Boxing rack for SMD and other small things

The writing of this near-thematic article was prompted by prolonged isolation measures and the accompanying boredom and the desire to do something with myself. Please treat it as a “Friday entertainment” article. But maybe someone will be useful! No arduin, only plywood and silicone!

So, being in thought, where to stuff any small things, like lying in vain in different boxes and bags, I turned my eyes to the familiar to many parents (and not only to them) various kinds of non-spill containers, which looked like this:



I found this approach interesting - in fact, the container is always closed and in the presence of sclerosis, the chance to scatter everything due to the unclosed container lid is minimized. That is why there are no boxes similar in design for small things?

As usual in my case - there is no one prepared according to certain criteria - they drank it themselves! Fortunately there was plenty of free time.

First of all, it was necessary to choose how to make lids with petals themselves. From what - the question is beyond competition. Silicone is an ideal candidate in its properties. And here's how, you need to think. Either cut the petals on a solid sheet and fix it, or make it as part of the frame of a building neutral sealant or molded tin two-component silicone.

The following points convinced me to choose the last option:

• I wanted to get transparent covers. And sheets of transparent silicone are not so easy to get.
• If you make silicone inserts as part of the frame, then in general the design will be more compact and simpler - you can just glue it.

It remains to determine the number of petals and from which silicone to form:



5 petals in my opinion was optimal.

Further testing of silicones. Building neutral sealant:

+ excellent adhesion after polymerization
- it is very difficult to evenly fill the cavities. thick, sticky and viscous.

Injected two-component tin silicone:

+ due to fluidity evenly fills the cavity and leaves few defects
- adhesion. well, just no. very easy to separate after polymerization.

This is where the dilemma came up: either fill it with a building sealant and put up with defects or look for ways to increase the adhesion of injection molding. I did not want the first one at all, so I decided to experiment with an increase in adhesion.

Fortunately, the answer turned out to be very close - applying a thin layer of building sealant before pouring the two-component solution solved the peeling problem. In my opinion, it was no worse than just building.

Of course, the need to apply a sublayer of one silicone and then pour another makes the procedure very confused and it would not be unreasonable to just make a layer from a sheet of silicone and fasten the sandwich with at least screws. But the materials have already been acquired, the procedure is more or less worked out. It remains only to make.

Next is a matter of technology. Sketch a drawing for cutting sheet materials (plywood and a sheet of thin polycarbonate for the bottom). A4 dimensions, cavity diameter 19mm (although up to 21 can be increased):


Project source files

Set of convenience foods. Top with 3mm engraving. The body of the future boxing is recruited from a stack of boards with the calculation of the height of the body should be greater than the radius of the cavity:



Well, and, as previously described, the sequence of actions:

• glued boxing body
• the upper part is filled with silicone
• laser cutting cuts the petals on the top again
• glue the top and then the bottom of the transparent plastic with the body

It remains to fill in the components and keep their records. Top view:



Bottom view:



In the end, I am satisfied. The components are held securely by the petals inside the box and there is no need to worry if the container has closed after use. Filling and retrieving components is not particularly difficult. Although, when backfilling, there is a chance that the petal will spring and send inadvertently a stuck component into the stratosphere in an unknown direction.

Thank you for your time, dear reader! Criticism, suggestions and know-how are welcome! Well, take care of yourself and loved ones in this difficult time!