Making the Waysmall case fit better

I don't know about you, but my waysmall case didn't fit worth a darn when I got it. It kept popping apart. I decided to see what I could do to make it fit better.

Circuit Board Flash

I didn't take any pictures of my gumstix before I filed the flash off (I call it flash, because it's similar to the flash you get when you build plastic models), so I took a picture of another circuit board to show what I'm talking about. I carefully filed down the flash on all 4 sides until the sides were nice and straight. Bigger...

Lip should be clear

Make sure that there isn't any crud in the lip. There's a lip on each side that the waysmall buddy board rests on. Bigger...

Flash filed down

Here you can see the remnants of the flash on the buddy board. Bigger...

Serial connectors filed down

I also found that I had to file down the edges of the serial connector in order to get the board to sit properly. The red connector was added by me. It's a KK Molex connector for hooking up a battery. I crazy glued it to the buddy board, and soldered it to the battery connector. The red wire (positive) goes to the rear of the power connector. The black wire (negative) goes to the left side of the power connector. The power connector acts as a switch and if you plug in the power jack, then the left side is disconnected from the right side, so plugging in the power disconnects the battery. Bigger...

Test Fit

When you test fit, this white tab should touch the edge of the board, and it should touch all along the length of the tab. Before I filed off the serial connectors, I couldn't get the buddy board to sit square like it's pictured here. With the serial connector edges filed off, everything fit well. Bigger...

Enlarge around power plug

I also found that the power plug didn't quite line up with the hole that was in the case, so I enlarged the hole. Bigger...

Fits well

Now the case actually snaps together and it's difficult to take apart. I got a little carried away clearing out around the battery connector. Bigger...

Fits well

Good fit from the other side too. Bigger...


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Copyright 2010 by Dave Hylands