MOTM

I did this, too. I used 10U rails screwed into 'picture frames' that I made  
out of 1x2" furring strip. The actual thickness of "1" is 0.75", so the 1.5"  
added width on each side makes the frames exactly 19" wide to fit inside a  
standard rack. 5- 2U MOTM modules wide. My motivation was to have the  width 
match up with my frac-rack stuff.
 
I built a wooden enclosure to hold two frames (one above,  one below, so far 
;) . After some experimentation, I angled the bottom  frame so cables plugged 
into the upper modules would better clear  space in front of the knobs 
underneath. I figure I can easily unscrew a  frame and mount it anywhere, or put on 
rack-like ears at the sides to fit them  into a standard rack. I can build a 
bigger box and put more frames in at  different angles, or whatever. 
Illumination could be installed above each  angled row for a performance situation.
 
I discovered the standard rack rails (Mid-Atlantic?) had slightly less than  
a perfect 90 degree bend in them. So, I first screwed each horizontal rail 
onto  a wood strip, then mounted a module on each end of each pair of  rails to 
be sure the bolts went in easy. This established the relative  angle of the top 
and bottom pieces of wood. I then drilled and screwed  for the side pieces of 
the frame while the end modules were in place. The  modules wouldn't bolt in 
straight and easy if the top and bottom of the frame  weren't first aligned in 
the Z-axis. After establishing the shape, I  beefed up the corners of the 
frames with flat metal angles to be  sure it doesn't shift.
 
For mounting the modules in the rails, I used standard rack bolts with  nylon 
washers. Personally "rack rash" doesn't bother me, but since people  mention 
it when describing the condition of their gear, I figure why not  prevent it. 
The pliable nature of the washers also seem to help maintain  secure mounting 
of the modules. 
 
I took pictures of the process, and can post some of them on the group site  
if anyone is interested.
 
-Karl.
 
In a message dated 5/28/2008 12:37:59 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
dave@... writes:

I used  standard rack rails running horizontally when I built my cabinet. 
Standard  rack screws will fit through the holes, but the large heads 
tend to  obscure some of the panel graphics. I just looked around for 
some of the  same size (10-32?) with a small head. Found some allen head 
ones that work  nicely and are stainless steel so the little heads help 
as markers for  module boundaries as well. Due to the arc of the rail 
bend you end up with  about 1/8" gap top and bottom but I think they work  
fine.







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