect of the board and not meant for shoving a bolt through, is that correct or is this actually a mounting hole? this is a M3 Mounting hole

Thank you the last three comments are very helpful, most of my questions are very awkward to ask making it ever more Awkward to answer in a way that actually helps me as I have a learning disability and all of my frustrations tend to form in the realm of the physical concept self plugging all this stuff into one another and storing it safely / reliably. As I'm nearing 50 years old and have quite a bit of schooling and CGI and Visual Studio / C sharp so I'm able to sufficiently get by finding tidbits here and there on my own to Google on YouTube in terms of the software needs in terms of what you put in the curly brackets of a sketch. But taking the first year of an engineering design course where it's all theoretical not much Hands-On I've been basically exposed to a boatload of scenarios on the way that you should not do things without asking first as it will most likely lead to injury or destruction of equipment. And as someone who has had several near misses working in factories I am extremely paranoid to go off script when I absolutely have to because of lack of funds or University level text explaining things in a format that just makes you think you jump right to rocket science off the bat going way over your head. I'm on disability supplementary income and I've invested 4 months of my spending money to getting a basic small toolbox full of starter gear and I'm very hesitant to be even feel confident I've separated and I'll be said components in a way that and confident they will work when I next take them out let alone the concept of actually handling these things with electricity applied.

thanks for the context. There is ton of fun to have without even going to build something "finished" (even if it's nice to have a finished product) - just using a breadboard and Dupont Wires. Make sure power is applied where it's due and look twice for shorts. Unfortunately getting a bit of magic smoke from time to time is part of the learning... (or has been for me) side note: [image] mythn7: As I'm nearing 50 years old many of us are waaaayy past that and still having fun :slight_smile: . Keep at it !

These things come in various sizes and flavors. pcb support at DuckDuckGo DuckDuckGo. Privacy, Simplified.

These links might stir some ideas in you brain: [B] [image] Share tips you have come across General Electronics Blind Mounting Screws for PCB Stand-Offs The following describes a simple method for making effective low profile mounting feet for PCBs. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Mounting feet. 1/4” wide acrylic plastic strips are made with a CNC machine or a router. A centered 1/8” dado is made down the length of the 1/4” strips. These strips are .064” thick with the dado set to .032” Drill centered (on the dado) M2 holes every 1/… [Twelve] [image] Share tips you have come across General Electronics 4 component mounting shoes: [Fourteen.jpg] I like to use a standoff that is a bit longer than the material is thick. [Sixteen.jpg] Video speed has been sped up. [642F1132-7125-4BC8-975A-FBCE222516A3.gif] [6] [image] Share tips you have come across General Electronics Blind Standoffs, Mounting Feet for PCBs See also, post #1110 We have covered chassis PCB mounting without the need of drilling through the chassis itself. This method used a M2 brass insert in an Acrylic foot; the height of the finished foot is about 3.5 mm. The assembly is glue welded with DCM (Methylene Chloride) to the chassis inside surface. There are, however, times when the 3.5 mm brass insert foot is too high. See also: About 6 months ago I ordered Phillips M2 FLAT headed … [G] [image] Share tips you have come across General Electronics Further to Post #940 The blind screw in the above post can rotate when the brass standoff is tightened. The following images show how to modify the flat headed screw to prevent the screw from rotating. [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [H] [I] [J] [E] [image] Share tips you have come across General Electronics Tightening a Nut on a Blind Standoff Screw See also post #1110 It is very difficult to tighten a nut on a screw when you have no access to the screw head. A while back we discussed making a blind standoff. The nut used in the blind standoff can be quite difficult to tighten as the screw rotates. Using a modified brass standoff, we can make an effective tool to easily accomplish this task. Note: the brass standoff is made from brass and is tapped for an M2 thread. The very useful razor saw… [B] [image] Share tips you have come across General Electronics Convert a Stand-Off from One Thread Type to Another If you have a selection of threaded brass inserts, use these to modify an existing stand-off thread. The following images show the easy process. Simply compress the brass insert into the stand-off hole. You may have to enlarge the hole to accept the brass insert. You can also heat insert using a soldering iron. [A] [B] [C] [D] BTW Old Bic pens make nice stand-offs; add a brass insert to these too. [image]

Holy crap those look cool, and $$$ tho lol. I think i found something that will getcme by till i can find an affordable source of 3d printing. Started by making this using popsicle stick under tape to bind all the pin cubes in a line as if a single peice, then pinched these out of my helping hands pouch for saudering. And 2x side tape. [20230728_200700] [20230728_200715] Then i happened to notice by random luck, these wall stickies meant to mount wired frames without drilling the wall slide in these division slots petfectly. So i ised the little built in stand off and wire feed to zip tie the finger nail size boards without resorting to drilling or adhesives on the pcb. [20230728_200603] [20230728_200743] Then i got lucky again with these pegboard claws holding tight to the mounting holes and a popsicle stick feeding through the same wire feed used earlier. Again zip tie keeping pcb fully clean. [20230728_203419] Also i can maybe use thar 2x side tape on those things to stick em to a keeper project. Now just need to find a solution for my speakers, buzzers, servos and motors. Now just need to find several more of those divider trays for all the other modules. I meant to buy a 7" lcd for making a fpv headset, got a 2.4" by accident, then 2nd try i somehow got a 0.96" OLED, so uh yea, no clue what to use them on, and i bought 12 gyros thinking i needed 1 for every axis + speed direction to track. And 2 mini pro that has no pins at all just sauder pads. So yea, been 1.5 months and ive barely made a dent in identify this stuff, but the next tutorial in the book is using a twisty knob to make a line of led move from none on to all. Lol. [20230728_210002] Is this normal collection for getting started? When i ordered it off amazon i tried to add some of everything i knew at the time i need for sure to swap my rc car and drone pcbs for arduinos. Would anyone consider being my mentor for all this stuffs?

[image] mythn7: Would anyone consider being my mentor for all this stuffs? Well, you have quite a few volunteers on this site that do just that. Ask your hardware and software questions and you will get a myriad of responses. For electronic hardware stuff go thru the 1000+ posts on this thread; many suggested techniques that you can master. [image] Share tips you have come across General Electronics This post will contain the index for this thread. This is going to be a work in progress Links to topics will be added so you can select a topic covered (in alphabetical order). Jump Links 123 blocks 44 Button IR remote Advanced electronic videos Alligator clip DIY tool Alligator Clip 3rd Hand to Binder Clip Alligator clip soldering aid tool examples Anti static wrist strap Arduino As ISP Arduino links of interest Arduino protection for pins when bread boarding Battery connector r…

If the print shop is looking at that view, a very big cost is that nearly every component is a different color. That means each part is going to be printing individually, followed by an employee spending the time to change filament color. A printer with multiple heads would help, but that would need a more expensive printer and require multiple filament changes between prints. [image] mythn7: And one of the reasons I had mentioned 3D printing is really not desirable for me is because this file they estimate at $450 to print once at more than one of my cities walk in print shops. [20230728_133247] The total length and width of that entire collage of parts does not exceed 17 in by 17 in, so I really don't understand why getting this printed off to hold a fraction of my parts costs over four times more than all the parts themselves.

No they know that tinkercad picks s diff color automatically when imported. Each of those patrs actually has a separate stl, i just did that mash up for the est cost as i file to send them.

Tips for these type of mounting holes

Other Hardware General Electronics

LarryD July 28, 2023, 9:47pm 25

These links might stir some ideas in you brain:

B920×895 389 KB

Share tips you have come across General Electronics

Blind Mounting Screws for PCB Stand-Offs The following describes a simple method for making effective low profile mounting feet for PCBs. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Mounting feet. 1/4” wide acrylic plastic strips are made with a CNC machine or a router. A centered 1/8” dado is made down the length of the 1/4” strips. These strips are .064” thick with the dado set to .032” Drill centered (on the dado) M2 holes every 1/…

Twelve882×630 42.2 KB

Share tips you have come across General Electronics

4 component mounting shoes: [Fourteen.jpg] I like to use a standoff that is a bit longer than the material is thick. [Sixteen.jpg] Video speed has been sped up. [642F1132-7125-4BC8-975A-FBCE222516A3.gif]

6832×790 152 KB

Share tips you have come across General Electronics

Blind Standoffs, Mounting Feet for PCBs See also, post #1110 We have covered chassis PCB mounting without the need of drilling through the chassis itself. This method used a M2 brass insert in an Acrylic foot; the height of the finished foot is about 3.5 mm. The assembly is glue welded with DCM (Methylene Chloride) to the chassis inside surface. There are, however, times when the 3.5 mm brass insert foot is too high. See also: About 6 months ago I ordered Phillips M2 FLAT headed …

G908×934 211 KB

Share tips you have come across General Electronics

Further to Post #940 The blind screw in the above post can rotate when the brass standoff is tightened. The following images show how to modify the flat headed screw to prevent the screw from rotating. [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [H] [I] [J]

E828×854 147 KB

Share tips you have come across General Electronics

Tightening a Nut on a Blind Standoff Screw See also post #1110 It is very difficult to tighten a nut on a screw when you have no access to the screw head. A while back we discussed making a blind standoff. The nut used in the blind standoff can be quite difficult to tighten as the screw rotates. Using a modified brass standoff, we can make an effective tool to easily accomplish this task. Note: the brass standoff is made from brass and is tapped for an M2 thread. The very useful razor saw…

B915×945 350 KB

Share tips you have come across General Electronics

Convert a Stand-Off from One Thread Type to Another If you have a selection of threaded brass inserts, use these to modify an existing stand-off thread. The following images show the easy process. Simply compress the brass insert into the stand-off hole. You may have to enlarge the hole to accept the brass insert. You can also heat insert using a soldering iron. [A] [B] [C] [D] BTW Old Bic pens make nice stand-offs; add a brass insert to these too. [image]

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Tips for these type of mounting holes

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