maestro panel mount

N9VC

What are the specs on the screws for the panel mount. I have an
outboard mod I want to do to the Maestro and need screws that
would be about 1/4 to 1/2 inch longer and need to know the thread
specs.

Tim - W4TME

It is a 100mm VESA mount.  It uses M4 (nom. diameter & thread) x 10mm (length) @ 0.7 pitch.

N9VC

Thanks very much Tim. This will give me the info I need to get the correct screws. Basically I plan
to put a  new cover on the back to replace the snap-on cover. The cover will be raised about a
1/4 inch to allow for ventilation. Then I will use velcro on the replacement cover to hold the battery
pack external to the Maestro. I will then have the option to use over-sized battery packs, with more
capacity or different case sizes. I have a small USB extender to go to the external battery and will
facilitate swapping packs. This will also leave the astethics alone so it can go back to new condition.
I explored this idea when I purchased a power bank that was .12 thicker than the space would
allow and there was no way the cover would have snapped into place.
So thank you very much again.

73, Jim N9VC

N9VC

Wow I really butchered aesthetics. Sorry.

Jeffrey Kerber, N3VE

Jim, please post some pictures when you are finished.

Jeff

ka7gzr

Jim

I had the same thought. kind of like a cell phone with a larger battery cover that bulges out. I have three  S3/15000 mAh batteries that don't quite fit. They are ~ 20.4 cm thick violating the 19.1cm of the Maestro  battery compartment. I can close the battery cover but it bulges slightly.

I would be interest in participating- let me know.

Jim

ka7gzr

N9VC

OK, I will try to make it pretty. No duct tape or bailing wire.

N9VC

Hi,

A couple were wondering about my escapade with a back panel for the Maestro
to allow for oversized battery packs. Well here it is. I had looked at different
items such as a plastic transparent clipboard and a small kitchen cutting
board. But they would have been too difficult to work with, (clipboard) or too
thick. (cutting board) I settled on an item I picked up in the amateur radio
department at Walmart. OK, the craft's department. It's called a 'Chalkboard
Notched Sign". A laminated thin black panel which was perfect. Actually my wife,
NX9K, spotted it and it turned out to be just the item I was thinking of. $2.97
+ tax and home we went.
First pic shows the relative shape as it would appear in the store. The cut right
near the sticker was a practice cut. I used a high quality hack saw with a new blade.
Where I made the cut, I covered with duct tape to prevent splintering of the edge.
Another NX9K idea.
Then I was careful to drill the holes so I would have access to the handle. Further
refinement of overall size would take care of that also. But, then again, I am one of
the 5 laziest people in the world. After the cut, I used a permanent black marker to
darken the edge.
I oversized the holes slightly to make it easy to align the panel with the holes on
the Maestro. Utilizing the vesa mount holes on the Maestro's back means the ability
to return it to stock factory, if I were to sell the Maestro. But that won't happen
anytime soon. Guaranteed.
The last pic shows the oversized battery mounted on the new external panel.




73, Jim N9VC

Most can see photography was not my career in life