- May 31, 2016
- 222
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1) I wanted to make use of my old, smaller capacity solid state drives, in an external hotswap type situation. There were no single SSD hotswap bays available. There were bays for two 2.5 inch drives or bays for other combinations but not what I wanted and expensive to boot. So I ended up making my own for only a few dollars and ended up looking reasonably professional.
2) I purchased a few parts including
3) Very handy if you have molex power connectors on your PSU. If not I don't suggest glueing a PSU SATA connector directly into the assembly. Find some sort of SATA extension connector.
The tools required are
side cutters
phillips screwdriver
electric drill
file
4) As you can see in the picture I peeled back some of the USB enclosure to make a platform. I just snipped away with side cutters and bent back the aluminium to break it off. Connecting the SATA connectors to the SSD I then placed the SSD into the drive bay and positioned it where I wanted. Then I just glued the connectors to the enclosure. Be careful you don't get glue on the SSD. Also make sure you disable the locking mechanism on the SATA data connector otherwise your SSD will be locked in permanently. When the glue has dried you can pull the SSD out.
5) You can see I just disabled the locking mechanism with a couple of tiny screws that came with the USB enclosure. I also drilled a hole in the USB enclosure and used a nut and bolt to secure it to the SSD tray assembly.
6) I then used more epoxy to glue the USB enclosure into place. Before glueing consider the location of the USB enclosure (see step 7). I think the glue will hold it without the screw but I did it just for extra strength.
7) Then you can put the entire assembly into a 5.25" bay. Before glueing you need to position the USB enclosure in the desired location. I positioned it flush with the front of the case. You could however positon it deeper inside if you want a hidden hotswap bay. This was one consideration as I wasn't sure I wanted to cut a slot in the bay cover. In the end I bit the bullet and added a slot. Firstly I made a cardboard template to help cut the slot in the right place and cellotaped it to the front of the bay cover.
First using a drill I made holes down the centre of the slot. Then using the file I slowly expanded the slot until it was just the right size. The plastic of my corsair case is quite soft and easy to drill/file.
The finished product turned out pretty neat. The SSD slots in and out nicely.
So why would you go through the trouble of doing this when you can just buy a USB flashdrive that does the same job? Firstly SATA is quicker than USB. SSD's come in larger capacities although I envisaged the port to utilise my older, obsolete drives. But the biggest reason is security. Other folks don't know what an SSD is. They are less likely to borrow it as they would a USB drive and certainly less likely to try and connect it. The original tutorial can be found on my website HERE
2) I purchased a few parts including
cheap USB 2.5 HDD enclosure
a Molex to SATA connector. (If your PSU doesn't have molex you'll have to provide the SATA power plug a different way)
a SATA data cable
some epoxy resin
5.25" to 3.5" brackets
3.5" to 2.5" SATA tray
3) Very handy if you have molex power connectors on your PSU. If not I don't suggest glueing a PSU SATA connector directly into the assembly. Find some sort of SATA extension connector.
The tools required are
side cutters
phillips screwdriver
electric drill
file
4) As you can see in the picture I peeled back some of the USB enclosure to make a platform. I just snipped away with side cutters and bent back the aluminium to break it off. Connecting the SATA connectors to the SSD I then placed the SSD into the drive bay and positioned it where I wanted. Then I just glued the connectors to the enclosure. Be careful you don't get glue on the SSD. Also make sure you disable the locking mechanism on the SATA data connector otherwise your SSD will be locked in permanently. When the glue has dried you can pull the SSD out.
5) You can see I just disabled the locking mechanism with a couple of tiny screws that came with the USB enclosure. I also drilled a hole in the USB enclosure and used a nut and bolt to secure it to the SSD tray assembly.
6) I then used more epoxy to glue the USB enclosure into place. Before glueing consider the location of the USB enclosure (see step 7). I think the glue will hold it without the screw but I did it just for extra strength.
7) Then you can put the entire assembly into a 5.25" bay. Before glueing you need to position the USB enclosure in the desired location. I positioned it flush with the front of the case. You could however positon it deeper inside if you want a hidden hotswap bay. This was one consideration as I wasn't sure I wanted to cut a slot in the bay cover. In the end I bit the bullet and added a slot. Firstly I made a cardboard template to help cut the slot in the right place and cellotaped it to the front of the bay cover.
First using a drill I made holes down the centre of the slot. Then using the file I slowly expanded the slot until it was just the right size. The plastic of my corsair case is quite soft and easy to drill/file.
The finished product turned out pretty neat. The SSD slots in and out nicely.
So why would you go through the trouble of doing this when you can just buy a USB flashdrive that does the same job? Firstly SATA is quicker than USB. SSD's come in larger capacities although I envisaged the port to utilise my older, obsolete drives. But the biggest reason is security. Other folks don't know what an SSD is. They are less likely to borrow it as they would a USB drive and certainly less likely to try and connect it. The original tutorial can be found on my website HERE
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