Best methods for mounting components inside an enclosure?

NeverDie said:
Sounds like you're describing something like this?
 
endgrommet1.JPG

 
http://speedtechinternational.com/cinch-strap-end-grommet.aspx
 
Come to think of it, I bet a lot of Velcro could be made "screwable" for low weight items if you simply clamped it with washers on either side and then torqued it tight when you screwed through the velcro and the washers.  Then you'd be relying on clamping force, not shearing resistance, so you wouldn't need the expensive metal grommets.  I'm not sure it would be necessary, but you could even add a typical locking nut under the screwhead, but before the washer, to help guarantee minimal clamping force over time.
 
I'm guessing this might be a very feasible ghetto approach that would work very well!   :)   What do you all think?  Would it work?  Anyone here ever tried it?
 
One other thing that comes to mind for a mounting material is the plastic "velcro" that they use for EZ Pass transponders in cars.  Whatever the glue is, it sure stands up to heat and cold.  During the summer, the inside of my car gets to be over 130 degrees when sitting out in the sun.    I've never had the strips fall off, even after 10 years.
 
[Edit]:
 
The official name for this stuff appears to be "3M Dual Lock Fasteners."
 
In NY, if you call up the EZ Pass folks, they will send you a bunch of additional fasteners at no charge.
 
RAL said:
RAL, on 31 May 2014 - 12:49, said:
One other thing that comes to mind for a mounting material is the plastic "velcro" that they use for EZ Pass transponders in cars. Whatever the glue is, it sure stands up to heat and cold. During the summer, the inside of my car gets to be over 130 degrees when sitting out in the sun. I've never had the strips fall off, even after 10 years.

[Edit]:

The official name for this stuff appears to be "3M Dual Lock Fasteners."

In NY, if you call up the EZ Pass folks, they will send you a bunch of additional fasteners at no charge.
 
Good catch!
 
According to the 3M web site, this particular Dual Lock fastener "has an acrylic adhesive that performs up to 200 degrees fahrenheit and is 5 times stronger than a traditional hook and loop fastener."
 
There are other versions of the Dual Lock fastener that have slightly different temperature specs.  I found other temperature ratings of 120, 158, 180, 200 and 220 degrees.
 
RAL said:
According to the 3M web site, this particular Dual Lock fastener "has an acrylic adhesive that performs up to 200 degrees fahrenheit and is 5 times stronger than a traditional hook and loop fastener."
 
There are other versions of the Dual Lock fastener that have slightly different temperature specs.  I found other temperature ratings of 120, 158, 180, 200 and 220 degrees.
 
Great info, RAL!
 
Not sure if this is the same or not:
 
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(http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00347A8EO/ref=pd_luc_sbs_03_02_t_lh?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
but if it is the same, then maybe even some local retailers would carry it.
 
Although 3M gives temperature specs on the bulk quantities of the dual lock fasteners, I haven't found any temperature specs to go with the consumer packages.   Frustrating!  Maybe a phone call to them might help get that info.
 
NeverDie said:
I'm not disagreeing, but let's take it a step further and get down to brass tacks (so to speak):  which industrial velcro, and where can you get it conveniently in reasonable lengths (i.e. not 100 foot rolls)?  Also, what's the shelf life prior to application?
I bought my Industrial Velcro at Home Depot.  I originally used it in my enclosure about 5 years ago, but replaced the modem with one that has keyholes for mounting.  I've used it on various projects, holds up well - thought not sure of heat resistance.
 
I most recently used it to fix a phone cradle to my bathroom granite vanity top, about 18 mos ago.  Has been holding up a WAP (Ubiquiti Unifi) to the underside of a cabinet shelf for about a year and a half.  Holds a small DirecTV client to the back of a slim TV (1 year); before that it was a small Comcast box.
 
I prefer screws in enclosures, personally, once you know something is fairly permanent.  But even screws are easily changed.
 
I have a few Velcro One-Wrap ties holding cables behind drywall, drilled to the studs, no grommets.  Extra cables, for future use, coiled and fixed to studs.
 
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Velcro One-Wrap is also available at Home Depot, gray and black 2-pack.
pACE3-997164t181.jpg

 
 
A handful of these, plus Velcro or zip ties, might be good for mounting your hardware in your enclosure:
 
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I bought my Industrial Velcro at Home Depot.  I originally used it in my enclosure about 5 years ago, but replaced the modem with one that has keyholes for mounting.  I've used it on various projects, holds up well - thought not sure of heat resistance.
 
I did too.  They were OK but the little toll pass device 3M Velcro stickems were better yet....
 
I had to give up my toll device a couple of years ago (well I really liked it cuz it beeped and showed all of the toll booths records in a little LCD screen).  That said they switched me over to one that doesn't have a display or beep. 
 
While I was there (DOT) grabbed a few handfulls of the velcro mounting strips in little jars next to the registration booths. 
 
Filled up my two pockets with them. 
 
Those tollpass devices are very lightweight though in comparison... 
 
Like I said I do this exact thing all the time - I've listed my methods.  I've tried the industrial Velcro from Home Depot that others are talking about - and it does fail - even if not for a year or two or three - it does fail.  People underestimate the forces at work here over time of just the slightest amount of cable strain working against the Velcro. 
 
Here's Version 1.0 that I did this morning.  My wife had a box of the medium size picture hangers, so I used two per device.  At least so far it feels stable and is holding steady....
 
 
 

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By the way, one of the two TP-Link power splitters proved itself to be defective, so I replaced it with another one.  I would have re-used the hanger on the new splitter , but when I peeled it off the defective splitter, it peeled off the MAC address label with it.  So, lesson learned: hang devices from the shiney sides, not the sides with labels on them.
 

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You don't peel Command Strips.  You pull the foam with a slow, steady motion.  It breaks the adhesion when the foam gets slowly stretched.  The strip is, of course, wrecked in the process, but it leaves the surface with no visible signs of it.  
 
Thanks for pointing that out.  LOL.   :rofl: For some reason I thought those tabs were there to grab on to when peeling them off.  Mea Culpa.
 
I ordered a DIY grommet kit, and I think I may try the Velcro grommet approach when I do the next node.  I haven't mounted that enclosure yet, so it's a better candidate for putting plywood sheeting behind the box for sinking some screws.
 
Yup; here switched from using the Tycon POE splitters to TP-Link POE splitters mostly related to costs. 
 
I have two of the Tycon POE splitters in place and still functioning fine after a couple of years. 
 
They are larger though that the 10 plus TP-Link POE splitters that I have in place today.   Got a deal on the TP-Links.
 
I am pushing a bit on the TP-Link POE adapters with tabletop touchscreen loads which are a bit higher than the non POE IP HD cameras.
 
I've been able to get my tabletop touchscreens to work with the integrated Gb NIC such that I may switch all of the 100Mb connections over to Gb mostly related to HD streaming with works for me now on these older Intel Atom based devices.
 
Before settling on the TP-Link though did try a variety of "name brand" POE injectors; thinking they all failed and actually melted their cases.   The generic "name brand" POE injectors were the same price as the Tycon POE injectors.  This related though to using them with DD-WRT'd routers rather than cameras or touchscreens.
 
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