November 22, 2024
Description
UPDATE: I slightly tweaked the HDD baseplane, now the hdd slides perfectly. Every tenth of a millimeter counts.Â
UPDATE 2: I modified the HDD part and removed the extrusion. I uploaded the full fusion 360 file under the name v2.1, and the modified hdd part under the name v2.Â
I purchased a Jonsbo N4 case, which provides 4 hot swap hdd bay, and 2-2 non-hot-swap ssd and hdd bay. It would be only a minor inconvenience, if the case was easily maintainable, but unfortunately you have to disassemble half the computer if you want to replace these drives.
Hence came the idea to do something about it. I found some cheap sata extensions on Alixpress, and I built some structure around it. It has two main parts, one for the ssd part and one for the hdd, both contain multiple subparts.
The sata extenders I used:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007461202952.html
I secured the ssd part with some M3 screws and nuts together, it does not move and provides quite solid structure. I used two M4x40 vertically for some extra rigidity. For the hdd part, I only used the same M4x40 screws for binding together, just pushed through, no nuts. This is a littlebit flimsy, but does its job.
The wiring can still be a p.i.t.a. because its a tight fit and the sata power and data cable rigidity can be an issue, but at the end its finally working as intended. Its not hot swap, so turn off your computer before pulling out the drives, but you can replace those drives with relative ease now.
The tolerances and sizes might be a little bit different for you, but feel free to update/modify for your needs.
License:
Creative Commons - Attribution - Non-Commercial - Share Alike